Stephen Booth

 
 
Region: Bakewell
Hope Valley
  

Follow in the footsteps of Cooper and Fry

 

Scared to Live is Stephen Booth's seventh Fry and Cooper novelScared to Live is Stephen Booth's seventh Fry and Cooper novel   Cover of dancing with virginsCover of dancing with virgins  Cover of One Last BreathCover of One Last Breath  Cover of Black DogCover of Black Dog

 

He has a great gift of getting the flavour of the Peak District across

Stephen Booth’s website Reader’s Page fan

 

Local Bobbies go global

Stephen Booth has inspired an obsession among his global readership for discovering the real-life Peak District locations of events in his award-winning crime novels.  A glance at his Reader’s Page establishes how the Peaks live for avid readers all over the world. 
 

Cooper and Fry

Detectives Ben Cooper, born and bred locally, and spiky incomer Diane Fry play out their tricky working relationship in the symbolically rich hills and valleys of the gritstone Dark Peak and the limestone White. Fictional Edendale valley and town are inspired by the view of Hope Valley from Surprise View car park (SK252802) on the A625 (a good place to start scenic walks).
  

Photo of Hope Valley from Suprise View - the inspiration for Booth's EdendalePhoto of Hope Valley from Suprise View - the inspiration for Booth's Edendale

 

An authentic voice of the Peaks

Booth’s details ring true: the climate and seasons, wildlife, contrasts between valley-bottom life and harsher remote hillside living, characters’ names and even the ways people speak are strikingly authentic. Booth knows the Peak District.
  

Photo of Stephen BoothPhoto of Stephen Booth

  

‘The Peak District has everything I could need – atmospheric locations, thousands of years of history, its own unique conflicts.’ Stephen Booth

 

Click here to read more of what Stephen has to reveal about how the Peak District inspires his work.
 

Make your own trail

So, here are some pointers to help you construct your own trail in the footsteps of Cooper and Fry.  Watch out for bodies!

 

Cover of Blood on the TongueCover of Blood on the Tongue   Cover of Blind to the BonesCover of Blind to the Bones  Cover of The Dead PlaceCover of The Dead Place
  
Stanton Moor’s Nine Ladies stone circle appears In Dancing with the Virgins, the nine stones are shockingly made ten. Birchover village offers food and accommodation.  Visit nearby Rowter Rocks caves, Thomas Eyre’s retreat, and Robin Hood’s Stride with its extraordinary cave-hewn crucifix.  
 
To the north, One Last Breath explores the labyrinthine tunnels and caverns of Castleton.
 
Blood on the Tongue takes us north to Dam Busters territory at the Derwent and Howden reservoirs along Snake Pass.
 
Blind to the Bones uses the local well-dressing tradition and strongly employs the Dark and White Peak symbolism. 
 
Climbers’ heaven Ravensdale is chillingly evoked in super-eery The Dead Place.
 

Access and orientation

Stanton Moor: Nine Ladies and Rowter Rocks are accessed by signed footpaths.  Accommodation and food in neighbouring villages.  Ravensdale: between Wardlow, Litton and Cressbrookdale, limited parking. Nearby Miller’s Dale and Monsal Dale provide beautiful varied walking, cycling and steamside picnic spots, with food, accommodation, parking and toilets at Monsal Head, where you can access the wide flat Monsal Trail over an impressive viaduct.
 
Click these links for Castleton and Derwent and Howden reservoirs.
 
For information on well dressings and this year’s events list, see www.derbyshire-peakdistrict.co.uk/welldressings1.htm
  

Visit Stanton Moor, Millers Dale, Monsal Dale, Castleton and Upper Derwent by public transport

Castleton is well served by buses, with direct services from Sheffield and Bakewell.  Stanton Moor can be reached using either a direct service from Bakewell to Matlock, or the service between these two towns via Stanton in Peak.  Millers Dale has direct bus services from Buxton, Chesterfield and Sheffield, while services from Bakewell to Castleton call at Monsal Head.  The Upper Derwent is served by buses from Sheffield seven days a week, and a much wider area – including Manchester – on weekends and Bank Holidays.  Look for services to Ashopton or Fairholmes in the online journey planner.
For details on all these services visit Traveline or ring Traveline on 0871 200 2233.