CHESTER
The Setting for What The Silk Mercer's Daughter Saw
The second volume in the Theo Bryght, Runner Mystery series takes place in an English market town called Chester, located in Cheshire. I was intrigued by Chester because the town boasts an architectural feature that's not found anywhere else in England: the Rows.
What are the Rows? In the picture to the left, do you see the stairs leading up from the street and the white railings on the second floor of the building? This marks the entrance to a covered, second-floor balcony call a Row. There are Rows on each of Chester's four main streets in its old city center: Bridge Street, Watergate, Northgate and Eastgate.
These Rows and the vaults - or undercrofts - beneath them date back to the Medieval period. No one knows for sure why they were built, and visitors to Chester throughout the ages have expressed mixed feelings about both their usefulness and aesthetic qualities. But to see why I felt the Rows would be a great setting for a mystery, keep reading.
What are the Rows? In the picture to the left, do you see the stairs leading up from the street and the white railings on the second floor of the building? This marks the entrance to a covered, second-floor balcony call a Row. There are Rows on each of Chester's four main streets in its old city center: Bridge Street, Watergate, Northgate and Eastgate.
These Rows and the vaults - or undercrofts - beneath them date back to the Medieval period. No one knows for sure why they were built, and visitors to Chester throughout the ages have expressed mixed feelings about both their usefulness and aesthetic qualities. But to see why I felt the Rows would be a great setting for a mystery, keep reading.
The Roodee
Since my story begins with the death of a racehorse - The Miller of Dee - I had to include this picture of the Roodee, which claims to be the oldest racecourse in England. There were no races going on when I visited Chester in a chilly November, since the racing season is in the spring and summer - but those grey skies were fine with me, since my mystery is set in the autumn.
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The Bear and Billet Pub
There are so many wonderful walks and sights in Chester that I couldn't include all of them in my story. But I couldn't not include this public house and inn - the Bear and Billet - which dates back to 1664. This is where Theo Bryght and Lord Lauferby stay while they're trying to discover who killed Thomas Steele and The Miller of Dee - and, of course, find out What the Silk Mercer's Daughter Saw.
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