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Bloody Fool for Love

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Btvs The subject of this article is non-canonical.
While created as part of licensed material, it has not been confirmed as part of the "real" Buffyverse continuity.
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Bloody Fool for Love is a Buffy the Vampire Slayer novel. Written by William Ritter, it was originally published on August 2, 2022, by Hyperion Avenue.

Synopsis[]

Bloody Fool for Love from New York Times best-selling author William Ritter marks the beginning of an all-new series that explores prequel stories about fan-favorite Buffy characters.

A verified villain. A slayer killer. A god among vampires. And most of all? A hopeless romantic…

Spike just wants to enjoy the spoils of his new badass reputation. He's now a legendary slayer killer, and he's returning to London — the greatest city in the world. Unfortunately, his new abode is far from ideal (a dank basement), and the rest of his strange little "family" is reeling from the fact that their patriarch, Angelus, abandoned them. Spike's love, Drusilla, seems especially heartbroken and spends her time lost in her tarot cards and planning their next gruesome family dinner when they all can be reunited.

Desperate to break Dru out of her melancholy, Spike vows to steal a powerful relic that will help her focus on their dark future together. It's the perfect plan — that is until a monster named Gunnar, leader of the demon underworld of London, steals the relic first. Forced to form his own ragtag group of underworld denizens, Spike plans an epic heist against a ruthless gang of undead criminals. As he navigates paranormal plots, royal black ops, and breaks for teatime (they may be abominations, but they're British abominations, thank you very much), Spike soon realizes that his homecoming is about to get bloody.

This rompy, action-packed novel inspired by one of Buffy's most infamous bad boys is part Bonnie and Clyde, part Sherlock and Watson, with just a bit more bloodsucking.[1]

Summary[]

China, 1900. Spike, Drusilla, and Darla leave the burning Beijing. Spike has just killed his first Slayer, but the three are numb from the news that Angelus has a soul.

England, 1901. The three vampires live in a dusty basement in London. Drusilla reads the tarot for Spike: he is currently discontent, and his greatest obstacle is hastiness — which Darla strongly agrees with, recalling the many times she helped him escape a mess he had created. Drusilla then turns the three final cards: new beginnings, broken trust, and destruction.

Walking alone through the streets, Spike finds a drunken woman crying. Her tears move him, and they talk about what saddened her. Miss Eriksson shows him a rejection letter and cries more about being a failure for having nothing published at twenty-three. Spike shares he used to write too and, despite not being good at it, he wouldn't be the man he is if not for pouring himself into it and being rejected.

Spike continues walking through the streets, frustrated that he decided not to kill the woman. He runs into J.P. Bockspurn, the editor who signed Miss Eriksson's rejection letter. Spike confronts him, and Mr. Bockspurn explains he publishes "serious literature," not "vulgar horror" about "some ridiculous monster." Spike vamps and disappears with Mr. Bockspurn.

Spike carries Mr. Bockspurn's remains to the Shady Shop. The clerk, Gus, is excited with the news that Spike killed a Slayer and says the vampire can now charge twice for his services; Mad McElroy is currently putting together a team for a heist soon, but Spike says he is nobody's hired goon anymore. Gus comments that, with his new elevated status, Spike could have a book about him like Dracula has. Spike ridicules the idea and instead wants to buy a parasol for Drusilla. He also asks for something that could make someone get over the past and look forward. Gus suggests Spike find the Relic of Saint Agabus.

The sun has risen, and Spike walks home through the sewers. He hears steps ahead of him and attacks the oncoming large vampire until they recognize each other. Harry Hammond offers a job as muscle, but Spike says he couldn't afford him now even if Spike were open. Hammond says Spike could use the money to find a place to live better than "a moldy hole in the ground." Spike confides his anger about Angelus making everything about him and leaving Drusilla the same night of Spike's glory. Hammond says Spike is "the cock of the roost" now, making Spike feel the parasol is an inadequate gift. The two vampires depart with the promise that Spike will consider the job offer.

Spike arrives home without a gift, disappointing Drusilla, but he promises her a better place to stay. Darla finds Spike alone, holding a ticket, and he reveals he found the single-person, one-way passage to Germany; Spike knows Drusilla is planning to go after Angelus without them. He says he has to find some way to help Drusilla get over Angelus and feel content with Spike, or he'll lose her. Darla takes the ticket and does not tell Spike it's hers.

Darla meets with Elita from the Order of Aurelius concerning the Master's invitation for Darla to rejoin them. Elita is in London to fulfill the prophecy that one from their bloodline will save the Old One Sorm. Darla intends to go to the Master, but, for now, she feels she still has responsibility over Drusilla.

The next evening, Drusilla points to Spike a report on the holy reliquary of Saint Agabus: the left pinkie finger of the patron saint of fortune-tellers is currently in the Westminster Cathedral. He promises to get it for her, and Darla takes Spike aside to chastise him for making promises he can't fulfill.

Spike, Drusilla, and Darla go to their appointment with the London Vampires' Guild. Darla notices that Lord Ruthven is the only chancellor present, and he tells her that, while Claudia and Varney are dead, Count Orlok has been missing for several months. He explains that the demonic clans have been centralizing under a new leader, a Hastam demon called Gunnar, and their brazen actions have called the attention of humans enough to mobilize the secret guards of Blackhearth. Under these circumstances, Lord Ruthven stresses that hunting is limited for any vampire who wants to stay in London.

(cont.)

Continuity[]

  • The story begins in 1900, just after the flashback of Spike killing his first Slayer in the episode "Fool for Love."
  • Darla and Angelus are described as being each other's "most intimate allies" for a century and a half, since she sired him — in 1753 ("Becoming, Part One") —, and even after Angel sired Drusilla in 1860 ("Dear Boy") and Drusilla sired Spike in 1880 ("Fool for Love"). They parted 145 years later when Angelus gained his soul and Darla rejected him in 1898 ("Five by Five").
  • Spike and Drusilla learn about Angelus's soul after their encounter in the Boxer Rebellion; Spike will not demonstrate this knowledge in their next encounter in 1943 ("Why We Fight"), only confronting him about it in 1997 ("School Hard").
  • Spike complains about Dracula revealing vampires secrets to the world and owing his eleven pounds, as he'll complain again in "Buffy vs. Dracula."
  • Miss Eriksson asks if Spike will kill her like Jack the Ripper, the notorious killer active in 1888 ("Jack").
  • Spike says nobody liked his writing, "not even my own..." He's referring to his mother Anne Pratt and when told him she was "a captive audience for [his] witless prattle" in "Lies My Parents Told Me."
  • Gus suggests Spike a memory-purge spell involving Lethe's bramble, which Willow will cast in "All the Way" and "Tabula Rasa."
  • Hammond is described as haunting the streets of London since back when Darla "still had a heartbeat," which she lost when she became a vampire in 1609 ("Darla").
  • Darla goes to the chambers of the Order of Aurelius for the first time since she introduced Angelus to the Master in 1760 ("Darla").
  • Darla is informed of the Master's crusade to find and open a Hellmouth. He'll become trapped in a church after attempting to open Sunnydale's Hellmouth in 1936 ("The Harvest").
  • The Order of Aurelius is described as descending from Archaeus's bloodline; the demon lord was first mentioned as the demonic essence that inhabits the vampires from the Master's bloodline in Relationship Status: Complicated, Part One.
  • Spike has an habit of mixing oats in the blood because he likes a little texture when he's eating. In 1999, he'll mix breakfast cereal to the blood for the same purpose ("Hush").
  • Darla asks if Spike will take Drusilla next to Milan or Prague, and Drusilla tells Spike they will visit Italy, Prague, and California. They'll visit Italy in the 1950s ("The Girl in Question"), Prague in 1997 ("The Problem with Vampires"), and California in 1997 ("School Hard").
  • Darla sarcastically says Spike might go questing after the Unholy Grail or the Gem of Amara. Spike will find the latter in 1999 ("The Harsh Light of Day").
  • Spike defends the use of the word "effulgent" in literature when Miss Eriksson argues it's antiquated nonsense. "Effulgent" was a significant word for Spike when he wrote his 1880 poem "My soul is wrapped in harsh repose" ("Fool for Love").
  • Gunnar talks to Spike about the significance of taking trophies after dealing with a threat. Spike will take a coat the next time he'll kill a Slayer and wear it for over twenty years ("Fool for Love").
  • Edith has the ability to project her mind into inanimate objects, often doing it to porcelain dolls. By 1997, Drusilla still have the porcelain doll named Miss Edith ("School Hard").
  • Drusilla identifies among Gunnar's treasures a Sobekian blood stone, a Band of Blacknill, and an Orb of Ramjarin, mystical objects featured in the episodes "Shadow," "Reprise," and "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been."
  • Hammond refers to Thesulac demons' power of vanishing, and Drusilla mentions their ability to "whisper terrible secrets to our victims until they go mad," both displayed in the episode "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been."
  • Drusilla says Angelus is going to find her "even if it takes him a hundred years and he has to march through the valley of the sun"; they'll reunite in Sunnydale in 1997 ("Lie to Me"). She adds that "he' going to come back and help [them] destroy the whole world," which will happen after he loses his soul, in the episode "Innocence."

Appearances[]

Individuals[]

  • Angelus (Only mentioned)
  • Archaeus (Only mentioned)
  • Azerom
  • Baden (Only mentioned)
  • Baphomet (Only mentioned)
  • J.P. Bockspurn
  • Chuck
  • Claudia (Only mentioned)
  • Cricklewood
  • Darla
  • Dracula (Only mentioned)
  • Drusilla
  • Edith
  • Elita
  • Eriksson
  • Ermack
  • Gnarl (Only mentioned)
  • Griffin
  • Gunnar
  • Gus
  • Gustav (Only mentioned)
  • Harry Hammond
  • Hoburth (Only mentioned)
  • Jack the Ripper (Only mentioned)
  • Jennifer (Only mentioned)
  • Pipa Jing (Only mentioned)
  • Korvul
  • Lesli (Only mentioned)
  • Master (Only mentioned)
  • Mad McElroy (Only mentioned)
  • Marita (Only mentioned)
  • Minna (Only mentioned)
  • Mister Sticky Whiskers (Only mentioned)
  • Mucker
  • Nicophet (Only mentioned)
  • Olvikan (Only mentioned)
  • Orlok
  • Patchy (Only mentioned)
  • Polidori
  • Anne Pratt (Only mentioned)
  • Rieka
  • Roddy
  • Xin Rong (Only mentioned)
  • Ruthven
  • Marquess of Salisbury
  • Sisseroth
  • Slick Icky (Only mentioned)
  • Sorm
  • Spike
  • Spike (demon) (Only mentioned)
  • Travis
  • Varney (Only mentioned)
  • Wesley

Organizations and titles[]

Species[]

Events[]

  • Darkmarket (Only mentioned)
  • Earthquake (Only mentioned)
  • Vampiric Convention of 1714 (Only mentioned)

Locations[]

  • Beijing, China
  • Czech Republic (Only mentioned)
    • Prague (Only mentioned)
  • England
    • Bristol (Only mentioned)
    • Liverpool (Only mentioned)
    • London
      • Blackfriars Road
      • Buckingham (Only mentioned)
      • Camden Town (Only mentioned)
      • Charing Cross
      • City of Westminster
        • 10 Downing Street
        • Westminster Cathedral (Only mentioned)
        • Westminster Bridge (Only mentioned)
      • Chancery Lane
      • Church of the Most Precious Blood (Only mentioned)
      • Curtain Road
      • Fleet Street
      • Hackney
      • Highgate Cemetery
      • Holywell Street (Only mentioned)
      • Kensington (Only mentioned)
      • Shadwell
        • Lang Building
      • Stamford Street
      • Shady Shop
      • Shepherd's Bush (Only mentioned)
      • Thames (Only mentioned)
      • Victoria Embankment
      • Waterloo
      • Wych Street
        • Gunnar's mansion
    • Manchester (Only mentioned)
    • Sussex (Only mentioned)
    • Wiltshire (Only mentioned)
      • Stonehenge (Only mentioned)
  • France (Only mentioned)
    • Bordeaux (Only mentioned)
    • Paris (Only mentioned)
  • Germany (Only mentioned)
    • Berlin (Only mentioned)
    • Frankfurt (Only mentioned)
    • Munich (Only mentioned)
  • Italy (Only mentioned)
    • Milan (Only mentioned)
  • Philippines (Only mentioned)
  • Russia (Only mentioned)
    • Saint Petersburg (Only mentioned)
  • Sweden (Only mentioned)
    • Stockholm (Only mentioned)
  • United States (Only mentioned)
    • California (Only mentioned)
  • Ukraine (Only mentioned)
    • Kiev (Only mentioned)

Objects[]

Rituals and spells[]

Death count[]

  • Mr. Bockspurn, killed by Spike in Curtain Road (only mentioned).
  • Two priests, killed by Gunnar's goons near the corner of Stamford and Blackfriars (only mentioned).
  • Mucker, beheaded by Gunnar in his mansion.
  • Edith, impaled and beheaded by Gunnar on Wych Street.
  • Gunnar, eaten by Sorm on Wych Street.

Behind the scenes[]

Production[]

Pop culture references[]

  • Darla says a pestilence demon caused the death of Queen Victoria (May 1819 – January 1901).
  • Miss Eriksson cries that Mary Shelley (1797–1851) was only nineteen when she wrote the 1818 novel Frankenstein.
  • Darla reads the first edition of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula.
  • Gus talks about the Biblical Agabus, who received the gift of prophecy and predicted a severe famine.
  • Hammond mentions he has been working in London's underworld since there was a member of the Tudor family still on the throne, which ended with the death of Elizabeth I in 1603.
  • The newspaper reports the Westminster Cathedral as unfinished; the church's construction completed in 1903.
  • Ruthven says Prince Edward VII (1841–1910) mobilized the secret guards of the Buckingham Palace against vampires.
  • Miss Eriksson works for the Liberal newspaper The Westminster Gazette (1893–1928), known for publishing sketches and short stories.
  • Miss Eriksson intends to meet a man who works at the publisher Constable & Co. founded in 1795 by Archibald Constable. It's currently an imprint of the Hachette Book Group, which published this novel.
  • Miss Eriksson tells Spike about the god Odin from Germanic paganism.
  • Hammond's old tweed waistcoat had been tailored for him by a shop that had shuttered when George III was king, his reign having lasted from 1760 to 1820.
  • Hammond refers to the quote: "Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows," from William Shakespeare's 1611 play The Tempest.
  • Upon hearing about Spike's defeat at Waterloo, Hammond mentions Napoleon, who commanded the French army in the Battle of Waterloo.
  • Darla arranges a meeting with Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1895 to 1902. He mentions his late wife Georgina (1827–1899) and his nephew Arthur Balfour.
  • Darla had been invited in the past to 10 Downing Street, the official residence and executive office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
  • Spike asks Gunnar if he'll show him a cask of amontillado in his vault, referring to Edgar Allan Poe's 1846 story "The Cask of Amontillado," which is about a man who lures another into a trap by offering him to sample amontillado in his vault.
  • Upon seeing Nelson's Column, Darla questions why killing people made Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson a hero.
  • Spike compares his plan with the Trojan Horse the Greeks used in the Trojan War to enter the city of Troy.
  • Spike exclaims: "Belphegor's bullocks," referring to the demon from Kabbalah.

Adaptations[]

  • To promote the novel, William Ritter published an animated teaser featuring a scene of Spike and Gus in Chapter Eight.[3]

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. ↑ "Bloody Fool for Love A Spike Prequel by William Ritter." Disney Books. Retrieved on August 9, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Bloody Fool for Love: A Spike Prequel (Audible Audio Edition)." Amazon.com. Retrieved on November 13, 2022.
  3. ↑ William Ritter, "BLOODY FOOL FOR LOVE, A SPIKE PREQUEL..." Twitter, August 26, 2021.
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