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Not gifted with his father’s resilience, Iain’s persisting trauma in the wake of the Jacobites’ defeat at Culloden is constantly triggered as the pair work together to discover the identity of both a murderer and the traitors he is targeting. I have been eyeing this arc, especially because I’m alway so intrigued about Scottish history since being a fan of Diana Set at a time after the battle of Culloden. Fact and fiction combine to show how the Jacobites were treated by the Redcoats. The passion has not been beaten out of the Jacobites and a new uprising is planned. Iain MacGillivay and his family will find traitors and murder will bring out old secrets. Well crafted characters keep you entertained with a bonus of the historical settings. There’s something afoot you see. Talk about atmosphere and compelling foreshadowing. I knew something was up – someone is lurking in his bookshop and he confronts Iain, saying he will not leave until he’s found it. It’;s only when the shop shuts that he eventually leaves. Howver, the next morning, when Iain comes to open the door, he finds the stranger dead, his throat cut and a sword lying beside the body. The sword wuth the emblem of the Jacobites on it….. If I’m walking along somewhere with lots of old buildings and ruins and things like that. I’m always trying to imagine what it was like.
Following the loss at Culloden, many women were also sold by their clan chiefs to pay off their debts to the government and sent into indentured service in America. Ishbel MacLeod, the confectioner whose shop is near Iain’s, is one such woman, who has returned to Scotland after seven years service as cook to a family, bringing with her a lively half caste child called Tormod who captured everybody’s hearts (even crusty old Donald Mor). She felt it wasn’t a good time to shift genres, because it was going to be quite a different book, so she asked me if I had anything else,” Shona said. Luath Press takes its name from Robert Burns, whose little collie Luath (Gael., swift or nimble) tripped up Jean Armour at a wedding and gave him the chance to speak to the woman who was to be his wife and the abiding love of his life. Burns called one …I was especially interested in the Grande Dames, that while fictional did reflect the important role that women played in the Jacobite cause. MacLean also noted various nonfiction works that would be useful for further reading. Leakey’s was said to be haunted by their ghosts, and I couldn’t quite shake off the idea that maybe the spirit of the Jacobites were retained there.” Shona (S.G.) MacLean was born in Inverness and brought up in the Scottish Highlands. She obtained an MA and PH.D. in History from Aberdeen University. She began to write fiction while bringing up her four children (and Labrador) on the Banffshire coast. She has now returned to live in the Highlands. Her first book, 'The Redemption of Alexander Seaton' was short-listed for both the Saltire first book award and the CWA Historical Dagger; she has won the Historical Dagger twice - in 2015 for 'The Seeker' and in 2019 for 'Destroying Angel'. 'The Bear Pit' has been long-listed for both the 2020 CWA Gold Dagger and Historical Dagger.
She’ll be appearing alongside Christopher Brookmyre, Douglas Skelton, G.R. Halliday, Michael Malone and Neil Lancaster. MacLean’s book is an excellent example of a well-written and researched historical fiction. My knowledge of the conflict between Stuart and Hanover supporters, especially from the point of view of the Scottish Highlanders, is limited, but the author created a believable, detailed and fascinating world. He also supplied an extensive reading list for those seeking biographical or historical knowledge. The importance of local politics for the novel’s plot made me worried that the book would become overwhelming, but that never happened. The necessary information is supplied in an accessible form, and the intrigue keeps the reader’s interest peaked. Now S G MacLean, who is the niece of author Alistair MacLean, has her head in a snowy 17th Century York with a follow-up to her Damian Seeker series. The use of Gaelic in conversation and in names was an authentic touch as it would have been (and still is) in common usage in the Highlands and indeed is on the rise across Scotland - a current learner right here. Very much enjoyed the character of Donald Mòr the grumpy book binder who speaks almost exclusively in Gaelic and has time for nobody but a soft spot for the young Tormod.The idea didn’t find favour with Shona’s publisher as it was non-fiction, therefore a change of genre for S G MacLean. At the end of the book you'll notice a well detailed Author's Note, where the important historical details, concerning this period of history, are superbly documented.
An exciting story full of intrigue, betrayal, and murderous revenge. I had a hard time putting down the book whenever Real Life interfered with my reading time. The author does a great job in bringing the time, place, and characters to life.And loss. The loss of many men, young and old, on the battlefield or afterwards in merciless manhunts. Maclean guides her characters through the twists of an intriguing plot with great aplomb - The Sunday Times on The House of Lamentations Shona went to Aberdeen University to study history and lived in Aberdeenshire for the next quarter of a century.
Meanwhile, she is preparing for an appearance at The Wee Crime Festival hosted by The Bookmark in Grantown on Spey on October 28-29. Then there was a move to Easter Ross, thence to Muir of Ord, so that day by day throughout her youth Shona trod in the footsteps of those caught up in the intense events of the 18th Century uprisings and their fallout.This story is set in 18th century Inverness and explores the aftermath of the Jacobite risings. The main story is about solving politically motivated murders. After Culloden, Iain MacGillivray was left for dead on Drumossie Moor. Wounded, his face brutally slashed, he survived only by pretending to be dead as the Redcoats patrolled the corpses of his Jacobite comrades.
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