BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--ROMANCE AUTHOR CATHLEEN ROSS ON ARRANGED MARRIAGES OF YESTERDAY AND TODAY

Multi-award-winning romance author, English teacher, and editor Cathleen Ross describes herself as a quirky writer living on Sydney Harbor who often gives psychic predictions to family and friends. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

When I started my research for An Unsuitable Lady for a Lord, I read an excellent biography on Mary Wollstonecraft by Claire Tomalin and Mary’s own book, The Vindication of the Rights of Women. Although Mary Wollstonecraft passed away in 1797, both books helped me prepare for the mindset of being a woman in Regency times in 1811 in Scotland. Women had to toe the line in Regency times to be marriageable or risk being shunned socially. Arranged marriage was still the norm for wealthy aristocrats in order to keep property in the family.

Against this backdrop, I developed a heroine from an ancient Scottish line, whose father had passed away and who had enough money and independence to do what she wanted—an usual lady for the times. 

Lady Crystal Wilding is appalled by the lack of education for women in Scotland. Read between the lines here—I was appalled—most working class and lower middle class women couldn’t sign their own names on their marriage certificates, one of the most important days of their lives.

Lady Crystal sets about to change this, but she needs allies, which she finds in Lord Aaron Lyle, Marquis of Lomond. Aaron is in a difficult position, too. His father, the duke, is building the family seat and including every new innovation possible—something that will eventually bankrupt the family unless Aaron marries well.

I worked for an organization when I was younger and most of the adult students I interviewed were in arranged marriages. It’s hard to believe that this is still going on in modern times. Most of the women I interviewed said that they didn’t like their husbands, though it isn’t something that they would say publicly. Imagine that! Their comments have stayed with me, so it was easy to imagine the loathing that men and women must have felt when forced into marriage with someone they didn’t like in order to keep property in the family.

Something that is almost unimaginable today is that in Regency times, when a woman married, everything she had became the property of her husband. It seems to me that women had everything to lose and nothing to gain by marrying. This certainly is the attitude of Lady Crystal and it makes for an explosive, passionate book.

I hope you will enjoy reading An Unsuitable Lady for a Lord. 

An Unsuitable Lady for a Lord 

A Scottish Lords and Ladies Book

Lord Aaron Lyle has one hell of a choice: a bankrupt dukedom, or marriage to some simpering society miss so his spendthrift father can get his hands on her huge dowry. He won’t do it. He has a reputation to maintain, and besides, he’d rather run naked through the streets of London than marry anyone at all. Surely, there must be a third option.

Then Lady Crystal Wilding walks into his life, a bluestocking, full of subversive thoughts, who hates the notion of marriage even more than he does. He is intrigued...and suddenly he has an idea. He invites the totally unsuitable lady home on the pretext of presenting her as a possible match...but in truth, Aaron has something far more pleasurable in mind. For her part, Lady Crystal has her own reasons for going along with his harebrained scheme. 

Imagine their shock when his highly proper family loves her and starts planning the wedding. Good lord. Now what?

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--AUTHOR REGAN WALKER ON HOGMANAY, CLOOTIE DUMPLINGS, CRANACHAN & OTHER SCOTTISH HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

Hogmanay in Stonehaven

Regan Walker is an award-winning, bestselling author of Regency, Georgian and Medieval romances. Each of her novels includes real history and real historical figures as characters. And, of course, adventure and love, sometimes on the high seas! Learn more about her and her books at her website.

Scottish Christmas Traditions

It may surprise you to know that Christmas was not celebrated as a festival in Scotland for about four hundred years. This dates back to the Protestant Reformation when the Scottish Kirk proclaimed Christmas a Catholic feast. While the actual prohibition, passed by Scotland’s Parliament in 1640, didn’t last long, the Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian, discouraged Yule celebrations beginning as early as 1583. This continued into the 1950s. Many Scots celebrated only the Winter Solstice at the New Year, which came to be known as Hogmanay. Today, it’s celebrated with much fanfare and balls of fire. (See photo above.)

It is believed that many of the traditional Hogmanay celebrations were originally brought to Scotland by the invading Vikings in the early 8th and 9th centuries. These Norsemen, or men from an even more northerly latitude than Scotland, paid particular attention to the arrival of the Winter Solstice, the shortest day, and fully intended to celebrate its passing.

In the late 18th century, Georgian hostesses entertained in grand style. For those who celebrated Christmas, possibly in secret as my characters do, greenery of holly, hawthorn and Scots pine (gathered from the woods) would decorate the house. And there would be a giant Yule log to burn in the fireplace.

Instead of the usual two large courses of food at dinner, wealthy families in Scotland offered guests several smaller courses including soup, fish, game, roast meat, pudding and dessert. Food was richer with more complicated recipes and there was a greater emphasis on cream and sugar in desserts.

In the late 18th century and into the Regency, it became sort of a fad for high-born Englishmen and women, particularly in the literary establishment, to travel to Scotland and write travel books. There are dozens of such examples including Recollections of a Tour Made in Scotland by Dorothy Wordsworth (sister of the more famous brother). However, none is better known than the 1773 trip undertaken by friends Samuel Johnson and James Boswell. 

Johnson published his travel book A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland in 1775, and Boswell waited until 1785 with his Tour to the Hebrides of the same trip. From Boswell’s description of breakfast in 1773: 

“They set down dried haddocks, broiled, along with our tea.”

“… as good chocolate as I ever tasted, tea, bread and butter, marmalade and jelly… very good scones, or cakes of flour baked with butter. There was a plate of butter and curds mixed, which they call “gruitheam” (Gaelic)... and cheese… it often smells very strong.”  [Note: gruitheam is a mix of curds and butter]

They also ate “barley bread and cheese” as well as “… milk, cheese, eggs, bread and butter.”

And for other meals, he wrote:

“…all of the people have little boats and catch fish. There is plenty of potatoes here. There are blackcock in extraordinary abundance, moor-fowl, plovers, wild pigeons.

“There is a great deal of fish: rock cod, haddocks, etc., and fresh water trout...a place where one may live in plenty, and even in luxury.”

The Scottish kitchen would turn out an abundance of soups and broths including Cock-a-Leekie (chicken and leek soup), Scotch Broth (barley enriched soup) and Cullen Skink (a stew/soup from Cullen on the shores of the Moray Firth usually made with Finnan Haddock and brose, a simple soup with kale, with a handful of oatmeal).

For the Hogmanay feast, there would be Haggis with tatties, steak pie, Cock-a-Leekie soup and, if you were on the sea, salmon. Haggis, which I have tried, never appealed. It starts with the large stomach bag of a sheep, into which goes the pluck (including heart, lungs and liver) beef suet, pin-head oatmeal, onions, black pepper and salt. I’ll stick with salmon, kale and soup.

Clootie Dumpling

For dessert, you might have a clootie dumpling. The clootie dumpling is a traditional Scottish pudding closely associated with Christmas and Hogmanay. It’s like an English Christmas pudding only not as rich. Although flour, suet, dried fruit and spices always feature, the precise ingredients vary from region to region and family to family. The cloth, however, is constant – a reminder of the days before ovens, when family meals were boiled in a pot.

There would be Scottish shortbread, of course, as legendary as oatcakes. But no celebration would be complete in my mind without Cranachan, a dessert that incorporates some of Scotland’s most famous ingredients: raspberries, oats and whisky. You can see the recipe on my website.

Cranachan

What to drink? While distillation of whisky had been going on for a long time by the Regency era, most of the distilleries were illicit. The invention of the column still by Scotsman Robert Stein in 1828 revolutionized whisky making in Scotland. Then in 1831, Aeneas Coffey invented the Coffey or Patent Still, which enabled a continuous process of distillation leading to the production of grain whisky, a less intense spirit than the malt whisky produced in the copper pot stills.

In the early days, Scotch whisky was mostly considered the equivalent of moonshine—a drink enjoyed by unrefined Highlanders, aged in sheep bladders and filtered through tartan. Men like those in A Secret Scottish Christmas would be drinking the finest European wines, along with sherry, port, brandy and cognac.

And, of course, on New Year’s they would sing Auld Lang Syne. A version of the song existed decades before Robert Burns wrote it down. It’s said an old man dictated the words to him. Before Burns wrote it down, the ancient song had been passed on by word of mouth. The melody we know today that accompanies the lyrics didn’t appear until after Burns’ death in 1796.

The phrase “Auld Lang Syne” means “old long ago”, which can be translated as “days gone by” or “back in the day”. Thomas Keith, a Burns scholar, says the song symbolizes reunion, not parting, as some mistakenly believe. The song looks back over happy days from the past, a separation and then coming back together.

Once Upon a Christmas Past

An Historical Romance Holiday Collection

A Secret Scottish Christmas by Regan Walker 

Spies, Scots, and Shipmasters celebrate a very secret Christmas in Scotland as identical twins, Robbie and Nash Powell, spies for the Crown, compete for the love of the daughter of an Aberdeen shipbuilder.

A Highlander for Christmas by Paula Quinn 

As the bard of the MacGregor clan, Finlay Grant is a natural-born charmer. He can easily win the heart of any lass . . . but somehow, the right words to express his love for stunning Leslie Harrison have eluded him. Yet as Christmastide approaches, Finn knows he must find a way to propose to the raven-haired beauty who has stolen his heart.

A Knight’s Redemption by Catherine Kean 

Six Christmases ago, after refusing his kiss, Lady Mary Westbrook was locked in the dungeon by Lord Holden Kendall, a squire at Branton Keep. When an attempted child abduction days before Christmas brings Holden back to the castle, Mary must confront again what happened between them. Now a grown warrior, Holden resolves to not only make matters right with Mary but finally win her kiss. Yet, as peril ensues, Mary must risk far more than a chance at true love.

Christmas in Camelot by Brenda Jernigan 

Sir Nicholas the Dragon’s orders are clear. He is to fend off the enemy besieging Noelle’s castle and bring the lady safely back to Camelot for her wedding to Sir Gavin. But spending time with the proud beauty awakens an irresistible hunger in Nicholas. Now, as desire does battle with duty, Nicholas has only two choices — to surrender the woman he loves to another man or fight to the end to make her his own.

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GUEST AUTHOR LANE McFARLAND ON SCOTLAND AS HISTORICAL INSPIRATION

Northam Castle, Northumberland, England
photo by Karen V. Bryan

Bestselling author Lane McFarland writes historical romance, spanning the early Middle Ages through the American Civil War. While her books are fiction, each one is based on historical facts, and you will often see known figures such as William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, or The Red Comyn make guest appearances. Learn more about Lane and her books at her website. 

Historical Inspirations

Throwing my imagination into years gone by, researching dark periods of strife and violence, justice and quests for freedom, and dreaming of what it may have been like to live and survive during these hostile periods have been the most fascinating aspects of writing historical romance.

My new series, The Turnberry Legacy, is based on Scotland’s fascinating history in the early fourteenth century.

The death of Alexander III in 1286, followed by the demise of Queen Margaret in 1290, became a time of consternation for Scotland. Labeled as The Great Cause, a fight for the Scottish throne ensued between two powerful men, John Balliol and Robert de Bruce. Unable to agree on a successor, Scottish nobles requested the help of England’s King Edward I. The king and his vast army arrived at Norham Castle and agreed to settle the dispute under the condition of the Scot’s pledge to him as their feudal overlord.

Shrewdly, the Scots explained something of this magnitude would have to be the decision of the newly appointed king. Edward spent over a year arbitrating between 13 claimants for the throne. But before he would decree judgment, he forced all contenders to accept him as overlord of Scotland. Some say John Balliol appeared the easiest to manipulate so Edward ruled in his favor and appointed him as King of Scotland in November 1292.

The English king controlled Balliol, earning Scotland’s king the title of Toom Tabard or empty coat. Disgusted, Scottish nobles ousted Balliol and replaced him with a council made up of a dozen men who entered a treaty with France, the Auld Alliance, that united the Scottish and French kings, but infuriated King Edward.

As a result, Edward retaliated, and the Battle of Dunbar ensued in April 1296. The English overpowered the Scots and afterwards, the King of England had Balliol stripped of his power and imprisoned in the Tower of London.

Many skirmishes followed the Scottish defeat. In 1298, Robert de Bruce, one of country’s most famous warriors, emerged as the Guardian of Scotland. During his reign, he led rebels bent on freedom from England’s tyranny and preserving their way of life, ultimately regaining the country’s independence.

Isn’t history fascinating?

The Turnberry Legacy Series

At the turn of the fourteenth century, danger abounds with Scotland’s leadership in flux. Amidst rumors of King Edward reinstating John Balliol to the throne, Robert the Bruce commands his most trusted men to resurrect The Turnberry Bond, a pact specifying loyal Scots and Irish nobles band together in resistance against all adversaries.

Follow the rebel warriors fighting for the rightful king of Scotland and their struggle with honor and love as their lives become intertwined with the brave women who challenge them.

To Support a King

Book One of The Turnberry Legacy series

Plagued by atrocities he committed against innocent victims while pursuing his father’s killers, Laird Mangus MacAndrew pledged to defend and provide for his clan. But his resolve is tested when two of his ships are attacked and his crews massacred. Desperate to fulfill his obligation to protect the clan, Mangus agrees to help reinstate The Turnberry Bond. His mission—garner support for the Bruce and avenge the deaths of his men.

The MacAndrew clan provides Catriona Butler something her Irish home could not, a safe haven. When she receives a missive her brother is being imprisoned and will be executed unless acceptable éraic can be obtained, she must return to her homeland.

Mangus agrees to take Catriona to Ireland and vows she will not become a distraction, but he longs to be near her. Catriona witnesses Mangus’s fierce anger and grows distrustful. After a life of suffering her father’s vicious temper, she is skeptical of anyone with a penchant for violence. She attempts to keep her distance, but her traitorous heart pulls her in Mangus’s direction.

With the fate of the kingdom on his shoulders, will Mangus reunite the men of The Turnberry Bond? Can he pursue vengeance against his enemies without taking more innocent lives? And can Catriona free her brother while staying true to her heart?

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BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--GUEST AUTHOR BRENDA B. TAYLOR

Today historical romance author Brenda B. Taylor sits down with us for an interview. Learn more about Brenda and her books at her website.

When did you realize you wanted to write novels?

Having a great imagination and enjoying reading, I began to write my own stories in the third grade. I wrote a story about a horse similar to Black Beauty.

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?

I worked in the Texas Public Schools as a teacher and school administrator for many years. I harbored a desire to write fiction, but had little time to pursue a writing career. After retiring, I studied the craft of writing fiction and began filling books with stories.

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

Because of getting a late start in writing, I didn’t have enough time left to go the traditional publishing route. I took several online courses in self-publishing and went the indie route.

Where do you write?

I write in a special place overlooking bird feeders, blooming flowers, and trees of several varieties.

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

Silence is golden for my writing time. Sometimes I may listen to soft music, but most often I write in a quiet environment.

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?

I became interested in genealogical research after retirement and began researching my family ancestry. The lives of my ancestors grabbed my interest and curiosity. I researched and traveled to their homes and wrote about those in post-Civil War Missouri and Scotland. Historical romance is my favorite genre to read, so I crafted romances into the plots of the stories.

Describe your process for naming your character?

I chose names that best fit the character’s personal traits and time. The names in the post-Civil War series were not difficult, I chose those I felt best fit the character, but the Scots’ names required research.

Real settings or fictional towns?

Both series are set in the actual locations where my ancestors lived.

Ocean or mountains?

I love both ocean and mountains, but the mountains hold me captive. I enjoy their majesty and beauty. My husband and I spent summers in the Rockies and Grand Tetons—climbing, hiking and camping. We can always find a new adventure on mountain slopes.

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

After being born, raised, and now living in the country, I am definitely a country girl. City traffic gives me the hives.

What’s on the horizon for you?

Continue writing books in the two series—Wades of Crawford County and Highland Treasures. I have a lot of time and research invested in both series, so I’ll continue with writing in them.

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?

I have one regret in my second career as a writer and publisher—wish I had started sooner.

A Highland Ruby

She must choose between a life of adventure with the man she loves or a settled, secure life with her betrothed. Flora Vass forced Gavin Munro out of her heart and mind until he returned to Scotland after an adventurous five years in the New World. Gavin leaves no doubt he returned to make the bonnie Flora his own and intends to fight for her. Flora's betrothed, Iain MacKay, and Gavin's brother, Chief Andrew Munro, have other plans. Andrew needs her to marry the MacKay and bring peace between the two clans. Iain MacKay desires an heir. War with England looms on the horizon, forcing Flora to make crucial decisions.

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BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--GUEST AUTHOR BRENDA B. TAYLOR

Historical romance author Brenda B. Taylor sits for an interview today. Learn more about Brenda and her books at her website.            

When did you realize you wanted to write novels?

Writing novels has been a life-long ambition. I wrote fiction stories in elementary school, but only after retirement did I complete a novel for publication.

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?

I began a novel after retirement, but it took several years before the finishing touches and the last edits were made. Also, I had to learn the art of writing fiction.

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

All of my books are self-published.

Where do you write?

I write sitting on an easy chair beside a large window in my bedroom office. I have a regular office in my house, but very seldom use it for writing.

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

Silence is golden for me. Sometimes I play Scottish music when writing about Scotland to put me in a Highland frame of mind.

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?

My novels are based on my family history, but all characters and plots are fictional.

Describe your process for naming your character?

The heroine in the Wades of Crawford County series is named for a sister of my great-grandfather who lived in Cuba, Missouri and died when a young mother. I’ve often wondered about the cause of her death.

Real settings or fictional towns?

The settings for my novels are real places where the characters may have lived.

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?

Flora Vass in A Highland Ruby, is an expert shot with a bow. She saves Gavin’s life, and wins an archery contest. She is quite the character, fighting for the man she loves with all her talents and abilities.

What’s your quirkiest quirk?

I like to write the first thing in the morning while the sun is coming over the horizon and the birds begin to move around the birdfeeder; however, I can’t put a word on paper until after my first cup of coffee.

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why?

If I could have written any book, I suppose the inspirational historical fiction novel by Janette Oke, When Calls the Heart, is the one I would choose. I enjoy the story of the young teacher settling and finding love on the frontier.

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?

One regret I have in the business of writing and publishing historical fiction is, I didn’t start sooner.

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

My biggest pet peeve is someone not keeping their word. I don’t like cover-ups and untruths.

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?

If stranded on a deserted island I would want a good book, a light to read by, and a source of fresh water. Food is probably available from the land or sea.

What was the worst job you’ve ever held?

I have been fortunate that throughout my working career I’ve been able to do one of the things I most enjoy doing—teaching young children. I suppose if I must choose a ‘worst’ job, it would be as a school secretary. I did that job once, and did not like the constant bookkeeping.

What’s the best book you’ve ever read?

I’ve read so many books, choosing one is very difficult. I loved the book, Hawaii, by James Michener. After reading the novel, my husband and I, along with our daughter and her family, made a trip to Hawaii. We visited a museum and other places where the first missionaries lived. The story came to life, and it was a wonderful experience.

Ocean or mountains?

I’ll take mountains any day. I am not a beach, sand and sun person. My skin is too fragile. Some of the most beautiful memories I have are of the trips to the mountains my husband and I took in our RV.

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

I’m a country girl for certain. City traffic frightens me. When I do venture to the city, I return home with culture shock. I can’t think in a metropolis with all its distractions. Sitting on my front porch and watching the four or five cars go by is a favorite pastime.

What’s on the horizon for you?

My ambition is to keep writing and publishing those stories running around in my head for as long as possible.

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?

I love writing, publishing, and even promoting my books. I’m so very thankful self-publishing came about so writers like me have a place to get their manuscripts out to readers. We aren’t inhibited by agents, publishing houses with an agenda, and editors. Although editing is a necessary part of the writing process, I still have control over my story.

A Highland Ruby

She must choose between a life of adventure with the man she loves or a settled, secure life with her betrothed. Flora Vass forced Gavin Munro out of her heart and mind until he returned to Scotland after an adventurous five years in the New World. Gavin leaves no doubt he returned to make the bonnie Flora his own and intends to fight for her. Flora's betrothed, Iain MacKay, and Gavin's brother, Chief Andrew Munro, have other plans. Andrew needs her to marry the MacKay and bring peace between the two clans. Iain MacKay desires an heir. War with England looms on the horizon, forcing Flora to make crucial decisions.

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BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--GUEST AUTHOR RED L. JAMESON

Romance author Red L. Jameson makes a return visit to Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers today and sits down for an interview. Learn more about Red and her books at her website and blog.

When did you realize you wanted to write novels?

When I was about four or five. I'd fold paper until it looked thick enough, wrap construction paper around it and tie the edge with yarn to make my first books. Gosh, I loved making books!

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?

Two thousand years. Yep, I'm that old. ;) Actually it took a little more than ten years to become published with my fiction writing. However, academically I never had to wait that long.

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

Now, I'm all indie.

Where do you write?

In my office, which is a converted guest bedroom. Sometimes I'll write in my bedroom. Actually, now that I think about it more, I kind of write anywhere I can. But I prefer my office.

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

Silence is platinum. :) Sometimes I'll write with music, especially if my son has a million of his friends over, but I'm not a happy camper when I do. Or perhaps I'm not happy because I know I'll be cleaning mud from the floor after my son and his friends.

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?

Hmm, I'd say my characters are definitely drawn from my family and friends. As for plot, I'm the kind of person who hates conflict and drama in my real life, so that's all imagination.

Describe your process for naming your character?

Sometimes they just come to me. Sometimes I look at baby name books or online. Sometimes I'll have a name change while writing, which is never fun, but essential to get it right.

Real settings or fictional towns?

Both

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?

In my current WIP my heroine works with children a lot and comes up with some fun euphemisms. That's been flinging flanging fun.

What’s your quirkiest quirk?

I'm an odd dichotomy for a woman, I think. I love clothes and makeup, hate shopping, can change my tires myself and chop wood, but hate cleaning--although I'll do it, of course. I also like getting dirty and playing with my son, but love being very girly with pretty makeup on while I'm doing that. What can I say? I'm weird.

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why?

To Kill a Mockingbird. I wish I was that genius to have written such a beautiful book.

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?

I had some fast-food with my son yesterday and feel a little sick now. I wish I would have eaten something else.

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

Gossips and bullies.

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?

The most important thing is my family, then my Mac laptop, and then…I’m not sure. Maybe my makeup. Ha!

What was the worst job you’ve ever held?

A janitor for a girls' dorm. Girls can be very messy and gross.

What’s the best book you’ve ever read?

To Kill a Mockingbird.

Ocean or mountains?

Both!

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

Both! I live in the country but love visiting cities.

What’s on the horizon for you?

My newest series is a paranormal romance featuring beings who even mythology doesn’t remember: the dísir, an all-female society of winged avengers turned into fairy godmothers.

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?

I love writing and my goal with each book is to move someone the way I’ve been moved by some of my favorite books. I’d love to know some of your favorite books that moved you or even changed your life.

Duchess of Mine

Book 4 of The Glimpse Time Travel Series, where mythical muses play naughty matchmakers

Seventeenth century Highlander Michael Cameron should have been prepared for his journey to Philadelphia in 1895. After all, it wasn't the first time he'd been kidnapped by two mischievous muses, who delighted in taking him by surprise and shuffling him off to far-flung lands and eras. But nothing could have readied him for angelic Gabriella Murray, the Duchess of Northampton. She’s a beautiful, lovely, gorgeous—did he mention just how bonny Gabby is?—duchess, and he’s a lowly Scot. How is he going to solve the missing children case the muses have given him with such a distracting woman?

Becoming friends with a muse, Gabby feels her life has taken a turn for the fantastic, which suits her fine, since being a duchess is gray and depressing. So, when that muse asks her to go on an adventure imitating her idol, Sherlock Holmes, of course she says yes. However, Michael, who is to play her Dr. Watson, is quite possibly the most handsome and intriguing Highlander she’s ever encountered. Lord, Sherlock never had to contend with an overwhelming desire for Watson. How can she concentrate on the case when he’s more fun than she’s ever had before?

As Michael and Gabby hunt through the mean streets of cities such as Chicago and Detroit, they dive deeper into a world of danger and violence. Fighting against their growing attraction to each other, they race against time to find the children, knowing that with every corner they turn, they might be too late. 

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SCOTLAND AS SETTING WITH AUTHOR ROSEMARY GEMMELL

Loch Lohman

Author Rosemary Gemmell lives in a village on the west coast of Scotland, twenty minutes from Loch Lomond and thirty minutes from the centre of Glasgow. She joins us today to talk about how her Scottish surroundings inspire her writing. Learn more about Rosemary and her books at her website and blog.

Highland Mary's Grave

Scotland as Setting

The setting in any novel is often one of the most important aspects of the story for the author and the reader. This has never been truer than it is for The Highland Lass, my new Scottish novel, as it is mainly set around my own area in the west coast of Scotland and across the River Clyde to Argyllshire. An unlikely early inspiration was the large Greenock cemetery where ancient and elaborate graves stones, winding paths, and overhanging trees provided much scope for imagination. This was where my mother first introduced me to the gravestone of Highland Mary, who was a brief but important love interest of Robert Burns, our national poet. This early memory and a fascination for Mary Campbell was the inspiration for the short historical chapters of The Highland Lass.

Inverclyde has an envious position right beside the River Clyde, and across from Gourock sits the small seaside town of Dunoon in Argyll. From my side of the river, we can see the entrance to the Holy Loch, bordered by the towering Argyll hills, where the American Navy was based from the 1960s until the early 80s. This provided another thread in the story, as Eilidh is seeking the identity of her father, who may have been an American officer. Dunoon is also where Highland Mary was born and her statue forever looks across the Clyde.

Another inspiration is our famous Loch Lomond, one of the largest freshwater lochs (or lakes) in Britain. It is now part of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park and its huge surface area crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, which separates the highlands from the lowlands. One of my favourite places is the fairy-tale village of Luss where the modern hero, Lewis, takes Eilidh one day. The tiny cottages with their abundance of flowers in summer months line both sides of the narrow main street, which wanders right down to the edges of the loch. You may have heard the chorus of the famous song, The Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond, the lyrics of which were evidently written in the 18^th century when one highlander was set free in the north of England after supporting the defeated Bonnie Prince Charlie and one was condemned to die.

Luss Cottages

“Ye'll tak' the high road and I'll tak the low road

And I'll be in Scotland afore ye,

For me and my true love will never meet again

On the bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond.”

The other main setting for The Highland Lass, in the present and past, is Ayrshire, known as Burns country. Mary and Robert Burns met and plighted their troth there in the 18th century and the small villages have hardly changed at all. The inn where Burns and his cronies met, Poosie Nancie’s, is still in the same street in Mauchline. Ayrshire is also where the blossoming relationship between modern heroine, Eilidh Campbell, and handsome Scot, Lewis Grant, takes another step forward.

But it is around Inverclyde where all the story threads come together and where Eilidh finds the answers to the past. One of the best-known views where Greenock meanders into Gourock is from the Lyle Hill overlooking Cardwell Bay and the Argyll hills beyond. Along by this stretch of the Bay was the perfect setting for Eilidh’s return to Scotland. Many of the large cruise ships now visit the port at Greenock but you can still watch out for the oldest sea-going passenger-carrying paddle steamer in the world, The Waverley, which sails down the Clyde during the summer months and maintains our links to the steamers of the past.

The Highland Lass

Eilidh Campbell returns to her Scottish roots from America with one burning ambition: to discover the identity of her real father. But her mother's past in Inverclyde is a mystery with family secrets, a book of Robert Burns' poems with a hidden letter and a photograph link to the Holy Loch at Dunoon when the American Navy were in residence. Staying with her childhood friend, Kirsty, while searching for answers, Eilidh begins to fall in love with handsome Scot Lewis Grant, but just how divorced is he? Together they trace the story of Highland Mary and Robert Burns, with its echoes to her mother's story. From Dunoon, to Ayrshire and culminating in Greenock, Eilidh finds the past is closer than she realises.

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