Category Archives: Scotland

December 15, 2017 · 6:46 pm

Celebrating Scottish Authors ~ J David Simons ~ An Exquisite Sense of What is Beautiful

It was browsing the books in Kinghorn Library that I decided I needed to investigate contemporary Scottish writers and I’m so glad I did. All of my blog posts this December will celebrate Scottish authors.

An exquitise

Available on Amazon

Here’s my review of ‘An Exquisite Sense of What is Beautiful‘ by J David Simons:

“I found J David Simons’ novel beautiful, shocking, informative, gripping in places and haunting. It was one of those books which lived on with me long after I had read the final page.
Edward was fascinated by Japan and a legacy enabled him to realise his dream to live and work there. His view of the culture and his surroundings, as well as delving into the morality of the war, took you into an exotic but scarred and unfamiliar world. An escape which included a love affair with a Japanese maid and the realisation of Edward’s other dream, to be a successful writer.
His success unfortunately led to his return to England, a bitter sweet time in his life when he married an artist beginning a tumultuous off/on relationship. Hidden truths festered, only resurfacing when Edward was an old man before his time and he revisited Japan, meeting his first love Sumiko once more.
A clever plot with an unexpected ending, which I will not spoil for you, but which left me haunted for some time.”

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December 12, 2017 · 4:48 pm

Scottish Contemporary Authors Month ~ The Wrong Box by Andrew C Ferguson

41F7vzbbgpL._SX322_BO1,204,203,200_The Wrong Box is the debut novel by a Fife author in his venture away from serious non fiction. It is produced by Thunderpoint, an Edinburgh based publishing company. Andrew got in touch with me himself through a mutual friend and I downloaded The Wrong Box on Kindle.

Simon English, a visiting lawyer from London, wakes up to find a dead body in the bath of the flat he’s renting from a colleague. He tries to prove he is innocent and uncover the culprits as well as their motives, which are far more reaching than just one murder. Then he comes across Karen, a bored eighteen stone lady living in a council block, who is adept at uncovering corruption in the council. She becomes the most unlikely sleuth, adding mirth to the proceedings, but also saving Simon’s life on at least one occasion.

The dark side of Edinburgh life was an eye opener to me, although Ian Rankin should have prepared me for it, and I was immediately struck by the contrasting societies, living side by side. I enjoyed the story line, which was quirky but gripping enough to shock and keep me ‘on my toes’ as it were. The characters were amusing, well formed and beautifully described, both good, evil and unexpected. Humour ran through the novel.  The lapse into Karen’s local dialect added to the flavour of the novel.

On the down side, and this is a personal comment, I’m not used to reading so much blatant swearing in a novel, or the inner thoughts of a man thinking about his sexual needs ~ but for some these factors could be a bonus. More realistic maybe.

(I’ve led a bit of a sheltered life 🙂 )

I wish Andrew the best of luck, especially if he makes this into a series.

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December 8, 2017 · 5:49 pm

Celebrating Scottish Authors ~ Margaret Skea ~ The Turn of the Tide

Turn of theTide

Available on Amazon

My next Scottish writer ~ in no particular order I might add ~ is Margaret Skea who lives in the Scottish borders. I ‘met’ her on social media and hope our paths will meet in person in the not too distant future.

Here is my review of ‘Turn of the Tide.‘

“After avidly reading some of Nigel Tranter’s novels whilst living up in Scotland in 2013 it was a pleasure to read ‘Turn of the Tide.‘ The long lasting feud between the Cunninghams and the Montgomeries in 16th Century Scotland reaches an uneasy truce due to King James but Kate, a character I felt so much empathy for, and her husband Munro endured the burden of past deeds and divided loyalties, leading to tragic consequences for some. The surprise that even enemies can be human and even quite pleasant resonated with me. You feel all the emotions in this well written novel, with language evocative of the period, from the joy of family life to fear, devastating loss and a heightened sense of danger.”

I look forward to Margaret Skea’s next novel ‘Katharina’ which has recently been released.

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