The Bookseller of Inverness

De: S.G. MacLean

Narrado por: David Monteath

A gripping historical thriller set in Inverness in the wake of the 1746 battle of Culloden from twice CWA award-winning author S. G. MacLean. Perfect for fans of C. J. Sansom and Andrew Taylor.

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.

Six years later, with the clan chiefs routed and the Highlands subsumed into the British state, Iain lives a quiet life, working as a bookseller in Inverness. One day, after helping several of his regular customers, he notices a stranger lurking in the upper gallery of his shop, poring over his collection. But the man refuses to say what he's searching for and only leaves when Iain closes for the night.

The next morning Iain opens up shop and finds the stranger dead, his throat cut, and the murder weapon laid out in front of him—a sword with a white cockade on its hilt, the emblem of the Jacobites. With no sign of the killer, Iain wonders whether the stranger discovered what he was looking for—and whether he paid for it with his life. He soon finds himself embroiled in a web of deceit and a series of old scores to be settled in the ashes of war.

©2022 Shona MacLean (P)2022 Quercus Editions Limited

Lots of telling and less showing

One wonders why Maclean insists on narrating most of his story instead of letting it unfold through his characters. The people are interesting, and we wanted more dialogue them.

The first rule of fiction is show don’t tell. This author ends up making his story more history book and less storytelling. That’s a shame. It makes it tedious.

The performance is so good it only highlights the problem.

I think a rewrite is in order. Where was the editor? My editors would never have settled on this format.

Great history & vibrant characters

Interesting story set in the Highlands after the Battle of Culloden in the 18th century.
Loved the narrator & the addition of a clever child in the story.

Pedantic? Didactic? A bleak read.

Was this a history, or a story? It never really defined itself. The quest for The Book before everyone listed in it was killed is a plot that has been done before … and much more skillfully by others. At times the book actually became boring. A mixture of facts, dates, real people, characters based on real people was not blended well. Interesting but not riveting.

Great read!

The story of a survivor of the savage battle of. Culloden and even more savage aftermath. He has just managed to achieve a new life with ownership of a small bookstore when the past intrudes with the murder of a man in his bookstore , bringing the attention of the British occupiers to his home. History, mystery, flawed heroes, beautiful dresses. What more can you ask of good fiction?

Great insight into the history!

I loved getting to know each character personally, the sequence of events and the history of the clans! May have an appreciation for the culture in the past and for present day.

Brilliant Reader, Absorbing Book

As usual another excellent book by S. G. MacLean. This one set several years after the defeat of the Jacobites. The narration was perfect with the correct pronunciation of the word PLAID. Looking forward to enjoying any future books by this author.

Definite new favourite

I don’t really leave reviews but this book in my mind is perfection. Good interesting story, well researched history and does a great job in painting a picture of the environment of the highlands. Props to the narrator as well! Thank you so much

Entertaining and accurate

I love how the author wove an entertaining story of the Jacobite struggle around real histories. I can’t say I was able to totally relate to any of the characters; they were somehow kept at arms length. But, having recently been to Inverness and Clava Cairns I could visualize the setting and found myself totally immersed in the story.

Excellent reader and fantastic story

I particularly enjoyed the authors attention to historical accuracy! Great storytelling with some very moving passages in regard to the Jacobite soldiers in the aftermath of Culloden.

Historically accurate

This book took me to Scotland. The memories from my visit were refreshed. A must read for anyone who has visited Leaky.