Bookshelf is a new feature on the website, featuring new books by authors from the Dumfries and Galloway or those with connections to Kirkcudbright Book Week.
Adventure
Publisher Ian Spring of Rymour Books, a friend of Kirkcudbright Book Week, is celebrating after one of the company’s titles was longlisted for a prestigious international prize.
Gods of the Lost Crossroads by veteran Scottish novelist Robin Lloyd-Jones has been named on the longlist for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize Best Published Novel, 2024.
Other books on the 12-strong longlist include Light Over Liskeard by Louis de Bernières (Harvill Secker), A Haunting in the Arctic by C. J. Cooke (HarperCollins) and Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon by Wole Talabi (Gollancz).
Ian said: “This is an international prize and a perusal of the other publishers on the list will give you an idea of what an achievement this is for Rymour Books and for Robin and Scottish writing, in general.”
Crime Fiction
Status Drift Ian Robinson (The Book Folks)
The follow-up to Criminal Justice sees a return appearance for undercover cop Sam Batford, who treads the fine line between corrupt officer and crime-busting detective. The book is available on Amazon.
The Counterfeit Detective – Simpson Grears
In The Counterfeit Detective, an American professor discovers the diaries of John Ledbury, a minor poet who, in Victorian London, is employed to reply to the mail that comes addressed to Sherlock Holmes at 221b Baker Street. The discovery leads to an investigation that involves travel through time.
The book can be purchased on Amazon.
Land Kill
Castle Douglas writer David L Haigh has had his first novel published, telling a tale of murder in a rural community. Crime novel Land Kill, which has been published by Michael Terence Publishing, tells the story of a former stockbroker turned pheasant farmer, who was the last known person to speak to a murdered Northumbrian poacher. The book tells the story of the investigation led by DCI Jeff Spencer and his team as they attempt to find the missing links in a chain which they suspect has ties to the former stockbroker’s time in the City.
The book, which is available in Kindle and Paperback formats, can be purchased on Amazon.
Criminal Justice
Author Ian Robinson, a regular performer at Kirkcudbright Book Week, has a new crime novel out – and it’s attracting plenty of glowing reviews.
Criminal Justice (The Book Folks) introduces undercover police officer Sam Batford, a man who walks the narrow line between successful detective and corrupt cop, constantly challenging the reader’s loyalties. The novel sees him sent to work with a serious crime team in London in an investigation which sees him play the good guys off against the bad guys in a tense story. You can purchase the book on Amazon.
Author John Dean, one of the team behind the recent Kirkcudbright Book Week, has a new crime novel out.
In To Catch A Lie (The Book Folks), John’s twenty fourth crime novel to be published, DCI Jack Harris finds himself plunged into a murder investigation that takes him to Scotland in search of a killer.
The story begins when a man’s body is found on a country estate in the North Pennines area for which Harris is responsible. With rumours and intrigue bubbling up, swept along by strange currents, Harris and his sergeant, Matt Gallagher, head north of the border.
The book can be purchased in Kindle format and paperback on the Amazon website.
Historical Fiction
The first book in a historical fiction trilogy written by author Penny McPherson, which was inspired during her years living amid the rugged beauty of Skye, has been published.
Titled The Colours of the Sky’, the book is the debut novel by the 59-year-old teacher and has been published by Shore Path Press.
Born in Stranraer, Penny was inspired to write the novel partly by her time living in Tarskavaig on Skye and also by her experience as a teacher specialising in EAL {English as an Additional Language}. Teaching primary and secondary pupils, including those displaced from their homes due to war or other circumstances, gave her a life-long interest in how place and dislocation impact on the individual’s sense of self.
The trilogy tells the story of one girl’s life. Born in the 1870s, Agnes’ early years are spent in the fictional crofting township of Auchnavaig, on Skye’s southern coast. Later, she marries a young doctor and moves to Scotland’s industrial central belt, where she witnesses the impact of hardship amidst the squalor and tragedy of mill-town life.
The book explores themes of belonging, grief, faith, love and friendship, as well as issues around loss and childbirth in late 19th century Scotland. Book two, The Colours of the Heart, is due for completion this summer.
Book details:
Title: The Colours of the Sky
ISBN: 978-1-7384097-0-9
Format: Paperback
Size: Novel 127mm x 203mm. 487 pages.
Language: English
Genre: Fiction, Historical, Scotland
Edition: First
Retail Price: £10.99
Publisher: Shore Path Press
Launch: 1st March 2024
You can find out more, including how to purchase the book, at https://pennymcpherson.com/
Kirkcudbright Book Week 