dark places Archives - Page 8 of 14

August 28, 2025December 17, 2025

Is the Real Stone of Scone Hidden at Finlaggan?

Stone, though not the real Stone of Scone, at Finlaggan

That’s definitely not the real Stone of Scone above. It’s an ancient standing stone at Finlaggan on the Isle of Islay.

But is the official stone, the one pictured below, the real stone? See BBC article about this stone as it heads south to be used in the latest coronation.

History of the Real Stone of Scone

The Stone of Scone, or Stone of Destiny, was used in the inauguration of Scottish Kings for centuries. In 1296 the English King, Edward I, took the stone from Scotland and incorporated it as part of his new ‘Coronation Chair’. Or did he?

Fobbed Off and Spirited Off?

Early mentions of the stone describe it as black and shiny, polished and beautiful. It’s rumoured that Edward was fobbed off with a worthless rock that was actually a drain cover, while the real stone was spirited off and hidden safely away.

One legend states that the original stone was buried at Finlaggan, the medieval Seat of the Lordship of the Isles, by Angus Og of Clan Donald.

Finlaggan is a quiet and remote place. It’s easy to believe that it might hide secrets.

grave at finlaggan. Is the real stone of scone hidden here?

An archaeological dig there was abandoned when money ran out.

Finlaggan, the site of the real stone of scone?

If the stone is at Finlaggan, I suspect it might be on the Council Island, the place of important discussions and decisions. Maybe the island was also the site of a few laughs about kingly bottoms sitting over what was actually a drain plug?

Historical Novel Society Review of Sisters

“In the vein of Lucy Holland’s Sistersong with the narrative style of Rena Rossner’s The Sisters of the Winter Wood, Sinclair’s novel centers on two sisters and is told from Morragh’s point of view. The prose is deeply personal to Morragh’s struggles.”

See the whole review here

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide/Barnes & Noble

Ethereal and spellbinding... says the Historical Novel Society of SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD

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August 26, 2025December 2, 2025

The Bridge of Alvah and a Naughty Earl

Walking to the Bridge of Alvah

As a child, the task of walking to the 18th century Bridge of Alvah, near Banff in Aberdeenshire, was presented as something akin to travelling to Mordor: a journey of such length and difficulty as to render it impossible to your average mortal.

The walk from Duff House (a place with easy parking, swings, art gallery, tearoom and gift shop) to Alvah is actually comprised of just over two miles of well maintained track.

The other fact about Alvah recalled from childhood is that it is a place of great natural beauty. That is true.

The bridge stands huge and majestic – it is a bit ‘Lord of the Rings’ after all – over a deep gorge and the River Deveron.

A Mystery Window

I was most intrigued by the Gothic window and the many little hooks, just about discernible below.

The Naughty Earl

Googling revealed that there was a room for a toll collector within the bridge. This explains the window, though how a person got in there is not so clear. Either the door has been sealed or there was something Rapunzel-like going on. Local legend has it that the room was used by a (married) Earl to entertain young ladies, so perhaps it was kept semi-secret. The Earl’s wife reportedly shot him.

The hooks remain a mystery.

In summary: go visit the Bridge of Alvah; it’s well worth the two mile trek. Not an orc in sight!

See the post about the Mausoleum for more on the grounds of Duff House.

The Secret Room Update

We revisited the bridge in autumn and were given permission to access the Earl’s secret room/love nest. This involved a somewhat steep and scary climb down the bank of the river.

It was worth it. The room is beautiful.

Naughty Dancers Instead of Earls

Book covers of A Dancer's Journey series by Ailish Sinclair: celebratory dance.

Scotland’s all misty lochs and magical forests and perfect boyfriends, right?

When dance student Amalphia Treadwell embarks on a secret relationship with her rich, handsome teacher, she has no idea of the danger that lurks in his new school in Scotland…

My dance background and love of history and spicy stories are what inspired this heady mix of contemporary romance and ballet set in a castle. Readers of my historical fiction will recognise the castle and stone circle that feature in these books.

There are no cliffhanger endings in this series; each book completes a story, but then there is more. So much more. Read all the blurbs here

Series on Amazon UK

Series on Amazon worldwide

Historical Fiction

These novels combine little-known dark events with love stories and a hint of magic.

SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD: ancient battle, neurodiversity and forbidden romance.
THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR: witchcraft, a stone circle, a castle and six chapters of medieval Christmas.
FIREFLIES AND CHOCOLATE: kidnapping, romance, friendship and chocolate.

“Ethereal and spellbinding….” Historical Novel Society

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

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August 22, 2025December 2, 2025

Culloden Moor and the Clava Cairns

This post details a 2014 trip to Culloden Battlefield and the nearby Clava Cairns.

Off We Go

A bright blue sky day. Good for a journey up the coast and into the past. I stopped to take a picture of the anchor on the hill in Macduff.

A couple of hours and many miles later, the skies had clouded.

Culloden Moor

The visitor centre at Culloden is high-tech, swish, clean and pristine, all the things the bloody battle of the past was not. The contrast always gets me. I sit on a soft red sofa looking out at the battlefield, eating my delicious lentil soup and enjoying decadent chocolate cake in comfort and warmth.

Compare that to being one of the Jacobite clansmen, having marched across boggy rough terrain in the dark all night, exhausted, starving, about to be slaughtered in a fight so unfairly matched that it was all over in one hour. What would he think of Culloden Moor today and the nice day out it provides for families and tourists?

Out on the battlefield, things feel more authentic, more memorial. Red flags mark the government line:

Clan stones over mass graves:

Old Leanach Cottage is dated about 1760, several years after the battle, but is said to stand on the site of an earlier cottage that was used as a field hospital for government troops:

People leave offerings:

After a little look at the peaceful, cud-chewing, Highland cattle, it’s time to visit some ancient standing stones.

The Clava Cairns

Here ancient burial cairns (estimated at about 4000 years old) are surrounded by circles of stone and trees. It’s the perfect peaceful place to visit after Culloden.

You can walk right into two of the three cairns, though the entrance tunnel would have been covered in the past: you would have had to crawl.

Some of the standing stones are high and shaped, rather like enormous graves:

Let’s finish with one of the aforementioned Highland Coos. There’s four of them in a field next to Culloden.

Also see the post about the Cumberland Stone.

Cumberland Stone, by Culloden in the Scottish Highlands

Historical Fiction

Sisters at the Edge of the World by Ailish Sinclair

Set in 1st century Scotland, SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD includes the battle of Mons Graupius between the Romans and the Caledonian tribes. The book features a neurodivergent main character and some rather complicated romance!

“Ethereal and spellbinding…” Historical Novel Society

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

See the press release here

Read the article Roman Aberdeenshire features in author’s new book from Grampian Online.

The Mermaid and the Bear by Ailish Sinclair

Taking place mainly in a fictional castle, THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR blends an often overlooked period of history, the Scottish witchcraft accusations, in particular the 1597 Aberdeen witchcraft panic, with a love story.

See the press release here

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

From the Press and Journal: New book by Fraserburgh author highlights horrific extent of witch trials in Scotland

Fireflies and Chocolate by Ailish Sinclair

FIREFLIES AND CHOCOLATE, out April 1st, is set at the time of Culloden and inspired by the kidnapped children and young people of Aberdeen. The story follows the adventures of Elizabeth Manteith from the castle and her determined efforts to get back home. There’s love. There’s derring-dos on the high seas… And there’s chocolate!

See the publisher’s Press Release here

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

“Filled with excitement and suspense…” Historical Novel Society

A Dancer’s Journey – unconventional romance

A Dancer's Journey, a 3 book series by Ailish Sinclair. Unconventional romance.

My dance background and love of history and spicy stories are what inspired this wild mix of romance and ballet set between a Scottish castle and London.

There are no cliffhanger endings in this series; each book completes a story, but then there is more. So much more. Read all the blurbs here

When dance student Amalphia Treadwell embarks on a secret relationship with her charismatic new teacher, she has no idea of the danger that lurks in his school in Scotland…

Series on Amazon UK

Series on Amazon worldwide

Posts on the inspiration behind these stories:

Dance Research in the Dungeon
Working Girl: a WordPress Prompt Goes Dark
Pointe Work and a Red Leotard
Chosen Sisters: Friendship and Dance
A Snaggled, Barbourous Place
There’s also this strange little post about what the characters of A Dancer’s Journey get up to when I’m away from the keyboard.

A Dancer's Journey series by Ailish Sinclair

See my About Page here

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August 12, 2025November 13, 2025

Wild Violets Round the Witch Stone

Wild Violets

I walked up to the local witch stone this morning, and found wild violets growing round the base of it. This stone is said to mark the site of historical witch burnings, and these little purple flowers seemed fitting somehow. Like nature had placed something beautiful where once there was ugliness.

Someone had left a wee wicker offering too.

wicker offering at the witch stone beside wild violets

And the landowner had trimmed the gorse.

And the final item on this list of witch-stone happiness? I was actually able to walk up the hill to the stone for the first time since my latest autoimmune flare-up.

And a Witchy Book

The Mermaid and the Bear by Ailish Sinclair, and a harp

See the press release here

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

From the Press and Journal: New book by Fraserburgh author highlights horrific extent of witch trials in Scotland

See all my books here

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August 11, 2025April 25, 2026

The Ghost of Findlater Castle

Findlater Castle on the cliffs. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

For years I passed by the road signs for Findlater Castle on my way to other places, joking that ‘I must find that later’. I’m so glad I finally did. I’ve been a few times now, and it’s always stunning.

On the day pictured here, it was exceptionally warm and still which emboldened me to go a bit further down onto the ramparts than I’ve been before.

Climbing up to the Castle

Off I went, past the gorse which was warmed by the sun and smelled all coconutty…

Findlater Castle and gorse on the cliffs. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

I reached my normal stopping place, this first chunk of wall…

A chunk of Findlater Castle on the cliffs. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

And I continued on up the wee path for a peek at the shore beyond.

View of the sea from Findlater Castle in Scotland. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

With no gusts of wind to blast me off the edge, on I marched, or tentatively crept, as is more accurate.

The side of Findlater Castle on the cliffs. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

Look at those craggy walls!

The old crumbling windows of Findlater Castle. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

The Findlater Castle Ghost

I sat down on the grass and contemplated being really brave and jumping down that hole under the archway. Ah, the photos I would get, the spectacular views I would see, and the incredible atmosphere I would experience…

Then I remembered the ghost story. A small boy and his nurse were standing near an open window, maybe even one of those in view, when he jumped from her arms and disappeared down the side of the cliff, presumably to his death. She scrambled after him, also to her doom, and her spirit still haunts the castle searching for her errant charge.

I really didn’t want to join her.

So, sorry to disappoint, but after another look over the edge, I retraced my steps back up the hill.

Peering over the edge at Findlater Castle on the cliffs. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

Doocot

This meant I survived to visit the nearby Doocot (pigeon house). It dates from the 15th century as does the castle.

I love its door:

Door to the doocot. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

And all the little nesting boxes within:

Window of the doocot. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

Visiting Findlater Castle

If you visit the castle, do be careful not to fall to your doom. If it’s muddy or windy, it would be much more dangerous than it was for me on this occasion. Look, the council have even written a warning in great big red letters underneath the history:

Informational board about Findlater Castle on the cliffs. Ailish Sinclair | Writer

Necessary risks only, then 🙂

The Mermaid and the Bear

See the publisher’s press release here

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

“A delight from end to end.” Undiscovered Scotland

From the Press and Journal: New book by Fraserburgh author highlights horrific extent of witch trials in Scotland

Newsletter and Free Story

You will receive a free short story when you sign up for my occasional, more-intimate-than-the-blog newsletter (the story can be read in a browser too).

The Performance: sometimes going home for Christmas is just one huge performance…

When Ariel returns home from dance college, her mother expects her to perform the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy in a pink, sequined tutu in front of many, many party guests. Ariel adjusts the costume and choreography to expose dark truths about her life, but, as it turns out, this is not the biggest performance of the night…

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August 11, 2025February 11, 2026

Woodland Pictures Taken During Lockdown

These woodland pictures were originally posted in 2020 during lockdown.

Lost in Writing

I am lost in writing. I am in the Iron Age. Second draft. Rough edges. Rough middle. Super-rough ending. Full of raw emotion. The manuscript is ragged with it, as am I.

Edit: that book is out now

Misty Woodland Pictures

I revel in timeless pictures and misty woods. And lockdown has not kept those from me. I know I am lucky in this, and hope you are all finding some beauty too.

There’s been tree felling here, so soon after Aikey. The wider world is strange and changed, and the immediate world mimics it in metaphor.

Whoops.

This post seems to be approaching a pretentious overuse of literary devices, especially alliteration… Things may be odd, but there’s no excuse for that!

Scots pines in lockdown: woodland pictures

Scots Pines. Sturdy and strong. Oops.

hazel trees on the skyline: woodland pictures

I love the gnarly nature of the hazel trees. It could have been worse. I could have added the word ‘nutty’. But just for a moment, I am going to give in to this curious compulsion…

mists over trees: misty woodland pictures

There have been many misty mornings. And with that one terrible sentence, it is gone…

The gean trees (wild Scottish cherry) are blossoming.

Sunsets are wonderful. And the moon is too.

A woodland quote from THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR:

Sisters at the Edge of the World (mentioned above)

The Romans called it the edge of the world

“Ethereal and spellbinding….” Historical Novel Society

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

See the press release here

Read the article Roman Aberdeenshire features in author’s new book from Grampian Online.

Ariel: Dancing on TV

Torn from a life where she never fitted in, Ariel quickly becomes the focus of a reality TV show. Can she rise above a lifetime of pain and embrace the possibilities of fame and love that beckon to her?

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

See series page for full blurbs

Castle Dancers Series by Ailish Sinclair — The next titles in the series release February 28th and March 31st

Newsletter and Free Story

You will receive a free short story when you sign up for my occasional, more-intimate-than-the-blog newsletter (the story can be read in a browser too). It’s listed on Goodreads to help with those reading goals!

The Performance: sometimes going home for Christmas is just one huge performance…

New Books and Special Offers

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August 8, 2025April 25, 2026

Aberdeenshire Shipwrecks in the Sand

The search for Aberdeenshire shipwrecks begins by walking barefoot along the sands between St Combs and Scotstown. There are many wrecks to be seen here.

Aye, aye, me hearties! Prepare yersels for the photos…

Aberdeenshire Shipwrecks

I don’t know the name or date of this first wreck. It’s wooden and relatively small and sometimes entirely covered by the shifting sands that it, no doubt, fell victim to. It’s well bedecked with seaweed.

Aberdeenshire shipwrecks: part of a ship - Ailish Sinclair, author

Close by is a large metallic boat. It’s usually more submerged than this. I *think* it’s the HMS Erne. She ran aground in 1915 and broke her back.

Aberdeenshire shipwrecks: another victim of the shifting sands

We get to go right up to it.

Barnacles

And touch the barnacles.

And wonder if that’s a treasure chest…

The Excelsior of Laurwig

A bit further on, between Rattray Head and Scotstown, lies a much more well documented ship: the Excelsior of Laurwig, a Norwegian barque that was wrecked in 1881. It’s one of the most impressive Aberdeenshire shipwrecks.

Aberdeenshire shipwrecks: Excelsior of Laurwig, wrecked in 1881 - Ailish Sinclair, writer

Not a Shipwreck

There is another, somewhat different, wreck on this bit of coastline, sometimes to be seen wedged into the sand:

some wrecks that get stuck in the sand are not boats!

Cruden Bay

Now, let’s head to Cruden Bay and see if we can find any more shipwrecks.

Trip, trap, trip. trap, across the bridge. To find…

Is it a wreck? I’m not sure. It may be part of a defense from WW2. It’s not very boat-shaped…

But it’s a great beach on which to finish our walk.

An Autistic Dancer, a Byronic Hero and an Obsessive Scientist

Read my series A Dancer’s Journey. There’s ballet. There’s lots of naughtiness. And there’s peril!

He’s a damaged diva, used to getting his own way. She’s an autistic ballet girl who speaks her truth without tact. What could possibly go wrong?

Series on Amazon

From emmalolly13 on TikTok: “This series has a special place in my heart… I feel so blessed to continue reading Amalphia’s story… Her journey with love has been rough… this is such a soul-touching series.”

Chosen Sisters, Romans and Romance

From the misty hills of ancient Scotland emerges a tale of love, betrayal, and the fight for freedom. Join Morragh in SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD for an unforgettable journey.

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

“Ethereal and spellbinding….” Historical Novel Society

Review from Terry Tyler: “It’s a fabulous story, a real page-turner and so well written. It made me think about the passage and circle of time, of the constancy of the land on which we live and the transient nature of human life. Loved it.“

Read the article Roman Aberdeenshire features in author’s new book from Grampian Online.

Witchcraft and a Handsome Laird

If you like castles, Scotland, history, witches, stone circles and Christmas done medieval-style, you might like THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR. There’s also a love story.

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

Review from Tonya Ulynn Brown: “Before I go any further, I just have to say, this is one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read…“

From the Press and Journal: New book by Fraserburgh author highlights horrific extent of witch trials in Scotland

Kidnapping, Slavery and Friendship

Fireflies and Chocolate by Ailish Sinclair, out 2021

FIREFLIES AND CHOCOLATE was inspired by the kidnapped children and young people of Aberdeen. The story follows the adventures of Elizabeth Manteith from the castle and her determined efforts to get back home. There’s love. There’s derring-dos on the high seas… And there’s chocolate!

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

“Filled with excitement and suspense…” Historical Novel Society Editor’s Pick

Newsletter, Updates and ARCs

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August 6, 2025April 25, 2026

The Caves of New Aberdour

The caves of New Aberdour are beautiful. I’ve written about the beach before, but I thought the caves deserved their own post.

I lay on the sand for a while, sheltered by small dunes and grasses, near to the cave with the low ceiling. Sand martins darted about, worried for their rock-face nests.

I took a little walk round to the next bay to see another cave.

There are more. You can clamber and climb and find other caves, but these first two are easily accessible if the tide is out.

The low tide reveals rock pools too.

The dark entrance:

A few more steps and I stared out to sea through the rock.

Sisters at the Edge of the World

Novel Highlights Roman History of Scotland

Having explored 16^th century witch trials in THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR and 18^th century child kidnappings in FIREFLIES AND CHOCOLATE, author Ailish Sinclair has now travelled far back in time to the Iron Age and the Roman invasion of Scotland.

From the provocative opening scene to the later dramatic and devastating events of the story, SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD is a book that will continually surprise, delight, and sometimes shock the reader. The novel features the beautiful hill of Bennachie, and the stone circles of Aberdeenshire along with the cliffs and caves of Cullykhan Bay.

Aspects of the book

The main characters are fiercely bonded chosen sisters, one of them neurodivergent.
The story is set in the 1st century CE and features the battle of Mons Graupius between the Romans and the Caledonian tribes.
There’s romance, but it’s rather complicated romance this time.
The stone circle from Ailish’s previous books is still there in all its glory.
The castle is not, obviously, but there is a great round house where it will be one day. And a wee hoosie in the woods.

Sisters at the Edge of the World Main Book Page

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

Quote from SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD

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August 2, 2025January 12, 2026

New Aberdour Beach: caves, folklore and a heroine

view out to sea from a cave at New Aberdour beach

A high speed wind was hurtling through the sea cave at New Aberdour beach as I took the photo above. I nearly blew over. But it was worth it to capture that combination of dark and light and blue and black. That tunnel of transition from enclosed space to open sea.

The beach is never busy, being a bit far from main roads and civilisation. I do recommend seeking it out if you are ever in Northern Aberdeenshire. It has sandy bits for summer picnics and sunbathing. There are stony bits that noisily orchestrate the retreat of the waves.

Then there’s the magnificent caves:

Some entrances are almost hidden…

entrance to the cave above at New Aberdour beach

This next one I always avoid. I once overheard a highly respected educational psychologist, who I knew from my time working in schools, emotionally blackmailing a small child to defecate in there. Such memories are off-putting, plus, the roof is rather head-bangingly low…

But New Aberdour beach as a whole is lovely. Apart from the car park, there is no sign of the modern day, you could be meandering through any time, any era.

Folklore

Some specific points in history and local folklore are marked. St. Drostan is said to have landed at New Aberdour in 580AD. His well:

The Heroine of New Aberdour Beach

And the heroic actions of one Jane Whyte, who rescued fifteen men from a shipwreck in 1886, are commemorated in the remains of her little cottage:

Jayne Whyte memorial at New Aberdour beach

When the tide is out the rockpools display all manner of sea life from minnows to sea slugs, starfish, pipefish and anemones. Tide allowing again, you can walk for miles round bay after bay. Do watch the sea though, there’s no mobile phone reception down there if you get stranded. Sometimes you catch sight of dolphins and whales.

I sound like a guidebook, a representative of Scottish tourism… but I’m not.

I’ve visited this place at times of trauma and felt negativity drain away into the pink rocks. I’ve lain on the sand reading books during hot relaxing summers while my children explored the pools and searched for cowrie shells. And I’ve introduced all my friends to the beach. So memories of New Aberdour are mixed up with those of my favourite people.

I write about the beach. Of course I do 🙂

Isobell rides her horse there in the THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR:

Excerpt:

“We walked along grassy clifftops and looked out at the sea, a sea that was some days brilliant blue, others stormy grey; green and pink stones showed in the shallows by the craggy bays. We saw dolphins. We saw seals. I waved and called out to my brown-eyed friends.

The wind swept us clean, leaving the taste of salt on our lips and our manes wild and unkempt. We only went down onto the sandy beaches; I would risk some things, but not Selkie feet on rocky shores. We found places where waves crashed so high they shot out of the very land itself. They roared in celebration of their watery power; I instinctively hugged tight to my horse’s neck then as she reared up with the waves in some Kelpie joy of her own.”
Excerpt from THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR by Ailish Sinclair

I love the beach.

July 28, 2025March 17, 2026

Loch Morlich: big blog, little blog

The Cairngorm mountains beyond Loch Morlich

Beautiful Loch Morlich, Cairngorms beyond, still with patches of snow in June.

Little Blog Written by Loch Morlich

This blog was originally sent from holiday in June 2019. I was completely depleted by my autoimmune conditions, at that point undiagnosed, and spent most of the holiday lying in bed reading books.

Honesty in Writing

It seems strange, looking back on it now, that I tried to keep my health problems a secret. Only happy pictures got posted on socials, such as ones of Aviemore Stone Circle and Reindeer in the Cairngorms. The gargantuan effort it took to get to these places, or how I hardly left the car, did not get mentioned.

I didn’t want it to be true. I wanted to ‘snap out of it’. Because I didn’t want that to be the way of me.

I still don’t, of course, and it is generally better now, flare ups aside. I guess I’m becoming more open and accepting of the situation, and I like to write honestly everywhere, not just in my books.

Big Blog

From bed I shared the news of my guest post on the official tourism site for Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire: 10 Mystical and Magical Places in Aberdeenshire (now here on the blog). Below is Pitsligo Castle, one of the sites featured in that post.

Ducks by Loch Morlich

On the pictured morning I walked very slowly from the car to the loch, and it was wonderful to be out among such beauty. I was on the banks of Loch Morlich before the ducks were up! And probably back in bed before they were too…

My Latest Historical Novel

“Ethereal and spellbinding….” Historical Novel Society

Amazon UK

Amazon Worldwide

See the press release here

Read the article Roman Aberdeenshire features in author’s new book from Grampian Online.

About Page

See my About Page here

Go here to sign up for my occasional emails that always include some exclusive photos and news of my writing and life. If you would rather just hear about new books and offers, you can follow my Amazon author page.