A Dark and Distant Shore

Those readers with an affinity for Scotland and an appreciation for the historical fiction genre will certainly enjoy this well-written novel. Reay Tannahill is an excellent writer of historical fiction and this book is no exception. With a multitude of well-fleshed characters, an intricate, generational plot that spans several continents, and numerous historic events, this book will keep all lovers of historical fiction turning its pages. The book revolves around Vilia Cameron, daughter and only child of Theo Cameron, the Laird of Kinveil, a remote castle in the Scottish highlands. It is Vilia's love of and obsession with this castle, the home of all her forebears that, once lost due to her father's inability to manage its finances, is the driving force in her life and at the core of all her happiness and unhappiness. While Vilia Cameron and her obsession with Kinveil are the focal point of the novel, another family, the Telfers, plays a large part. When Mungo Telfer, a rich merchant sees Kinveil, steeped with over five hundred years of Scottish history, he falls in love with it. Knowing that Theo Cameron, the current Laird of Kinveil, is financially strapped, Mungo Telfer makes him an offer that he cannot refuse, and so the castle is sold to the highest bidder. That was the day that would live in infamy in the mind of seven year old Vilia Cameron. It is a day that she would never forget, as her beloved home slipped away from her. Yet, curiously enough, Mungo Telfer and Vilia were to form a bond that day that would forever bind the Camerons and the Telfers throughout their lives. Vilia's desire to have Kinveil in her possession would brook no interference. It was to be hers at all costs. This single, ruthless ambition of hers would drive her throughout her entire life and impact greatly on her life, as well as on the lives of her children and all those whose lives were to become intertwined with hers. Beautiful and driven, she would eventually embark upon a forbidden love that was to never be, as it was supplanted by this driving, burning ambition to be mistress in her childhood home. Her ambition would one day come to fruition, but it would end up costing her more than she could ever have imagined. This is a well-researched work of historical fiction, in which nineteenth century Scotland comes to life in the author's capable hands, as do its characters, infused with the social mores and beliefs of the era. The book is also interspersed with notable historical events of the day. Of particular interest is the Sepoy rebellion in India, which is told from the perspective of a young woman who finds herself in India through Vilia's clever, though somewhat diabolical, behind the scene machinations. While some of the sub-plots that help move the story along may, at times, strain the reader's credulity, the overall story is one that carries the reader along to its finale. It is one that those who enjoy historical fiction will particularly appreci

Those readers with an affinity for Scotland and an appreciation for the historical fiction genre will certainly enjoy this well-written novel. Reay Tannahill is an excellent writer of historical fiction and this book is no exception. With a multitude of well-fleshed characters, an intricate, generational plot that spans several continents, and numerous historic events, this book will keep all lovers of historical fiction turning its pages. The book revolves around Vilia Cameron, daughter and only child of Theo Cameron, the Laird of Kinveil, a remote castle in the Scottish highlands. It is Vilia's love of and obsession with this castle, the home of all her forebears that, once lost due to her father's inability to manage its finances, is the driving force in her life and at the core of all her happiness and unhappiness. While Vilia Cameron and her obsession with Kinveil are the focal point of the novel, another family, the Telfers, plays a large part. When Mungo Telfer, a rich merchant sees Kinveil, steeped with over five hundred years of Scottish history, he falls in love with it. Knowing that Theo Cameron, the current Laird of Kinveil, is financially strapped, Mungo Telfer makes him an offer that he cannot refuse, and so the castle is sold to the highest bidder. That was the day that would live in infamy in the mind of seven year old Vilia Cameron. It is a day that she would never forget, as her beloved home slipped away from her. Yet, curiously enough, Mungo Telfer and Vilia were to form a bond that day that would forever bind the Camerons and the Telfers throughout their lives. Vilia's desire to have Kinveil in her possession would brook no interference. It was to be hers at all costs. This single, ruthless ambition of hers would drive her throughout her entire life and impact greatly on her life, as well as on the lives of her children and all those whose lives were to become intertwined with hers. Beautiful and driven, she would eventually embark upon a forbidden love that was to never be, as it was supplanted by this driving, burning ambition to be mistress in her childhood home. Her ambition would one day come to fruition, but it would end up costing her more than she could ever have imagined.This is a well-researched work of historical fiction, in which nineteenth century Scotland comes to life in the author's capable hands, as do its characters, infused with the social mores and beliefs of the era. The book is also interspersed with notable historical events of the day. Of particular interest is the Sepoy rebellion in India, which is told from the perspective of a young woman who finds herself in India through Vilia's clever, though somewhat diabolical, behind the scene machinations. While some of the sub-plots that help move the story along may, at times, strain the reader's credulity, the overall story is one that carries the reader along to its finale. It is one that those who enjoy historical fiction will particularly ap

"A Dark and Distant Shore" is a real masterpiece of its genre. That historical novel is so well-written, the descriptions are breath-taking and the characters well-developed. Even though the book is long (over 1000 pages in the paperback edition), it reads so well because of the story that is simply captivating. Briefly, it is the story of a woman whose father, when she was a little girl, sold the family estate in Scotland. All her life, her goal is to get back that estate from the family that now owns it. To read that book is to acquire a definitive taste for Scotland and its magnificient wilderness. A must!