Introducing Sophie Sayers’ Brand New Scottish Adventure

Today I’m delighted to share with you the launch of my latest novel – the eighth Sophie Sayers Cozy Mystery and the first all-new one for some time!

Murder in the Highlands picks up where Murder Lost and Found left off, at the end of Sophie’s first year in her adopted Cotswold home of Wendlebury Barrow. Both Sophie and Hector have grown during the course of the year, and their relationship feels settled. So now it’s time for Sophie to take Hector to meet her parents in Inverness – the first time they’ve been beyond the village together other than for day trips, and their first shared holiday.

This is the kind of place I imagine Sophie’s parents living, on the banks of the River Ness

Sophie, conscious of her parents’ foibles, is nervous of introducing them to Hector, but she also wants them to approve of him. She’s soon distracted from such matters when it emerges that a murderous stranger is on their tail, turning what was meant to be a relaxing break into a nerve-wracking race about Inverness and the Scottish Highlands.

I send Sophie and Hector to some of my favourite places in the Highlands, including Loch Ness – although a crisis prevents them from reaching Urquhart Castle

I confess I’d always had it at the back of my mind to despatch the pair of them north of the border, which is why back in the first book of the series, Best Murder in Show, I made Sophie’s parents live and work in Inverness – one of my very favourite places in Scotland.

My Scottish husband Gordon, working in our Cotswold cottage garden in his kilt (as you do…)

Having married a Scot myself – and a Munro-bagger who led me on a 20-year tour of the Highlands (well, 20 years of summer holidays, anyway!) – I’ve seen more of the Highlands than many Scottish people, and I was delighted to have this chance to celebrate my love for their stunning scenery and distinctive culture.

The fabulous Leakey’s bookshop is one of my favourite places in Inverness, and Murder in the Highlands includes a fictionalised version, which of course Hector adores

When I finished writing it, I felt as if I’d been back up there for a holiday myself, and I hope if you read Murder in the Highlands, you will also enjoy the journey.

A fictionalised version of the Highland Folk Museum is the venue for a critical scene in the story

Although much of the novel takes place in Scotland, you’ll still have the chance to enjoy the company of your favourite characters from Wendlebury Barrow, as this novel starts and finishes on Hector’s home turf. At the start, the village grapevine suggests that Sophie and Hector will be travelling via Gretna Green, the ultimate romantic spot for eloping couples, for a secret wedding. Little does anyone know that Gretna will be the start of quite a different kind of adventure…

I’m delighted with the use the designer has made of the HIghland cow on the book cover – on the print edition there’s a tiny one on the spine!

Murder in the Highlands will be launched on Wednesday 15th March in ebook, paperback, audiobook, hardback and large print, and should be available to order from anywhere you prefer to buy your books. If you have any problems tracking it down, just let me know and I’ll point you in the right direction.

All in all, Sophie and Hector are in for a bumpy ride – and not only on the miniature train in Whin Park. Look out – hippos!

There’s also an amazing blog tour lined up by Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources to get the new book off to a great start. Here’s the schedule of book bloggers if you’d like to follow it on its journey and check out what these seasoned reviewers are saying about Murder in the Highlands.

 

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