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A Lost Lady of Old Years

John Buchan

3.61 · Rating details · 28 ratings · 2 reviews

Set in Scotland in 1745, during the Jacobite Rebellion, this dark story of loyalty and betrayal on the road to Culloden Moor recounts the adventures of Francis Birkenshaw. The Jacobite cause means nothing to him until a chance meeting with the beautiful Margaret Murray presents an opportunity for profit and adventure. The fateful encounter marks the beginning of Francis’s ...more

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Paperback, 238 pages

Published September 23rd 2001 by Polygon An Imprint of Birlinn Limited (first published November 1st 1995)

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May 30, 2018 Cathy rated it liked it

Shelves: buchan-of-the-month, classics, historical-fiction, historical-romance, classics-club

A Lost Lady of Old Years is the fifth book in my Buchan of the Month reading project. You can find out more about the project plus my reading list for 2018 on my blog. It is one of the few books by John Buchan I’ve not read before. I’m going to preface this review by stating that, in my opinion, A Lost Lady of Old Years is not the best book John Buchan ever wrote although, to be fair, it was published early in his writing career.

Buchan paints a picture of a young man, Francis Birkenshaw, the A Lost Lady of Old Years is the fifth book in my Buchan of the Month reading project. You can find out more about the project plus my reading list for 2018 on my blog. It is one of the few books by John Buchan I’ve not read before. I’m going to preface this review by stating that, in my opinion, A Lost Lady of Old Years is not the best book John Buchan ever wrote although, to be fair, it was published early in his writing career.

Buchan paints a picture of a young man, Francis Birkenshaw, the son of a good family, who nevertheless finds himself unsure of his place in the world. He falls prey to the lure of alcohol, women and the odd spot of fisticuffs in the local taverns. His desire for adventure brings him close to the borders of criminality resulting in him having to make a speedy escape from his hometown, leaving behind the staid career that had been mapped out for him.

He decides to travel to France but events intervene, notably his meeting with the beautiful and virtuous Margaret Murray, wife of John Murray of Broughton, an influential supported of ‘Bonnie’ Prince Charlie. Entrusted with an important task by Mrs Murray, he has a kind of epiphany inspired by her honour and virtue and begins to seek a different path in life. Carrying out the task he has been entrusted with and what follows bring him in close proximity to influential people and dramatic events in Scottish history, such as the Battle of Culloden.

In the book’s dialogue, Buchan seeks to reproduce the Scottish mode of speech, including local dialect words (‘kenspeckle’, ‘camsteery’ or ‘clanjamphray’ anyone?) with a bit of Gaelic thrown in for good measure. This takes some getting used to and might prove problematic for some readers. I think it would also help to have some prior knowledge of the history of that period, particularly the Jacobite Rebellion. Mine was only sketchy so I did have to do some research after reading the book to check how close the story sticks to historical fact. (As far as the main characters go – John Murray of Broughton, Lord Lovat, etc – the answer is pretty close, although Francis Birkenshaw is an entirely fictional character.)

In A Lost Lady of Old Years, Buchan explores themes that he would revisit in later books such as The Half-Hearted (next month’s Buchan of the Month), Mr. Standfast and Sick Heart River. These themes of self-sacrifice, duty and courage we can perhaps trace back to his upbringing and the text that was so influential throughout his life, John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. At the end of the book, both Francis and Margaret face a difficult moral choice between following their hearts or their consciences. Choice made, Margaret reflects, ‘After the colours the sober grey, for you as well as me, Francis.’ Buchan would later revisit this period of history in his novel, Midwinter. ...more

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Jul 25, 2018 Alayne rated it liked it

Very wordy and with a huge assumption of knowledge of the Battle of Culloden and its befores and afters. Not as well known as John Buchan's other works, I suspect because it's not as good as they are.

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About John Buchan

John Buchan

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John Buchan (1st Baron Tweedsmuir) was a Scottish novelist and public servant who combined a successful career as an author of thrillers, historical novels, histories and biographies with a parallel career in public life. At the time of his death he was Governor-General of Canada.

Buchan was educated at Glasgow and Oxford Universities. After a brief career in law he went to South Africa in 1902 wh ...more