My reading mountain

[Nicole]

I guess the perfect time to update my Scottish reading year is while waiting for the time to pass until the live coverage on BBC starts.

I copy my books from the Ben Nevis-Thread and will update here:

1: James Robertson - And the Land Lay Still


I started this book in April last year but stopped halfway through the first story. I wanted to like this book so much and was bored with it. Because I wanted to like it it did not end up in my "did not finish"-folder and over the Christmas holiday I gave it another try. And read it in a few days. Even the first story made sense now and was not so boring anymore.
Great book and perfect start into my personal book year 2014.


2: M. C. Beaton - Death of a Macho Man


I love Hamish Macbeth.



3: Aline Templeton - Bad Blood


One of my favourite police procedural series.
Bonus: parts of the book are set in Cairnryan around the Stena Line ferry terminal where we stayed for a night last year before going to Belfast.


4: Robert Davidson - Site Works


Bought this when it was Kindle Deal of the Day.
I struggled with the building industry language and I was not interested enough to look the words up.


5: Stuart MacBride - Song for the Dying


Stuart MacBride is one of the authors from whom I pre-order every book without checking what it is about. I think in chapter 3 I finally accepted that this is not a Logan McRae book. And it took me another one or two chapters to remember that I met Ash Henderson in a previous book.
I am not sure if I want to read more about Ash Henderson, I hope for a new Logan McRae book next year.


I am not counting this book towards my goal as it is not set in Scotland and not written by a Scottish author but it is about the Scots Guards, so somehow related to Scotland.

Max Benitz - Six Months Without Sunday



6: Peter May - Hebrides


I bought this in preparation to read his Lewis Trilogy and for our holiday in July. I can't wait to get there.


7: Peter May - The Blackhouse


Bought this one as it sounded interesting. When we decided last year to go to Lewis this year, I wanted to read it before our holiday.
Now I have to think for a few days before I can say something about this book.


8: Alex Gray - The Bird That Did Not Sing

I love Glasgow, haven't been there for 3 years now and can't wait to go there again soon.


9: James Oswald - The Hangman's Song

Picked up his first 2 books in Waterstone's in Oban last year. For me one of the best new authors of the last years.


10 - 12: Gordon Ferris - Douglas Brodie 2 - 4

I'll miss him.


13: Peter Angus Campbell - The Girl on the Ferryboat



14: Anne MacLeod - The Dark Ship

One of the books I wanted to read before our holiday on Lewis and Harris starts.
Wonderful book, I loved it.


15: Compton Mackenzie - Whisky Galore

The only book I read in June (very unusual for me). It was good and a bit of fun to read.
I read that there is a pub on Eriskay where you can see whisky bottles from the actual SS Politician. I hope we will have time to go there.


16: Peter May - The Lewis Man

Started today. This will be my book for the flight on Thursday and the ferry to Stornoway on Friday. :)
It was great to read this book while actually staying on Harris and Lewis. Fin drives from Ness down to Eriskay and there is a storm and heavy rain while he drives through the mountains between Harris and Lewis. On the day I read this we drove that road and there was a storm and heavy rain. Actually, every time we drove on that piece of road there was rain. So I could really imagine the scene.
On the next day we went to the Uists and drove down to Eriskay and visited Charlie's beach. Just like he did in the book.
I am sure I would have loved the book also without this holiday. But reading it while being there made it more special.

[Nicole]

17: Peter May - The Chessmen


This was my book for the ferry crossing from Lochboisdale/South Uist to Oban. The last book of the trilogy for the last part of this great week on the Hebrides.
All 3 books are great. Just the kind of story I love.
I started to buy other books from Peter May but I haven't read them yet. I hope they are just as good.

[Nicole]

18: Donald Gillies - The Truth About St Kilda


I saw this book for the first time in the Seallam Visitor Centre on Harris. We met a couple who told us to go there in case we are not able to go to St Kilda. We were sure that our trip will take place but still went to Seallam. I found 2 books there that I found interesting and this was one of them. In the end I bought a bar of soap and no books.
We went to St Kilda on the next day. I saw the book again in the little shop there. Again I did not buy it. I was too overwhelmed by this island, I only bought 3 postcards to send from there.
And we got to hold the Queens Baton on St Kilda. They passed it around as there were so few people, so everybody got a chance to grab it. :)
In the end I bought it at Glenfinnan Visitor Centre where we stopped for coffee - and ended up in the Baton Relay again. :D
The book was really interesting if you ignore a third of it (stories told double or more often, too much about his life after he left in my opinion, I wanted to know about the island).
I am torn if it would have been better to read the book before going to the island or reading it after visiting? I would have looked at things differently while being there. But so I could picture his stories.
I hope to be able to go out there once again. Then I will know.

[Nicole]

19: Compton Mackenzie - Monarch of the Glen


Strange story but I liked it.

[Nicole]

20: Denzil Meyrick - The Last Witness


One of the books I bought in Oban's Waterstones while grabbing everything with the label "Scottish writer".
The writing was very promising. I like the characters. Although I never was on Kintyre, I saw the landscape before my eyes.
I am sure I will buy his next book.

[Kat]

Nicole wrote: "19: Compton Mackenzie - Monarch of the Glen


Strange story but I liked it."

Have you seen the TV series? 6 of the 7 seasons are on Netflix (I had to look elsewhere for season 7). It's a good show.

[Nicole]

I only watched the first series when it was available on BBC iPlayer in Germany. The others are not available over here. I have to buy the DVDs if I want to watch it. :(

[Kat]

Nicole wrote: "I only watched the first series when it was available on BBC iPlayer in Germany. The others are not available over here. I have to buy the DVDs if I want to watch it. :("

Aw, I wish it were possible to let you borrow my Netflix so you can watch it. I have a similar problem trying to find the Highland Omnibus here at a reasonable price.

[Tarissa]

What a wonderful list of Scottish books you've been reading. I've now added the Hamish MacBeth series and The Monarch of the Glen on my reading list. They look like interesting books. :)

[Linda]

How long did the ferry crossing take Nicole? I live in Oban and was last out in the Outer Hebrides on a school trip to Barra over 30 years ago. Think it took about six hours then!

[Nicole]

Tarissa, there is also a tv series of Hamish Macbeth. It was fun. But I admit that I needed to turn on the subtitles sometimes.

Linda, we left Lochboisdale at 8:40 in the morning and should have arrived in Oban at 2 in the afternoon but there was a delay of 20 minutes because another ferry was still at the dock.

I am so looking forward to come back next year. We want to take my parents this time and show them all the things we love so much. I just hope they will love it just as much as we do. I started to make a list of everythjng we have seen in the last 4 years and then we will sit down and go through it and plan a route. Can't wait for next summer. :)

[Nicole]

Last day of the year, time to update my books.

21: M. C. Beaton - Death of a Dentist


I wanted to read all published books of this series this year. Did not finish but this is my goal for next year now.
The perfect books for a nice afternoon/evening on the couch with a cup of tea.


22: Ann Cleeves - Thin Air


The 6th book in the Shetland series. I read this after I watched the tv series and although I imagined Jimmy Perez completely different, I saw the tv-Jimmy before me when I read this book. So I guess the casting was good after all.


23: Denzil Meyrick - Dalintober Moon


Just a short story but I count it.


24 Laura Marney - For Faughie's Sake


I loved "No Wonder I Take a Drink" and I was really looking forward to this book. But I did not really like it. The writing is good and I like the people but I could not enjoy the story.


25: T. F. Muir - The Meating Room

Gruesome story, I had to skip some passages, I could not read the detailed descriptions of some places.
Good series, I hope to read more of his books.


25+: M. C. Beaton







Currently reading:

But I won't finish this today, so it will be my first book for 2015.

Happy New Year. :-)

[Peggy]

Nicole, you have a wonderful list of books there! Many new to me. I will for sure be reading some of them. Thanks! I loved the Hamish Books too and the TV series! Monarch of the Glen was a favorite too, the TV series, the book was a fun read but nothing like the show!

[Peggy]

P.S. I say count Max Benitz - Six Months Without Sunday as it is about the Scottish Guard!

[Nicole]

Then it is one of the 25+ books. ;)
This was one of the best books I read this year, I still think about this one.