Rating: 7.5/10.
A historical mystery novel set in the 1750s after the Battle of Culloden in the Scottish town of Inverness. The story takes place a few years after the battle where the Jacobites, the people of Scotland who supported the former Scottish King James, were defeated by the British, leading to depression in the Scottish Highlands. The main character, Iain, who survived the Battle of Culloden, runs a bookshop in the town of Inverness.
The story begins when Iain finds a mysterious man in his bookstore, and the next day they find him dead in the shop. Ian’s father Hector, who he long thought was missing or dead, unexpectedly appears in town with a disguise and reveals that he is a spy involved in the Jacobite uprising. He has secret codes for communicating the names of traitors to the Jacobite cause from several years before, and these names are hidden in the pages of books where he intends to find out who they are and kill them for being traitors.
The two of them gradually investigate more and more clues and reveal the past of his family’s historical involvement in the war and the allegiances of various townspeople, some of whom have interesting histories such as being sent off to American colonies as slaves. One by one the characters suspected to be traitors are found dead, and the killer’s identity is ultimately disclosed.
While I found the mystery story not particularly compelling, the story was enjoyable for portraying life and living in that time period in Inverness, including how they lived and how the townspeople got along with each other. It’s a very well-researched novel, and the author is a knowledgeable historian on the topic.
