Blood on the Heather
Set in the Highlands of Scotland in 2017, with a time-slip to 1745, an era of red coats and Jacobites, this charming novel reveals the story of two troubled girls, Kirsty and Catriona. Both are facing major changes and upheaval in their lives and have been uprooted from their previous homes. Both have had to mature and deal with life-changing events. This is where this intriguing adventure takes on a greater depth than I expected.
Kirsty has become the minder/carer to her brave mother, who is fighting a difficult battle against cancer: her ‘Wolves’. She will not share the reason why she has returned to the croft near the Highland castle with her daughter, but we know there is a secret to be revealed. Catriona has been brought back to live at the castle by her grandmother and father, who was injured in Iraq twelve years previously and has been left with disability.
It is when the past pulls both girls into its secrets as they try to help Jacobite Angus that their paths eventually meet and the truth begins to unravel.
Historical detail is slipped in as the girls try to help young Angus. Parallels are made between the plight of refugees then and now. The fast pace of events makes the reader want to know how, and if, they will be able to help the escaping boy, but more than that there are real human issues being dealt with by both girls that are realistically and touchingly conveyed. Some life situations have to be faced and overcome whilst others cannot be helped. This novel convincingly shows this, and I would recommend it as a worthwhile read, not just for the historic adventure, but for its thought-provoking content.
