Hello Bookish Friends
Today I am reviewing a thrilling book full of suspense and historical elements that I really enjoyed.
Sight Unseen by Sandra Ireland 5*#Review @22_ireland @BirlinnBooks @lovebooksgroup #SightUnseen #lovebookstours @ajentjenny @polygonBooks #TheSarahSutherlandSeries
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Author: Sandra Ireland
Publisher: Birlinn Ltd (13 Aug. 2020
2019. Sarah Sutherland is struggling to cope with the demands of her day job, caring for her elderly father and keeping tabs on her backpacking daughter. She wanted to be an archaeologist, but now in her forties, she is divorced, alone, and there seems to be no respite, no glimmer of excitement on the horizon. However, she does have a special affinity with the Kilgour Witch, Alie Gowdie, who lived in Sarah’s cottage until her execution in 1648, and Sarah likes nothing better than to retreat into a world of sorcery, spells and religious fanaticism. Her stories delight tourists as she leads them along the cobbled streets of her home town, but what really lies behind the tale of Alie Gowdie, the Kilgour Witch? Can Sarah uncover the truth in order to right a centuries-old wrong? And what else might modern-day Kilgour be hiding, just out of sight?
This book was received from the Author, and Publisher, in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
Sight Unseen by Sandra Ireland
Sight Unseen by Sandra Ireland is the first book in a new trilogy of crime thrillers.
A multifaceted book that grabs your attention straight away. Middle aged Sarah Sutherland life seems to be headed nowhere, stuck at a dead end job, the sole caretaker for her father. Sarah wanted to be an archaeologist when she was younger, but that is all in the past. She still has a passion for historical people and events, she dresses in black and is a tour guide at night. Leading tourist down cobbled stone streets of her home town of Kilgour. She delightfully weave historical facts within her stories, to engage her audience.
When Sarah is invited to read an antique leather bond book by her friend Charlotte, who is the manager of the towns Tollbooth museum. She comes across more information on mysterious of Alie Gowdie, a young woman executed in 1648 for witchcraft. A riddle that needs solving, along with more clues, and the realization that Alie Gowdie lived in the very same house as her centuries previously. Gowdie was accused of witchcraft and relations with the Devil, branded the ‘Kilgour Witch’ by a Reverend Wilkie and was executed in 1648.
The history surrounding 1648. When Alie Gowdie married Richard Webster was during a turbulent time in Scotland’s history. The king Charles I is about to lose his head, and little does Alie know that she too will meet a grisly end within the year.
Through Reverend Wilkie journals, Sarah is determined to uncover the facts surrounding the charges and trial of a woman who was executed during a time where witch hunts were used for more sinister motives. The accused usually did not have a voice.
Seamless narration between the two POV’s, that of Sarah and her elderly father John gives the reader more insight into complex family dynamics. Along with a romantic love interest propel the storyline along, as tale unfolds. Sarah convinced that more is being hidden in modern day Kilgour.
Sandra Ireland was awarded a Carnegie-Cameron scholarship to study for an MLitt in Writing Practice and Study at the University of Dundee, graduating with a distinction in 2014. Her work has appeared in various publications and women’s magazines. She is the author of Beneath the Skin (2016), Bone Deep (2018) and The Unmaking of Ellie Rook (2019). She lives in Carnoustie, Scotland. I really enjoyed reading this thrilling mystery with its bit of gothic style elements woven in.
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