Scotch on the Rocks – Family secrets threaten Brodie and Ishabel’s happiness
ISHABEL STUART is at the crossroads of her life. Her wealthy industrialist father has died unexpectedly, leaving her a half-share in a ruined whisky distillery on a Scottish island and the task of scattering his ashes on a Munro. After discovering her fiancé playing away from home, she cancels their lavish Christmas wedding at St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh and heads for the only place she feels safe – Eilean na Sgairbh, a windswept island on Scotland’s west coast – where the cormorants outnumber the inhabitants, ten to one.
*shortlisted for the Exeter Novel Prize . . .
I loved writing this novel because it evoked memories of growing up in Scotland in the early sixties. A time when, during the Cuban Missle Crisis (1962), the USA established a base on Holy Loch and kept submarine-launched Polaris missles there. I lived about forty miles away from Dunoon and remember grownups talking about us being blasted to kingdom come if the Russians decided to take out the base. Terrifying if you’re ten years old! There was also grafitti chalked on the pavement which read: get the subs out of oor Holy Loch.
I was lucky enough to have the book featured in the Scottish Daily Mirror on Shari Lowe’s ‘I wrote a book column‘. Luckily, my Uncle Joseph had the newspaper delivered every Saturday – even though we’d moved to Leicester, and he spotted me on the page !!
When I published the book indie authors had a very limited choice of book covers. So, this year, I decided it was time for a revamp. As I’ve mentioned before, I found my cover deisgner Gail Bradley via Sarah Houldcroft who formats my books. It’s been a match made in heaven. The first attempt at a new cover looked like this. It features the heroine’s peacenik Aunt Esme’s Battle Bus, converted from an old library van, which she lived in during the Greenham Common years. Her parrot, Pershing, who flew into the bus and returned to Scotland with her is featured too. He is named after the missles Esme was protesting against. I loved the cover, it was close to what I wanted, but not close enough.
When I was researching Scotch on the Rocks we toured several distilleries. Well, you have to, don’t you? This was one of my favourites. The house, Ballindalloch Castle and Gardens is worth looking round, too.
The next cover attempt featured Ishabel (Issy) with Pershing on her shoulder standing in front of her family’s ruined distillery. It was bombed by the Germans during World War Two when whisky distilleries switched to making ethanol – a form of fuel. Most of the workforce were killed during the raid and Issy’s family declared it a war grave and it was never rebuilt. The hero Brodie, seen in the forefront, was perfect from the outset, and so he stayed.
A bit more about the plot and Aunt Esme
When Issy arrives at her family home – now a bed and breakfast managed by her left-wing, firebrand Aunt Esme, she finds a guest in situ – BRODIE. Issy longs for peace and the chance to lick her wounds, but gorgeous, sexy American, Brodie, turns her world upside down. In spite of her vow to steer clear of men, she grows to rely on Brodie. However, she suspects him of having an ulterior motive for staying at her aunt’s Bed and Breakfast on remote Cormorant Island. Having been let down by the men in her life, will it be third time lucky for Issy? Is she wise to trust a man she knows nothing about – a man who presents more questions than answers?
. . . As for Aunt Esme, she has secrets of her own . . .
I decided that the cover still wasn’t quite right and turned to my albums to find a shot of a row of the painted houses found surrounding the harbour in Portree and Tobermory. I asked Gail to create a new cover featuring a row houses and a causeway over to Eilean na Sgairbh, – Cormorant Island. This she did, brilliantly . . . and the cover was finished.
What readers have said about Scotch on the Rocks? Here are a couple of my favourite reviews
Love, long-buried secrets, an aged hippy, and a hot hero made this a most enjoyable read.
I fell in love with the characters from the first page (Brodie & Pershing particularly).
The story, too, was top notch and it kept me guessing, unfolding slowly, but the pointers were there. Just when I thought I’d figured it out, I ended up racing to the end at breakneck speed to see if I was right, only to find myself fooled!
This would make a great film, although preferably in colour!
*Scotch on the Rocks was shortlisted for the Exeter Novel Prize*
If you haven’t read the novel, now’s your chance. The novel is currrently on kindle countdown until April 15th at the reduced price of 99p/99c. Catch it while you can. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Lizzie Lamb - author 