The author’s unique and moving life story of squalor, gangland violence, her mother’s murder and a frightening family of in-laws contains many extraordinary characters within an enclosed and seldom-revealed Glasgow of the 1960s to the 80s.

    Then her son Ross, a researcher working for an arms manufacturer in Switzerland, is forced to disappear before some characters cut from the same cloth as Blofeld persuade him to part with the secrets of his research. But they are not the only ones desperate to locate him. Bett, his staff have little in common apart from total professionalism and a thorough disregard for the law. Bett believes the key to Ross's whereabouts is his mother, and in one respect he is right, but even he is taken aback by the verve underlying her determination to secure her son's safety as she learns the black arts of quiet subterfuge and violent attack. The teenage dreams of fast cars, high-tech firepower and extreme action had always promised to be fun and games, but in real life it's likely someone is going to lose an eye ... Visit the author's website at www brookmyre.co.uk

    Kathleen Jamie, award winning poet, has an eye and an ease with the nature and landscapes of Scotland as well as an incisive sense of our domestic realities. In Findings she draws together these themes to describe travels like no other contemporary writer. Whether she is following the call of a peregrine in the hills above her home in Fife, sailing into a dark winter solstice on the Orkney islands, or pacing around the carcass of a whale on a rain-swept Hebridean beach, she creates a subtle and modern narrative, peculiarly alive to her connections and surroundings.

    Winter in Aberdeen: murder, mayhem and terrible weather! It's DS Logan McRae's first day back on the job after a year off on the sick, and it couldn't get much worse. Four-year-old David Reid's body is discovered in a ditch, strangled, mutilated and a long time dead. And he's only the first. There's a serial killer stalking the Granite City and the local media are baying for blood. Soon the dead are piling up in the morgue almost as fast as the snow on the streets, and Logan knows time is running out. More children are going missing. More are going to die. And if Logan isn't careful, he could end up joining them!

    This edition contains 778 poems, 100 of them previously unpublished, and has, in addition, a context piece, author's words and CD of readings. It is a definitive (though not complete) collection.

    His work is integral to the flowering of Scottish literature during the last50 years. Admired by many fellow poets, including Seamus Heaney and Douglas Dunn, his poems are deeply individual and unmistakable in their setting: "the small green world" of the Orkney Islands where he lived for most of his life, with its elemental forces of sea and sky and Norse and Icelandic ancestry, is brought vividly and memorably to life. Here, his rich and resonant poetry is collected in one volume, making available again many poems that are otherwise out of print.

    But when Sir Philip Kilpatrick arrives to escort her to her betrothed in the Highlands, Isobel must face a harrowing journey through a land of fear and suspicion. Soon, however, Philip grows reluctant to deliver Isobel to the noble intended she has never met. Isobel has charmed her way into his heart...and yet her determination to use her magic to solve the dark mystery of Philip's tortured past could destroy them both.

    Haunted by her turbulent past, she takes refuge in a remote Hebridean island community where she cocoons herself in work, silence and solitude in a house by the sea. A new life and new love are offered by friends, her estranged daughter and most of all by Calum, a fragile younger man who has his own demons to exorcise. But does Rose, with her tenuous hold on sanity, have the courage to say “Yes” to life and put her past behind her?REVIEWS“The emotional power makes this reviewer reflect on how Charlotte and Emily Bronte might have written if they were living and writing now.”Northwords Now“Complex and important issues are played out in the windswept beauty of a Hebridean island setting, with a hero who is definitely in the Mr Darcy league!”www.ScottishReaders.net

    Before Scotland transforms prehistory into gripping narrative history, demonstrating that the history of the land that became Scotland is one of dramatic geological events and impressive human endeavour.

    If you want to see it all -- with or without the kilt -- Scotland For Dummies, Third Edition, covers it all, including:Four fun-filled itineraries for your perfect trip Five day-trips to the country from Edinburgh and Glasgow The best Scottish golf courses Great Scottish pubs A guide to the Hebrides, and the Shetland and Orkney Islands Like every For Dummies travel guide, Scotland For Dummies, Third Edition includes:Down-to-earth trip-planning advice What you shouldn't miss -- and what you can skip The best hotels and restaurants for every budget Handy Post-it Flags to mark your favorite pages

    

    He ties Wallace's life and death to issues of patriotism and Scottish nationality over the last seven hundred years, and identifies Wallace as a 'Scottish Martyr' who died for freedom and identity in the country he loved.

    IN THE BEGINNING was the world and an innocent young Shrigley made drawings of it in his sketchbooks. Sometimes he added words to the drawings. Sometimes he just wrote words. And the world he draws is dark indeed - but funny and true. True about such things as the vanity of human wishes, the certainty of night, the bad temper of pets and the strangeness of love. Not the whole truth, maybe. But true enough to make you uncomfortable, and to make you laugh out loud when you're not wincing. THE BOOK OF SHRIGLEY contains over 150 new drawings, sketchbook entries from student days, sad and funny ephemera, and texts that illuminate his work with a sideways light. David Shrigley is the author of numerous cult bestsellers including Human Achievement and Why We Got the Sack from the Museum. A celebrated artist, he has exhibited his work all over the world.

    From its islands and highlands to its lowlands and coastline, the country contains some of Britain's most breathtaking scenery.Nature has left its indelible mark on Scotland's landscape with its hundreds of islands that were the result of volcanic activity, and its mountains and lochs that were gouged out during the ice ages. Countless millennia of wave-action has pounded its coastline, and rivers have carved themselves a passage to the oceans. Man, too, has played his part. The country is littered with castles and cairns, crofts and kirks, evidence of the people who helped shape this great land. Splendid cities stand as testament to the kings, queens, industrialists and hard-working citizens who helped build them. Charming fishing villages are tucked snugly round the coast, and mighty bridges span many of Scotland's rivers and firths.The Secrets of Scotland takes a look at this most remarkable place through Dennis Hardley's magnificent photos. The journey begins in the Western Isles, their austere, remote beauty brilliantly captured. Next are the Highlands, with soaring crags and wooded glens. The Inner Islands follow with their safe harbors and sandy beaches. Take a fleeting glimpse of Royal Deeside and the Grampians before arriving at Glasgow and Edinburgh, and experiencing the rich diversity of their cultural heritage and architectural splendors. Savor the undulating beauty of southwest Scotland and the Borders, the historical meeting place of the Scots and the English.Discover The Secrets of Scotland and encounter the hidden gems of this awe-inspiring country.Dennis Hardley (photographer) was born in Blitz-sieged Liverpool in 1940, where he spent his teenage years doing odd jobs for the Beatles before becoming a Concorde engineer. Dennis first became a photographer as an RAF civilian in 1972, supplying pictures to The Scots Magazine. In 1973, he moved to Scotland with his family and established himself as a professional photographer. He has since driven over a million miles in his pursuit of photographing the Scottish landscape. This is the fifth book to feature his work.Michael Kerrigan (author) lives in Edinburgh, where he writes regularly for the Scotsman newspaper. He is a book reviewer for the Times Literary Supplement and the Guardian, London. As author, he has published extensively on both British and world history and prehistory. He has contributed to reference companions on World History and Irish History as well as to the Times Encyclopaedia of World Religion (2002). He is also author of Who Lies Where: A Guide to Famous Graves (1995), and Lewis and Clark: Blazing a Trail Across the American West (2004). He is currently working on an account of Charles Darwin and the voyage of the Beagle.

    In Whisky Island, Islay's fascinating story is uncovered: from its history and stories of the many shipwrecks which litter its shores, to the beautiful wildlife, landscape and topography of the island revealed through intimate descriptions of the austerely beautiful and remote countryside. Interleaved through these different narrative strands comes the story of the whiskies themselves, traced from a distant past of bothies and illegal stills to present-day legality and prosperity. The flavour of each spirit is analysed and the differences between them teased out, as are the stories of the notable men and women who have played such a integral part in their creation.

    Dominated by its memorial obelisk to John Knox, the Necropolis is a living testament to Victorian funerary excesses and the nineteenth century's obsession with death, sometimes referred to as the Cult of the Dead. Here, Ronnie Scott surveys the architecture of the Necropolis's monuments, graves and mausoleums and the architects who built them. And he also tells the stories of the folk who inhabit the Necropolis or City of the Dead, as the word necropolis translates. Unlike Pere Lachaise, the Necropolis in Glasgow may not be able to boast of being the last resting place of anyone quite as famous as Oscar Wilde, Jim Morrison or Edith Piaf but it does have its share of celebrity corpses. By the middle of nineteenth century, anyone who was anyone in Glasgow was buried there or had a Necropolis monument erected to their memory.The designer of the Royal Yacht Britannia, industrialists like Charles Tennent and Lord Kelvin, a Polish freedom fighter, they're all here and all have their own interesting stories - as do some of the rather less well-respected occupants, such as the professor of anatomy who encouraged body-snatching. The architecture of the tombs, gravestones and memorials is as varied as the lives the citizens of the Necropolis led - and sometimes just as flamboyant. The men, such as Alexander 'Greek' Thomson, who designed Glasgow's city-centre buildings during the period when it was second only to London in terms of prosperity also had a hand in creating the Necropolis and their life stories are covered here too.

    Funny and heartwarming, this is the story of a house, a place, and a marriage.Guynd (rhymes with "wind") is Gaelic for "a high, marshy place." It's there that Belinda Rathbone's memoir takes place after her unlikely marriage and move to pastoral Scotland. There she learns to cope with a grand but crumbling mansion still recovering from the effects of two world wars, an overgrown landscape, a derelict garden, troublesome tenants, local aristocracy, Scottish rituals, and a husband who loathes change.Alternating between enchantment and near despair, Rathbone digs into family and local history in an effort to understand her new surroundings and the ties that bind us through generations. "The book lifts and excels," wrote The New York Times, "Rathbone nails down a little bit of the Scottish soul in all its stark splendor."The perfect book for anyone who loves a fish-out-of-water romance and a touching story of home.

    Easy to use and pleasurable to read, it is the essential guide for book lovers and literary pilgrims. Fully illustrated, each chapter illuminates a different area of the city and includes essential details on author birthplaces and homes; burial places of the literati; sites with a literary connection; restaurants and pubs—from Robert Louis Stevenson’s favorite pub to the café where J.K. Rowling penned much of Harry Potter; literary tours; the city’s best bookstores; and museum exhibits. This unique guide is also packed with useful information on Edinburgh’s book festivals, literary events, libraries, and more.

    6,900 words discussed Perfect size for easy reference Pure Lexicon of Scottish-Gaelic This book is founded on the "Highland Society's Gaelic Dictionary"

    Yet is it possible that the great Viking armies left more in their wake than carnage and destruction? The stories of two families-the Olafssons, who transformed a pirate camp in Ireland into the kingdom of Dublin, and the Haraldssons, whose rule encompassed Hebrides, Galloway, and the Isle of Man-suggest that the Vikings did indeed leave behind a much greater legacy.Between the tenth and twelfth centuries, these two Viking families, descendants of men whom earlier chroniclers dismissed as pagan pirates, established themselves as Christian rulers whose domain straddled the Scandinavian and Celtic worlds. The Olafssons and Haraldssons carved out empires that inspired fear and made their families fabulously wealthy. From their ranks came the settlers who gave name to the Danelaw in Britain, Fingal in Ireland, and Normandy in Francia. Celebrated in Icelandic sagas and poems, Irish tales, and French history, the Olafssons and Haraldssons took part in the last successful Scandinavian invasion of Britain and the overthrow of the last Old English kingdom, even as they allied with, fought against, and married their Irish neighbours.Though the families had come to these lands as conquerors, they soon learned the importance of cooperating with those they had vanquished. Even as they worshipped pagan gods, the Olafssons and Haraldssons both became important benefactors to the Christian church. They also played a crucial role in the economic revival of northern Europe as trading ships from their ports sailed throughout the Atlantic and the goods they produced traveled as far west as Canada. Under their rule, the seas became a connector for a shared culture, commercially, artistically, and socially.Challenging traditional views of the Vikings' culture, Benjamin Hudson shows the role that these two great dynasties played in the Second Viking age. The rise and transformation of the Olafssons and Haraldsssons from the tenth to the twelfth centuries highlights a period and people important for understanding the political, religious, and cultural development of Europe in the High Middle Ages.

    Fortunately, Fiona's identical twin sister Aliss also cannot imagine a worse fate than a forced marriage and the two boldly concoct an outlandish scheme –– to become indistinguishable to the groom –– and it works.Tarr, frustrated that he cannot tell the difference between Fiona and Aliss, nevertheless finds himself drawn to a particular twin. Unfortunately, as soon it becomes clear to him that Fiona is the one who has captured his heart, Tarr must battle with an unexpected enemy to keep his newfound love.

    When the operation went wrong, he was hidden away by his aristocratic parents in a mental institution and then taken in by a sect of monks. By the time Lily Budge met him in 1975, he appeared a shy and lonely tramp. In reality he was the future Earl of Galloway, heir to a fortune and a title considered to be linchpin of the Scottish establishment. Lily, an extroverted character from a working-class family, would join him in a powerful bond of love that challenged conventions, made national headlines, and led to enormous heartache.A vibrant portrait of 20th-century Scotland, ‘An Unlikely Countess’ is also a profile of two unforgettable characters, and the doomed love that they shared.

    The warriors of the clan, fiercely loyal to each other and to their chief, were well known for their extraordinary courage and military skills.Retold by one of Scotland's most acclaimed storytellers, these stories illustrate the drama and the dynamism of a society which lived close to nature, had little in the way of material wealth but which boasted a remarkable treasure house of stories that were passed down over generations.

    In fact, the idea of Scotland as an independent kingdom was older than the age of Wallace and Bruce. Dauvit Broun radically reassesses a range of fundamental issues: the fate of Pictish identity and the origins of Alba, the status of Scottish kingship vis-a-vis England, the papacy's recognition of the independence of the Scottish Church, and the idea of Scottish freedom. He also sheds new light on the authorship of John of Fordun's chronicle, the first full-scale history of the Scots, and offers an historical explanation of the inability to distinguish between England and Britain. Broun situates his history in the wider context of ideas of ultimate secular power in Britain and Ireland and the construction of national histories in this period.

    The text keeps things as simple as possible for beginners.

    But for her father, who has just lost his job in the tiny town of Tomintoul, Glasgow offers employment. It also enables Lizzie to work in a factory as a seamstress - and it opens her horizons to new friends as well. Especially the spirited Pearl, who introduces Lizzie to her boyfriend Willie, and her cousin, the handsome, happy-go-lucky Jack. Jack is a real bobby-dazzler ...It's not just Lizzie who faces temptation in the big city. Her father Doogie, also working in a factory, is exposed to it in the shape of the buxom Daisy. He moved here for the sake of his family's future, but now he's in danger of throwing that future away...It falls to Lizzie's mother, Ethne, to hold the family together. And soon she's doing so in a way that none of them could have envisaged when Lizzie, on one fateful night with Jack, does the wrong thing with the worst possible results...