Today, I'm very excited to share my thoughts on Dylan Madeley 's book, The Last Gift-Knight . Dylan sent me a copy of his book after reaching out to ask for a review and I'm really glad he did. Keep reading to find out what I thought to The Last Gift-Knight , and decide whether this will be your next great read... But first, let's meet the book! Two lives, the legacies of grand stories, are at the forefront of this tale. Frustrated with living in the shadow of a long-dead hero, Derek flees to infamous ruins and begs his ancestors for a sign. The next day, he is summoned to serve as the personal guard of his family's greatest enemy. The ensuing journey leads him through storied places, the depths of loneliness, and a growing dread over what awaits at his destination. A reserved and bookish princess unexpectedly finds herself on the throne yet under suspicion. Chandra hardly has time to prepare or to grieve before facing her duties. Aided by a trustworthy few, she mu...
I once answered a call for submissions based on ghost stories of my local area. Now, the funny thing with Caithness is: most people seem to believe in - and many people will share stories about how they've witnessed - supernatural happenings around the county. However, there aren't many well-known stories.
Of course, there's the standard young-maiden-falling-out-of-castle-window story for at least two of the castles up here, and there's the eerie story of the man whose brother locked him up in Castle Sinclair Girnigoe with no food. Both characters feature in Caithness ghost stories.
But it's high time someone actually explored the individual's ghost stories. In fact, that's something I might do, if I ever actually get sufficient time on my hands! Where are the stories which are connected to the "ordinary" buildings? We've been sharing our Stempster Spectres in our monthly newsletters and, believe me, there are plenty of those!
A little further research of the scant amount which is already out there, and I discovered that there is an urban legend attached to the building of homes for those brought to the area in 1955 to work at the new nuclear site: Dounreay. Now, this tale has gaps and very little proof that it is true, but it still struck a chord with me. I won't tell you it in detail as that would ruin the story, but it has a very M.R. James-esque concept of taking something which doesn't belong to you and subsequently paying the price.
I didn't realise when I chose to include Ay Atomics in this book that it would be released during Dounreay's anniversary year, but that feels like an exciting coincidence.
And, finally, for anyone wondering - "ay Atomics" was what the native Caithnessians called those who came up to the far north of Scotland to work at the nuclear site. Many of them settled and never moved back south: their grandchildren and great-grandchildren are classed as Caithnessians in their own right now.
[You can read Judith's earlier Gothic Horror blog posts here]
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