If you have an appetite for fear and horror, this thick compendium of "The Lore of Scotland" will add a jolt of fright to your nighttime reading. Though, to be fair, this is as much a history book as a piece of light diversion.
"Scottish folklore is full of terror," writes Sophia Kingshill in the introduction to this volume. The rugged terrain of Scotland often gives people -- visitors and residents alike -- the feeling that there's a presiding spirit over the place. That spirit is often majestic, for sure, but sometimes there's an element of menace and fright as well. "The landscape is filled with evil beings – fairies that kidnap mothers and children, and kill livestock, with the lakes and rivers and seas populated by Kelpies and water-horses that lure travelers."
This guide is divided into geographical sections, with specific tales and legends associated with precise locales. Every part of Scotland is included, with an A-to-Z completeness and logic.
There are unsettled apparitions who need something done on their behalf in order to find peace in the afterlife. There are haunted bridges. There are tales that spell out the procedures that need to be followed in order to keep mermaids held captive.
With maps, and breakout sections on witch-hunts, monsters, standing stones, castles, battles, and historical backstories on folktales, this 503-page paperback is filled with legends and stories that stretch from neolithic times into the 20th Century. For those interested in further reading and research will find helpful references to source materials and earlier chroniclers as well.
503-page paperback, originally published in 2009, with extensive bibliography and index. By Jennifer Westwood and Sophia Kingshill.
