I'm sure I've said this before here, and I know I say it to myself daily.
I really need a vacation.
Sometimes I think the only thing that keeps me more or less on track is the fact that I can escape into a book even if I can't escape somewhere by train or plane. After reading a page or two of Susanna Kearsley's Sophia's Secret I found I didn't want to put it down, so that's the book I chose (will get around to the others sooner or later--have no fear!).
Doesn't this sound good?
"My father always told me that the sea was in my blood. I had been born and raised beside it on the shores of Nova Scotia, and I never could resist its siren pull. So when the main road out of Aberdeen turned inland I turned right instead, and took the way along the coast."
"I couldn't say how far away I was when I first saw the ruined castle on the cliffs, a line of jagged darkness set against a cloud-filled sky, but from the moment I first saw it I was captivated, driving slightly faster in the hope I'd reach it sooner, paying no attention to the clustered houses I was driving past, and feeling disappointment when the road curved back again, and there it was: a long dark ruin, sharp against the snowbound fields that stretched forbiddingly between the cliff's edge and the road."
I know this is a book with two stories set several hundred years apart in Scotland, but I didn't realize it was set on the coast. Part of the attraction of the story was the "windswept ruins of Slains Castle" that the book blurb promises. I think the timing is just right for this book. A little history, a little drama, a little romance. What more can you ask for on a literary vacation.
Since I'm on the topic of historical fiction, I'll mention that I am planning on reading something by Elizabeth Chadwick as she has come recommended by more than one reader. I had no idea she had so many books to choose from, however. I'm thinking of getting The Falcons of Montabard, but I'm open to suggestions. It seems like her books are set in the Medieval period but are about all sorts of historical figures. Is there a book or two that stands out from the rest? They all sound good and going by the Amazon reviews she is held in high esteem by her readers--surely a good sign. Until I decide, however, I will be quite content on the Scottish coast. This is a mental vacation of sorts, so no need to rush.