Glenfinlas

 I chanced upon a volume of Tales from the Haunted Forests of Britain entitled Weird Woods.  Eton scholar M. R. James has one entry A Neighbor's Landmark which has a scholarly library entrance.  This interesting story has a quote from Sir Walter Scott's Glenfinlas.  Scott first included this in his Tales of Wonder in 1801 then later in his Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border.  Scott composed some captivating supernatural tales and this one does not end well for Lord Ronald after a visit by a water soaked lady in green.

The White Lady

 Elliot O'Donnell was a writer of ghost stories.  His Scottish tale of The White Lady of Rownam Avenue, Near Stirling begins with a reference to Sir Walter Scott's White Lady of Avenel.  The short tale with a supernatural focus has its own white lady and does not end well.  Boieldieu's La Dame Blanche is still performed to this day but has a happy ending with the accompaniment of gorgeous music.

Oban

 We sampled six Oban single malts in our latest Scotch tasting/murder mystery dinner:

12 year old, 14 year old, 18 year old Little Bay Game of Thrones reserve and Distiller's edition.

There was no clear favorite but the Distiller's edition and 18 year old received the most votes.

Sir Walter Scott's The Black Dwarf was a topic of brief discussion with a reference to art and drama that resulted from Scott's novel.

Betrothed by Sir Walter Scott

 Definitely fits in with Scott's historical novel approach but a contemporary critic should find material on a feminist study:

1. Chapter 16 page 133 (Edinburgh edition):  De Lacy himself, as he learned more intimately to know the merit of the prize which he was desirous of possessing..

2.  Chapter 2 (vol. 2) page 151:  He was assured of the early possession of a beautiful and amiable wife...

Eveline may not have objected to any of this but toss the idea of possession of a wife to someone working on a more contemporary female slant and see what response elicits.

Eveline managed affairs quite well while her betrothed was away so anyone gathering material for Scott's heroines should have fun with this.

The novel itself was a bit heavy reading at times, but passages like this perked my interest. 

Black and Blue

 Did you know that all of Ian Rankin's Rebus books have titles taken from popular music titles?  Black and Blue was Rankin's first big seller.  The title may have metaphors attached to it but it is also the title of a Rolling Stones album.

Looking forward to Sir Ian Rankin's new novel this fall.

Robert Louis Stevenson and His World

 David Daiches provided a very interesting biography of Robert Louis Stevenson interweaving his family, travels and the Scottish inspiration for much of his writing.  I was not aware of the long-term relationship R.L.S. had with Henry James.  I am now motivated to read more books by Robert Louis Stevenson.

The Pirate by Sir Walter Scott

 The Pirate is set in the latter part of the 17th century.  This time period has been the focus of a dozen books I have read in the past year in order to become better acquainted with the highly active political struggles.  This novel was a bit different because the volatile Catholic/Protestant conflicts were entirely absent.  I found it interesting that the residents of the northern islands had a more peaceful Catholic/Pagan coexistence.

Scott was only familiar with the Orkney and Shetland islands because of a tour he took several years earlier.  His main character was loosely based on a pirate he encountered in his studies of that particular trade in the northern islands.

I enjoyed this book and plan on a whisky tasting/murder mystery dinner with single malts from Orkney.  Let me know if you would like an invite.