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196 ratings | 152 reviews | avg rating:4.06

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Neil MacDonald

Goodreads Author

Born

in Dundee, The United Kingdom

April 25

Website

https://neilmacdonaldauthor.com/

Genre

Nonfiction, Contemporary, Thriller

Member Since

March 2014

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I was born in Dundee, Scotland and raised in Jamaica. I have a PhD in genetics and started my working life as a scientist. From there, I moved through journalism (the last profession of the gentleman) and publishing to working for international aid organisations.

I have always written, one way or another, and am the author of five current affairs books on Latin America and the Caribbean, and most recently, in 2013, Cautionary Tales for Development Workers, a collection of stories about international aid.

Over the last several years I have been serving my apprenticeship in fiction and my debut literary thriller,The Tears of Boabdil, is out in September 2020. My historical fantasy novel A Prize of Sovereigns. was serialised on BigWorldNework ...more

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Combine Editions
Neil MacDonald’s books

Average rating: 4.31 · 52 ratings · 45 reviews · 16 distinct works

	The Tears of Boabdil 4.35 avg rating — 46 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Cautionary Tales for Development Folk 3.67 avg rating — 3 ratings — published 2014 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Elsewhere: The Story of UK Skateboarding 1987-2002 4.50 avg rating — 2 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Caribbean: Making Our Own Choices really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Andes (Oxfam Country Profiles Series) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — published 1992	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Central America: Options for the Poor 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hard Lessons: Report of a N.U.T./W.U.S.Delegation to El Salvador 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	With Full Conviction 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Western Way 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Eachunn agus an Tarbh: Hector and the Bull 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Neil MacDonald's Blog

Friday Fictioneers – The Scribe’s Scare

The scribe puts down his stylus and sends the clay tablet for baking. A good day’s recording of the village’s wheat yields, so he allows himself a cup of beer with his dinner.

In the tavern, villagers avoid him. He’s used to that. Scribes are never popular.

Voices at a nearby table rise as the ale flows. “Writing! What’s it good for? Spying on our harvest! And what does th

Neil is Currently Reading

Neil MacDonald is currently reading

The Tears of Boabdil

by Neil MacDonald (Goodreads Author)

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Jul 30, 2024 05:26PM

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Neil MacDonald wrote a new blog post Friday Fictioneers – The Scribe’s Scare PHOTO PROMPT © Sandra CrookThe scribe puts down his stylus and sends the clay tablet for baking. A good day’s recording of the village’s wheat yields, Read more of this blog post »
Jul 29, 2026 03:42AM · like
Neil MacDonald wants to read The End of Everything by M. John Harrison	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 01, 2026 06:14AM · like
Neil MacDonald finished reading Red Mars (Mars Trilogy, #1) by Kim Stanley Robinson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 15, 2026 06:00PM · like
Neil MacDonald rated a book really liked it The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Ro is a trainee linguist of the Orro people, gifted but lazy—an endearing protagonist. Despite his bumptiousness, he succeeds in doing what few others can—jumping into the body of an alien Star Eater. The Star Eaters are the only species that can det ...more
May 28, 2026 06:11AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Neil MacDonald is currently reading Red Mars (Mars Trilogy, #1) by Kim Stanley Robinson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 05, 2026 07:55AM · like
Neil MacDonald finished reading The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 03, 2026 05:09PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Neil MacDonald rated a book liked it The Delusions by Jenni Fagan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 27, 2026 03:20AM · like
Neil MacDonald started reading The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 27, 2026 03:20AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Language of Liars by S.L. Huang <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
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Apr 25, 2026 05:16PM · like
Neil MacDonald rated a book really liked it The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley breaks all the rules of fiction. The voice is inconstant, shifting between the third person for the protagonist, Mary Murphy, first person accounts by unnamed characters, and substantial info dumps. Robison ...more
Apr 12, 2026 06:28AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">