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The Scottish Ruin Keeper
Will Capture Your Heart and Transport You to a Fascinating Place in History
The Scottish Ruin Keeper is a love among the ruins tale guaranteed to capture your heart. Young Will Clachan, descended from generations of stonecutters, grew up playing in the ruins of Elgin Cathedral. Once the greatest medieval cathedral in all of Scotland, Elgin was burned to ruins in an act of revenge by Alexander Stewart, the notorious Wolf of Badenoch. The ruins languished for centuries. By the early 1800’s many of the stones had been repurposed for new buildings in the town of Elgin.
John Shanks, a shoemaker appointed by the town as keeper of the ruin, is on a mission to protect the remains of the once magnificent cathedral. He hires Will Clachan as his assistant to help cart away tons of rubble surrounding what remains of the structure. Will leaves his home and family to live in a hut on the cathedral grounds. He spends his days carting away endless rubble, dumping it into the eerie Witches Pool nearby. But there is history buried in the ruins of Elgin Cathedral. Will and Shanks discover tombstones, relics, and monuments created by Pictish stonecutters of long ago.
Will not only falls in love with the ruins, but with Shank’s beautiful granddaughter Alanna. When she leaves to study art in Florence, Will fears he has lost her forever. When her grandfather becomes gravely ill, Alanna returns home. Will is no longer a boy, and Alanna is now a sophisticated young woman of the world.
Readers who love historical fiction will be captivated by this story of dedication, love, and hope.
—Midwest Book Review
Outstanding work!
Will Clachan’s father and grandfather were stone cutters. This was the trade of his Clachan they used the stones their ancestors laid down long ago to rebuild Elgin for the next generation. It was a point of pride for their family. Unfortunately, Will did not inherit this trade because Elgin’s Town Council resolved to secure and preserve the six-hundred-year-old cathedral ruins by keeping it gated and locked. John Shanks, an aging shoemaker and amateur historian, was appointed the keeper of the ruins. He employs Will Clachan to help him protect the ruins and move the rubble to the nearby Witches' Pool. Along the way, they discover there is something more to the ruins of Elgin Cathedral. Read The Scottish Ruin Keeper...to find out more!
A time and a place of the distant past are rendered with exquisite beauty in The Scottish Ruin Keeper by Deb Hosey White. The story was written with tenderness and painted in rich emotional tones. This is a layered tale of generations, of loss and rediscovery, of holding on and letting go. Through windswept highlands and crumbling stones, this book explores what it means to delve into the history that shaped us into who we are. I learned about the beauty of past remnants and the rediscovery of a time long forgotten. As Will discovered his love for history, I took that journey with him and was captivated by the timeless narratives embedded in the stones of a once-great structure. I also witnessed the beautiful story of how he grew up and found love with John's granddaughter, Alana, and how they rediscovered their feelings for each other after some time apart. I found myself reading every chapter with anticipation, lulled into a peaceful trance by the steady pacing. The story invited me to slow down, to feel deeply, and to reflect, and its amazing, compelling characters are at the heart of it all. Overall, this has been a spectacular journey. Outstanding work!
—Readers' Favorite
A poignant and richly imagined
...
The Scottish Ruin Keeper is a love among the ruins tale guaranteed to capture your heart. Young Will Clachan, descended from generations of stonecutters, grew up playing in the ruins of Elgin Cathedral. Once the greatest medieval cathedral in all of Scotland, Elgin was burned to ruins in an act of revenge by Alexander Stewart, the notorious Wolf of Badenoch. The ruins languished for centuries. By the early 1800’s many of the stones had been repurposed for new buildings in the town of Elgin.
John Shanks, a shoemaker appointed by the town as keeper of the ruin, is on a mission to protect the remains of the once magnificent cathedral. He hires Will Clachan as his assistant to help cart away tons of rubble surrounding what remains of the structure. Will leaves his home and family to live in a hut on the cathedral grounds. He spends his days carting away endless rubble, dumping it into the eerie Witches Pool nearby. But there is history buried in the ruins of Elgin Cathedral. Will and Shanks discover tombstones, relics, and monuments created by Pictish stonecutters of long ago.
Will not only falls in love with the ruins, but with Shank’s beautiful granddaughter Alanna. When she leaves to study art in Florence, Will fears he has lost her forever. When her grandfather becomes gravely ill, Alanna returns home. Will is no longer a boy, and Alanna is now a sophisticated young woman of the world.
Readers who love historical fiction will be captivated by this story of dedication, love, and hope.
—Midwest Book Review
Outstanding work!
Will Clachan’s father and grandfather were stone cutters. This was the trade of his Clachan they used the stones their ancestors laid down long ago to rebuild Elgin for the next generation. It was a point of pride for their family. Unfortunately, Will did not inherit this trade because Elgin’s Town Council resolved to secure and preserve the six-hundred-year-old cathedral ruins by keeping it gated and locked. John Shanks, an aging shoemaker and amateur historian, was appointed the keeper of the ruins. He employs Will Clachan to help him protect the ruins and move the rubble to the nearby Witches' Pool. Along the way, they discover there is something more to the ruins of Elgin Cathedral. Read The Scottish Ruin Keeper...to find out more!
A time and a place of the distant past are rendered with exquisite beauty in The Scottish Ruin Keeper by Deb Hosey White. The story was written with tenderness and painted in rich emotional tones. This is a layered tale of generations, of loss and rediscovery, of holding on and letting go. Through windswept highlands and crumbling stones, this book explores what it means to delve into the history that shaped us into who we are. I learned about the beauty of past remnants and the rediscovery of a time long forgotten. As Will discovered his love for history, I took that journey with him and was captivated by the timeless narratives embedded in the stones of a once-great structure. I also witnessed the beautiful story of how he grew up and found love with John's granddaughter, Alana, and how they rediscovered their feelings for each other after some time apart. I found myself reading every chapter with anticipation, lulled into a peaceful trance by the steady pacing. The story invited me to slow down, to feel deeply, and to reflect, and its amazing, compelling characters are at the heart of it all. Overall, this has been a spectacular journey. Outstanding work!
—Readers' Favorite
A poignant and richly imagined
...
- GenresHistorical Fiction
434 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 12, 2025
About the author
Deb Hosey White
15 books25 followersDeb Hosey White's lifelong love affair with the written word:
Began with a poem about a flying bear
Set the scene for meeting her husband and writing partner
Guided her through an English degree
Made her an eclectic reader, a lover of libraries and bookstores
Contributed to her success as a business writer
Jumpstarted her fascination with flash fiction
Compelled her to publish a workplace novel
Inspired her to add "experienced travel writer" to her resume
Motivated her to write about interesting women across all genres (from the boardroom to the bedroom), and
Turned her into an observant witness of the world around her.
Deb lives and writes in Annapolis, Maryland.
Deb is the author of:
The Scottish Ruin Keeper
Magic Numbers - the actuary's diary
Pink Slips and Parting Gifts
Travels Beyond Outlander
Let's Take the Kids to London
Beyond Downton Abbey (Volumes 1 and 2) and
Portugal - A Tale of Small Cities
Facebook pages:
https://www.facebook.com/RuinKeeper
www.facebook.com/pages/Pink-Slips-and...
www.facebook.com/BeyondDowntonAbbey
www.facebook.com/pages/Portugal-A-Tal...
www.facebook.com/pages/Lets-Take-the-...
www.facebook.com/pages/Pink-Slips-and...
Began with a poem about a flying bear
Set the scene for meeting her husband and writing partner
Guided her through an English degree
Made her an eclectic reader, a lover of libraries and bookstores
Contributed to her success as a business writer
Jumpstarted her fascination with flash fiction
Compelled her to publish a workplace novel
Inspired her to add "experienced travel writer" to her resume
Motivated her to write about interesting women across all genres (from the boardroom to the bedroom), and
Turned her into an observant witness of the world around her.
Deb lives and writes in Annapolis, Maryland.
Deb is the author of:
The Scottish Ruin Keeper
Magic Numbers - the actuary's diary
Pink Slips and Parting Gifts
Travels Beyond Outlander
Let's Take the Kids to London
Beyond Downton Abbey (Volumes 1 and 2) and
Portugal - A Tale of Small Cities
Facebook pages:
https://www.facebook.com/RuinKeeper
www.facebook.com/pages/Pink-Slips-and...
www.facebook.com/BeyondDowntonAbbey
www.facebook.com/pages/Portugal-A-Tal...
www.facebook.com/pages/Lets-Take-the-...
www.facebook.com/pages/Pink-Slips-and...
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
October 10, 2025
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
Beautifully written with a strong sense of place—Scottish ruins, history, and a heartfelt story. A slow, thoughtful read with rich detail and quiet romance. Perfect if you enjoy immersive historical fiction.
Beautifully written with a strong sense of place—Scottish ruins, history, and a heartfelt story. A slow, thoughtful read with rich detail and quiet romance. Perfect if you enjoy immersive historical fiction.
Displaying 1 of 1 review