The Fires Of Glenlochy

by Constance Heaven

Helplessly, She Fell in Love with a Dream and a Man...When beautiful young Marietta Gilmour returned from exile in France to her ancestral castle in 18th-century Scotland, her dream was to restore peace and happiness to a family torn by bitter, conflicting passions. The man who awaited her there was the devastatingly attractive Coll - who was all she had ever hoped for in a lover.But now her dream had turned into a nightmare of sinister intrigue and savage violence. And the man to whom she had given herself so tenderly filled her with horrifying suspicion and icy fear.Once Glenlochy Castle had been Marietta's heart's desire. Now it was her prison. Soon it might be her grave...

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Gothic Romance

238 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Constance Fecher Heaven
aka Constance Fecher, Constance Heaven, Christina Merlin

Constance Fecher was born on 6 August 1911 in Enfield, Middlesex, London, England, UK. She was educated at the Convent of Woodford Green, Essex from 1921 to 1928, when she went to study at King's College London, where she obtained a Honours degree in English in 1931. In 1931, she also graduated from London College of Music.

In 5 November 1939, she married William Heaven, who died in 1958. She was an actress from 1939 to 1966.

First published in 1963, she started writing historical novels with young protagonists under her maiden name Constance Fecher. From 1972, she signed her more romantic novels using her married name, Constance Heaven. She also used the pseudonym of Christina Merlin.

In 1973, her novel "The House of Kuragin" was the Winner of the Romantic Novel of the Year Award, and years later she was elected the eleventh Chairman (1981-1983) of the Romantic Novelists' Association. Mrs. Heaven continued writing until her death in 1995.

Reviews

[Sarah Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marietta (the heroine) was a complete bimbo, but otherwise this was an entertaining gothic romance. Somewhat predictable, yes, with fairly transparent characters (hero Richard, aunt Kathryn, & rabble-rousing local Hamish are the most dimensional of the lot) but who cares? It's a genre story with a legit historical backbone for the conflict. For being such a short book, it was a bit slow to build, but then the second half picked up speed & roped me into a single sitting -- hence, I give it 4 stars for a satisfying experience.

Bonus points:
--The author's description of Highland scenery was excellent. Very vivid. The beauty of the landscape comes through clearly without weighing down the plot.
--NO PHONETIC DIALOGUE. Thank you, Ms Heaven, for avoiding that god-awful 'dinnae fash, ye ken?' bologna.

I will read other gothics by this author. :)

[Roberta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Avvincente. Una classica storia di intrighi familiari e misteri, ambientata nelle Highlands occidentali nel 1770, all'epoca delle Clearances. Una giovane ereditiera alle prese con pericoli che si celano in luoghi impensabili, sentimenti nascenti e ancora confusi, e personaggi che nascondono oscuri segreti.

[Diletta Nicastro · Rating 5 out of 5]

'I fuochi di Glenlochy' è il primo romanzo che leggo di Costance Heaven. Quando mia mamma me lo ha dato mi ha detto che, se le si permetteva di fare un paragone del genere, si poteva dire che Constance Heaven sta alle sorelle Brontë come Georgette Heyer sta a Jane Austen. E devo dire che mi ritrovo in questo paragone.

All’inizio del romanzo Constance Heaven sottolinea che il castello di Glenlochy, e la stessa contea, non esistono, ma è un nome fittizio che raccoglie al suo interno molte delle tradizioni che ha studiato o dei panorami che ha visitato.
Dalle descrizioni e dai confini descritti il Castello si trova nella parte occidentale delle Highlands, si trova a picco sul mare e non lontano dall’isola di Skye (oh… la mia isola di Skye!).
Non è quindi peregrina l’idea di associare visivamente il castello a Eilean Donan Castle, castello reso davvero immortale dal film 'Highlander' (vi ricordate? Quello con Christopher Lambert e Sean Connery) e situato a poche miglia dallo Skye Bridge.
Personalmente posso garantire che la zona è descritta magnificamente e sembra davvero di tuffarsi nella zona nell’aftermath di Culloden, sia dal punto di vista geografico che storico (con la situazione dei landlord, dei fittavoli costretti ad emigrare, degli scontri tra gli scozzesi e gli inglesi… tra tutte, la descrizione che mi ha più colpito è il legame degli highlanders con il mare, sia nel cercare i molluschi con la bassa marea, sia in attesa delle ondate di pesce da pescare ed essiccare in vista dell’inverno. Magnifico!).

Complessivamente è un libro molto bello, scritto bene, e ben equilibrato, tra storia e romance. Consigliato sicuramente a tutti quelli che sono affamati di Scozia (è difficile trovare un romance così ben calato nella realtà dell’epoca) e a tutti quelli che cercano storie d’amore originali e mozzafiato.

Per la recensione completa visita il mio blog:
https://dilettanicastro.blogspot.com/...

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marietta travels from Frnace to meet her grandfather, chief in a Highland clan. She becomes involved in tension and learns some secrets, before discovering who she can trust. Believable, if slightly predictable thriller, with some quite suspenseful parts. Good plot.

[Linda (NOT RECEIVING NOTIFICATIONS) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Closer to 1.5 stars.

The heroine made it hard to like her, there was too much anger and the story was overlong. I enjoy gothic style historical romances but the twists and turns in this story were a bit too much.

[Silvia Frassineti]

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