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Dark Star
A small island in the Hebrides, its Gaelic people and its tich local lore serve as the background for this story of a young woman's struggle to protect her son and maintain her sanity.
Judith Mullaine has come with her son Paul to the island of Cathair Mor after a dreadful incident with her husband Lewis, a brilliant and renowned pianist, tried to kill her in order to gain custody of their son and to expose Paul to a worldly life he himself never knew as a child.
Judith Mullaine has come with her son Paul to the island of Cathair Mor after a dreadful incident with her husband Lewis, a brilliant and renowned pianist, tried to kill her in order to gain custody of their son and to expose Paul to a worldly life he himself never knew as a child.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1977
72 people want to read
About the author
Anne Maybury
56 books19 followersEdith Arundel Buxton
aka Edith Arundel, Anne Maybury & Katherine Troy.
Her maiden surname was Arundel. Her ancestors were said to have come to England with the Norman Conquest and she was proud of the heritage which did seem to imbue her with a perceptive appreciation of history. The love of poetry which remained with her always was inherited from her father, a distinguished poet of his time. Her mother was a musician who died at an early age.
She was a writer of romantic suspense whose novels earned her world-wide acclaim and an enormous following. She was particularly popular in the United States. Her finest gift was for lyrical prose and she used her delight in colour and drama to such effect that the reader was immediately plunged into the story and held enthralled.
Her early novels were written also under the pennames of Edith Arundel and Katherine Troy, but it is as Anne Maybury that she will be remembered. She was a true professional who did not believe in wasting time. A promised deadline was adhered to and all social engagements regretfully cancelled. She developed early in life the profound interest in human behaviour and intrigue which was to prove a valuable asset to her writing. Also in good measure she retained the attribute so necessary to an author, a lively curiosity. She travelled widely and brought a sense of adventure into her books derived often from personal experiences of a bizarre kind. She seemed to attract excitement and used to say that she had met more than one murderer during her travels around the world. As a writer she was stylish, and this quality extended to her personality, which was full of vivid charm, lightened by a sparkling sense of fun.
Generous with her time to aspiring writers, she also loved literary chat with her peers. She was interested in new writing as well as the classics and read widely, keeping up with developments. She was a vice-president of both the Romantic Novelists Association and the Society of Women Writers and Journalists. Almost until his death she regularly attended meetings and gave time and care to helping the members and the causes in which they believe. She was a remarkable writer and a good friend and companion.
aka Edith Arundel, Anne Maybury & Katherine Troy.
Her maiden surname was Arundel. Her ancestors were said to have come to England with the Norman Conquest and she was proud of the heritage which did seem to imbue her with a perceptive appreciation of history. The love of poetry which remained with her always was inherited from her father, a distinguished poet of his time. Her mother was a musician who died at an early age.
She was a writer of romantic suspense whose novels earned her world-wide acclaim and an enormous following. She was particularly popular in the United States. Her finest gift was for lyrical prose and she used her delight in colour and drama to such effect that the reader was immediately plunged into the story and held enthralled.
Her early novels were written also under the pennames of Edith Arundel and Katherine Troy, but it is as Anne Maybury that she will be remembered. She was a true professional who did not believe in wasting time. A promised deadline was adhered to and all social engagements regretfully cancelled. She developed early in life the profound interest in human behaviour and intrigue which was to prove a valuable asset to her writing. Also in good measure she retained the attribute so necessary to an author, a lively curiosity. She travelled widely and brought a sense of adventure into her books derived often from personal experiences of a bizarre kind. She seemed to attract excitement and used to say that she had met more than one murderer during her travels around the world. As a writer she was stylish, and this quality extended to her personality, which was full of vivid charm, lightened by a sparkling sense of fun.
Generous with her time to aspiring writers, she also loved literary chat with her peers. She was interested in new writing as well as the classics and read widely, keeping up with developments. She was a vice-president of both the Romantic Novelists Association and the Society of Women Writers and Journalists. Almost until his death she regularly attended meetings and gave time and care to helping the members and the causes in which they believe. She was a remarkable writer and a good friend and companion.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 20, 2015
3 1/2
I can't believe I got allllll… the way to the end. And then it Stops. Could she not have written ONE MORE PARAGRAPH? Then I could have happily given this book four stars, because I would have been satisfied. But, as you see I wasn't and I didn't. *sigh*
The suspense was good, I had more than enough cliffs, fog and fanatical lunitics. There were even moments when I questioned the heroine's sanity.
My problem with the book is that I got dumped, on a car trip back to the lairds castle, on the last page. With out two important things being resolved.
I think what I liked best about Dark Star was that it is set on a little island in Scotland close to Mull, Iona and Stafa, islands I've visited so I can picture this one so much clearer. (it also adds nostalgia)
Anyways, I do recommend reading this if you enjoy Gothics, this is not to be missed just because of it needing another paragraph to satisfy me.
G rating there was no violence shown to us and a few swears, Ds.
I can't believe I got allllll… the way to the end. And then it Stops. Could she not have written ONE MORE PARAGRAPH? Then I could have happily given this book four stars, because I would have been satisfied. But, as you see I wasn't and I didn't. *sigh*
The suspense was good, I had more than enough cliffs, fog and fanatical lunitics. There were even moments when I questioned the heroine's sanity.
My problem with the book is that I got dumped, on a car trip back to the lairds castle, on the last page. With out two important things being resolved.
I think what I liked best about Dark Star was that it is set on a little island in Scotland close to Mull, Iona and Stafa, islands I've visited so I can picture this one so much clearer. (it also adds nostalgia)
Anyways, I do recommend reading this if you enjoy Gothics, this is not to be missed just because of it needing another paragraph to satisfy me.
G rating there was no violence shown to us and a few swears, Ds.
June 14, 2011
This offering, set on the small, rugged Hebridean island of Cathair Mor, introduces us to Judith, the wife of the brilliant pianist Lewis Mulliane. Judith has fled to Cathair Mor with her seven year old son after her attempted murder by her husband. Judith is frightened and confused and is searching for answers as to why Lewis would do such a thing to her. Lewis is now on the run, and the police have no idea where he is hiding, but everyone feels sure that he won't attempt to return to this island, where he is the Laird; "The Mullaine". But Judith isn't so sure. She sees lights out on the outlying island, Cathair Beag. She hears the sounds of bigpipes playing Lewis' tune, "The Red Man". Someone is clearly out to destroy Judith's peace of mind and sanity, but no one will believe her.
Maybury's very atmospheric and highly descriptive novel place the reader right in the thick of the heather and bog-clad landscape. You get a real sense of the locale and all the attendant sights and smells of the island. Less successful (once again), are Maybury's characterizations, which aren't IMO her strongest suit. But I nonetheless devoured this book and will gladly search out more by Maybury, who is a very under rated writer.
Maybury's very atmospheric and highly descriptive novel place the reader right in the thick of the heather and bog-clad landscape. You get a real sense of the locale and all the attendant sights and smells of the island. Less successful (once again), are Maybury's characterizations, which aren't IMO her strongest suit. But I nonetheless devoured this book and will gladly search out more by Maybury, who is a very under rated writer.
January 13, 2014
So all in all this was a good read, a strong 3 stars.
It takes place on a small island, Cathair Mor near Mull in Scotland, where a woman is told to stay put while the police search for her husband who had attacked her and left her for dead. Its thought that he would never return to his birthplace and that Cathair Mor would be the safest place for Judith and her son Paul to "hide ".
But when strange things keep happening Judith starts questioning her own sanity and is also left to wonder whether she is really alone afterall...
Anne Maybury is fantastic at describing a setting (almost as good as Janet Caird which is saying something). Cathair Mor feels REAL and the people well described.
But the book didn't GRIP me. I could put it down without thinking the characters might go and do something without me. There's suspense but its not 'edge of your seat ' and I never got too worried..kind of a "cozy Gothic " if I can coin a new phrase.
CONTENT :
SEX : None
VIOLENCE : Mild
PROFANITY : Mild
PARANORMAL ELEMENTS : some fairy tales mentioned. Two characters claim to have the "sight ". (common enough in Scotland)
MY RATING : G
It takes place on a small island, Cathair Mor near Mull in Scotland, where a woman is told to stay put while the police search for her husband who had attacked her and left her for dead. Its thought that he would never return to his birthplace and that Cathair Mor would be the safest place for Judith and her son Paul to "hide ".
But when strange things keep happening Judith starts questioning her own sanity and is also left to wonder whether she is really alone afterall...
Anne Maybury is fantastic at describing a setting (almost as good as Janet Caird which is saying something). Cathair Mor feels REAL and the people well described.
But the book didn't GRIP me. I could put it down without thinking the characters might go and do something without me. There's suspense but its not 'edge of your seat ' and I never got too worried..kind of a "cozy Gothic " if I can coin a new phrase.
CONTENT :
SEX : None
VIOLENCE : Mild
PROFANITY : Mild
PARANORMAL ELEMENTS : some fairy tales mentioned. Two characters claim to have the "sight ". (common enough in Scotland)
MY RATING : G
November 30, 2022
In her penultimate novel, Anne Maybury hit the limits of one of her favorite formulas: the young wife gaslit by an abusive husband. Here, the action takes place on a remote Scottish island, where Judith and her son are licking their wounds after she has survived a brutal assault by her high-strung, musician husband. Unpleasant all around, with the volume turned up on all of Maybury's less attractive tropes: an impulsive marriage, soon regretted; a cold husband who in this case is physically as well as emotionally abusive; a domineering mother-in-law...it just goes on and on. For anyone who enjoys Maybury's works, "Dark Star" is a major misstep. For anyone unfamiliar with her work, "Dark Star" would likely put them off reading any more of Maybury. Just a bad book all around.
August 29, 2023
It took me forever to try and finish this book. It was such a slog and I felt it was decently predictable.
March 13, 2016
A good book that is about a wife whose husband wants her gone from his life so he cut her. She goes to an island in Scotland with her seven-year-old son to escape him.
September 7, 2024
Read years ago
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews