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The Jacobite Trilogy #1
The Flight of the Heron
The Flight of the Heron is set in Scotland during the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745, an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart, known as Bonnie Prince Charlie, to regain the British throne for his father. It follows the story of an unlikely friendship between a young Jacobite and Highland chieftain Ewen Cameron of Ardroy, who follows Bonnie Prince Charlie in his bid for the throne, and a Government Army Officer, the Englishman Captain Keith Windham of the Royal Scots. In the battle of Culloden Captain Windham gets caught in an ambush, thrown of his horse and left alone by his cowardly recruits. Cameron finds him and attempts to take him prisoner, but Windham refuses to surrender, and they have a swordfight. Highlander wins the fight after the Englishman passes out, and captures him. However, Windham manages to escape, but by the prophecy of Cameron's visionary foster father, the two men are about to cross paths five times. The tale focuses on the growing friendship between the two enemies, as each man realizes that the other is in fact a man of great integrity, honesty and dignity.
305 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1925
54 people are currently reading
452 people want to read
About the author
D.K. Broster
65 books15 followersDorothy Kathleen Broster (1877 - 1950) produced 15 popular historical novels between 1911 and 1947.
The Yellow Poppy (1920) about the adventures of an aristocratic couple during the French Revolution, was later adapted by Broster and W. Edward Stirling for the London stage in 1922. She produced her bestseller Scottish historical novel, The Flight of the Heron, in 1925. Broster stated she had consulted eighty reference books before beginning the novel. She followed it up with two successful sequels, The Gleam in the North and The Dark Mile. She wrote several other historical novels, successful and much reprinted in their day, although this Jacobite trilogy (inspired by a five-week visit to friends in Scotland), featuring the dashing hero Ewen Cameron, remains the best known.
The Flight of the Heron was adapted for BBC Radio twice, in 1944, starring Gordon Jackson as Ewen Cameron, and again in 1959, starring Bryden Murdoch as Cameron. Murdoch also starred in radio adaptations of the book's sequels, The Gleam in the North and The Dark Mile.
The Yellow Poppy (1920) about the adventures of an aristocratic couple during the French Revolution, was later adapted by Broster and W. Edward Stirling for the London stage in 1922. She produced her bestseller Scottish historical novel, The Flight of the Heron, in 1925. Broster stated she had consulted eighty reference books before beginning the novel. She followed it up with two successful sequels, The Gleam in the North and The Dark Mile. She wrote several other historical novels, successful and much reprinted in their day, although this Jacobite trilogy (inspired by a five-week visit to friends in Scotland), featuring the dashing hero Ewen Cameron, remains the best known.
The Flight of the Heron was adapted for BBC Radio twice, in 1944, starring Gordon Jackson as Ewen Cameron, and again in 1959, starring Bryden Murdoch as Cameron. Murdoch also starred in radio adaptations of the book's sequels, The Gleam in the North and The Dark Mile.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
September 3, 2013
I got a teeny bit of time off before finals week, so naturally I thought the most relaxing possible thing to do would be to settle down with a completely random book found on the library free giveaway shelf.
I really do find that relaxing; there is something exciting about dipping into a complete unknown. You might find a gem! Or something awesomely bad. Or just something really bizarre.
This was a gem. A slashy gem.
Published in 1929, it’s a delicious melodrama about an English soldier, Keith Windham, and a Highlander, Ewen Cameron of Ardroy, who become best friends or possibly more despite being on opposite sides of the Jacobite rebellion. And when I say “or more,” what I mean is that the only way this novel could have had more gay subtext would have been if it had… actually, I don’t think more subtext was possible. It would have had to go straight (as it were) to gay text.
It was strange, it was alarming, to feel, as by this time he did, how strongly their intimacy had progressed in two months of absence and, on his side, of deliberate abstention from communication – like the roots of two trees growing secretly towards each other in darkness.
“Love across battle lines” is one of my very favorite tropes, and this squeezes every bit of angsty juice out of it. To give more of a taste of how this goes, I’ll summarize the first fifth or so.
Ewen Cameron is admiring his beloved loch when he sees his loyal but not too bright foster-brother Lachlan trying to kill a heron. Ewen stops him, and Lachlan reveals that his father, who has second sight, has predicted that a heron will bring about a meeting between Ewen and a man. They will meet five times, and it will end in grief.
Then Bonnie Prince Charlie arrives, and the war soon begins. Keith Windham, a lonely woobie English soldier whose father is dead, whose mother didn’t love him, and whose girlfriend cheated on him, gets caught in an ambush. His cowardly new recruits flee, and a heron startles his horse. He’s thrown, and gets a concussion and a sprained ankle.
Ewen finds him and attempts to take him prisoner. From Keith’s POV, Ewen is a magnificent specimen of young manhood, as the soldier could not help admitting. Also, Splendidly built as this young Highlander was….
Keith refuses to surrender, and they have a swordfight. Ewen defeats him and, weakened by his wounds and exhaustion, Keith passes out. He wakes up cradled in Ewen’s arms. And so begins a friendship, or possibly “friendship,” which becomes the most important thing in Keith’s life and second only in Ewen’s life to his beloved Scotland.
I won’t spoil the rest, but there is lots of fleeing across the moors, fighting, capture, misunderstandings, “my love or my loyalty” conflicts, admiring each other's bodies and courage, and being cradled in each other’s arms. So, you know, if you like that sort of thing…
The novel is a bit prolix, even for 1929, and contains a lot of annoying, borderline incomprehensible dialect. Broster uses “pe” instead of “be” for rustic Scottish characters, resulting in more than one sentence in which some earthy fellow says, “I peed…”
But the scenes between Keith and Ewen are great, and make up the majority of the book. (Thankfully, neither of them speak in phonetic dialect.)
I really do find that relaxing; there is something exciting about dipping into a complete unknown. You might find a gem! Or something awesomely bad. Or just something really bizarre.
This was a gem. A slashy gem.
Published in 1929, it’s a delicious melodrama about an English soldier, Keith Windham, and a Highlander, Ewen Cameron of Ardroy, who become best friends or possibly more despite being on opposite sides of the Jacobite rebellion. And when I say “or more,” what I mean is that the only way this novel could have had more gay subtext would have been if it had… actually, I don’t think more subtext was possible. It would have had to go straight (as it were) to gay text.
It was strange, it was alarming, to feel, as by this time he did, how strongly their intimacy had progressed in two months of absence and, on his side, of deliberate abstention from communication – like the roots of two trees growing secretly towards each other in darkness.
“Love across battle lines” is one of my very favorite tropes, and this squeezes every bit of angsty juice out of it. To give more of a taste of how this goes, I’ll summarize the first fifth or so.
Ewen Cameron is admiring his beloved loch when he sees his loyal but not too bright foster-brother Lachlan trying to kill a heron. Ewen stops him, and Lachlan reveals that his father, who has second sight, has predicted that a heron will bring about a meeting between Ewen and a man. They will meet five times, and it will end in grief.
Then Bonnie Prince Charlie arrives, and the war soon begins. Keith Windham, a lonely woobie English soldier whose father is dead, whose mother didn’t love him, and whose girlfriend cheated on him, gets caught in an ambush. His cowardly new recruits flee, and a heron startles his horse. He’s thrown, and gets a concussion and a sprained ankle.
Ewen finds him and attempts to take him prisoner. From Keith’s POV, Ewen is a magnificent specimen of young manhood, as the soldier could not help admitting. Also, Splendidly built as this young Highlander was….
Keith refuses to surrender, and they have a swordfight. Ewen defeats him and, weakened by his wounds and exhaustion, Keith passes out. He wakes up cradled in Ewen’s arms. And so begins a friendship, or possibly “friendship,” which becomes the most important thing in Keith’s life and second only in Ewen’s life to his beloved Scotland.
I won’t spoil the rest, but there is lots of fleeing across the moors, fighting, capture, misunderstandings, “my love or my loyalty” conflicts, admiring each other's bodies and courage, and being cradled in each other’s arms. So, you know, if you like that sort of thing…
The novel is a bit prolix, even for 1929, and contains a lot of annoying, borderline incomprehensible dialect. Broster uses “pe” instead of “be” for rustic Scottish characters, resulting in more than one sentence in which some earthy fellow says, “I peed…”
But the scenes between Keith and Ewen are great, and make up the majority of the book. (Thankfully, neither of them speak in phonetic dialect.)
Read
March 5, 2020i read this on the recommendation of several people who thought I would enjoy a hopelessly romantic, scenery-porn-laden sort-of-adventure set during the Jacobite Rising. Ewen Cameron, a happy, brave, sweet Gael Highlander and chieftain, meets Keith Windham, a cynical, miserable English officer and, as they are on different sides of a war, takes him prisoner. Windham gets away from him, though not before the two of them have grudgingly acknowledged a mutual respect. The Camerons' seer then foretells that the two of them will meet four more times. This is exactly what happens, on the precise beat-structure of a modern romance novel. It's all honour and glory and betrayal, the doomed Rising - Charles Edward Stuart, in this rendering, is mostly a prick - and ultimately, a choice between a friendship across enemy lines and loyalty to a cause. It's every trope come to life, and in parts it's beautifully written. (I was delighted too that the author remembers Ewen's first language is Gaelic, reproduces some of it and also renders his dialogue in English with Gaelic cadences.) Is it actually a romance? No. It was written in 1925, and features Ewen's marriage early in the book . But it has the structure and characterisation of one - here are two people who need each other in a way they don't understand, and here's how they change each other - and it has the satisfying ending of one too. It's overwrought as hell, but I really did like it.
March 13, 2016
Set in Scotland in the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion, this is the story of an unlikely friendship between Keith Windham, a career soldier in the British Army, and a young Highland chieftain who follows Bonnie Prince Charlie in his bid for the throne.
Ewen Cameron's foster-father, who has the two sights, predicts their meeting five times, through an encounter with a heron, and these meetings do indeed come about. Though each is unswervingly loyal to his own allegiance, in the course of the rebellion they continue to meet, and their friendship develops and deepens in adversity.
The story can be read as straight romance, gay romance, or a superbly researched historical adventure. The author was a secretary at an Oxford College, and had previously been a nurse in France during the First World War, and one can assume that she knew exactly what she was writing about in all respects. And she did the job brilliantly; the book's funny and moving by turns, and though the ending is sad, it's also absolutely epic and stays in the mind for a long, long time.
Highly recommended; keep the tissues handy, though.
Ewen Cameron's foster-father, who has the two sights, predicts their meeting five times, through an encounter with a heron, and these meetings do indeed come about. Though each is unswervingly loyal to his own allegiance, in the course of the rebellion they continue to meet, and their friendship develops and deepens in adversity.
The story can be read as straight romance, gay romance, or a superbly researched historical adventure. The author was a secretary at an Oxford College, and had previously been a nurse in France during the First World War, and one can assume that she knew exactly what she was writing about in all respects. And she did the job brilliantly; the book's funny and moving by turns, and though the ending is sad, it's also absolutely epic and stays in the mind for a long, long time.
Highly recommended; keep the tissues handy, though.
May 28, 2016
We all have a few books that form our patterns - our core literary vocabulary, if you like. This is one of mine. It's about two men on either side of a war (the Jacobite Rebellion) who over the course of merely five meetings form a friendship so intense that it throws the nominal romantic interest completely into the shade. Since it's impossible in the context of mid-20s sentimental romance for the relationship to progress any further, one dies in the other's arms, and the other wears his ring for the rest of his life.
I'm fairly sure Broster knew what she was doing. She certainly doesn't take it to the sexual, but there is intimacy galore. Other, earlier books of hers (Mr. Rowl, The Wounded Name, even to some extent the religious novel she co-wrote, The Vision Splendid) have similar pre-slash - or, if you prefer, romantic friendship - elements. But this is the one that is most perfectly conceived, and when I scribble, I still find myself unconsciously imitating moments from "The Flight of the Heron."
D.K. Broster died in 1950, having lived a long life as a historian in the shadow of men, unmarried and childless, but with at least one lengthy domestic relationship with another woman - sexual or not, who can tell? Had she lived a century later, I have not the slightest doubt she would have been one of the leading lights of the slash community.
I'm fairly sure Broster knew what she was doing. She certainly doesn't take it to the sexual, but there is intimacy galore. Other, earlier books of hers (Mr. Rowl, The Wounded Name, even to some extent the religious novel she co-wrote, The Vision Splendid) have similar pre-slash - or, if you prefer, romantic friendship - elements. But this is the one that is most perfectly conceived, and when I scribble, I still find myself unconsciously imitating moments from "The Flight of the Heron."
D.K. Broster died in 1950, having lived a long life as a historian in the shadow of men, unmarried and childless, but with at least one lengthy domestic relationship with another woman - sexual or not, who can tell? Had she lived a century later, I have not the slightest doubt she would have been one of the leading lights of the slash community.
April 6, 2014
I was given this book as a present nearly forty years ago. Struggled as a child (just preteen) to read it, but held on - it had reputation for being good.
It is - but it's writing style is bit staid, and is really didn't like some of the phonetic dialogue. It's not that I object on principle it's is just it wasn't done well or consistently. Bit parts have accents the main highlanders don't!
So I'm glad I read it eventually but not one to rave about or push on friends etc.
In looking at other reviews I am appalled by the tosh about a gay subtext. It is possible to have friendship, respect, admiration without there having to be sex involved. I have no problem with a healthy dollop of sex in books, but I think it a said sign of our obsession with sex. I saw this as a reflection that 'decent' behaviour, done from a sense of what's right can transcend 'tribal' hatred and prejudice like Jacobite and English. It was interesting that not much made of inter clan rivalries (the root cause if a lot of the failure) but I see in blurb that is part of the Dark Mile which I will get round to later this year.
It is - but it's writing style is bit staid, and is really didn't like some of the phonetic dialogue. It's not that I object on principle it's is just it wasn't done well or consistently. Bit parts have accents the main highlanders don't!
So I'm glad I read it eventually but not one to rave about or push on friends etc.
In looking at other reviews I am appalled by the tosh about a gay subtext. It is possible to have friendship, respect, admiration without there having to be sex involved. I have no problem with a healthy dollop of sex in books, but I think it a said sign of our obsession with sex. I saw this as a reflection that 'decent' behaviour, done from a sense of what's right can transcend 'tribal' hatred and prejudice like Jacobite and English. It was interesting that not much made of inter clan rivalries (the root cause if a lot of the failure) but I see in blurb that is part of the Dark Mile which I will get round to later this year.
April 2, 2013
A great Scottish story that takes place around the time of the battle of Culloden and its aftermath. Though the battle is not described in the book, the relentless pursuit of the rebels is . The story centers around a Scottish noble and an English officer and how their lives intertwine with each other. And how , though they should be enemies, they end up friends. The first book in the Jacobite Trilogy.
September 20, 2015
A splendid yarn of the 45 Jacobite uprising under Bonnie Prince Charlie, firmly in the Scott-Stevenson-Buchan tradition. Fuller review to follow.
December 30, 2023
I was surprised this book is almost 100 years old. It doesn't feel dated. The story, which covers the year in which the Battle of Culloden is fought, is told from the perspective of a Highland Laird and an English officer. It is well paced, and the reader finds themselves in sympathy with both characters. I did wonder if the novel had been written in the 2020s and not the 1920s the relationship between the two main characters may have been closer.
November 30, 2013
The Flight of the Heron by D. K. Broster. Originally published in 1925 and reprinted 28 times according to copyright info in the front of the book. Mad Pub Lib had books 2 and 3 in the 3 vol. series but I had to get this one from UW library system. Always instructive to see what kind of story held the attention of folks in the midst of the Depression.
This was a tale of two soldiers on opposite sides during the Jacobite uprising of ’45 for those of you who know your history of Scotland. Discovered it on the blog Pen and Pencil Girls bemoaning the fact that it will probably never make it to the Kindle. The photo with the blog post was from 1960's TV series based on the book and set me reading. Still debating whether I want to read the whole series.
This was a tale of two soldiers on opposite sides during the Jacobite uprising of ’45 for those of you who know your history of Scotland. Discovered it on the blog Pen and Pencil Girls bemoaning the fact that it will probably never make it to the Kindle. The photo with the blog post was from 1960's TV series based on the book and set me reading. Still debating whether I want to read the whole series.
November 23, 2020
A romantic tragedy, in which two soldiers on opposite sides of the Jacobite rebellion are bound by friendship, respect, and even love. This is not a romance -- it's published in 1929 -- but it feels like one. It carries us through the emotional arc of a doomed romance, and draws Ewen and Keith inexorably together, before fate intervenes and all ends in tragedy. It's a strangely beautiful weepy tale, full of beautiful scenery, honour and sword fights. An excellent diversion.
January 5, 2016
I read this book many years ago after borrowing it from a friend. It's engrossing and gave me a real passion for this time in history and the interest to do more travel in Scotland.
The book is hard to find though and I have spent so much time in libraries and book shops searching for my own copy (and anything else by DK Broster).
The book is hard to find though and I have spent so much time in libraries and book shops searching for my own copy (and anything else by DK Broster).
May 25, 2021
I first read this about 50 years ago, as one of the trove of books my sister brought back to Texas from her summer in Durham (England, not NC :). Many historical novels, when read at a young age become the bones upon which you build knowledge of past times. This novel was one of those for me regarding the 1745 Jacobite rebellion. I read it a few times over the years, and decided to re-read it again while watching Outlander.
The novel does an excellent job of showing the rebellion from both the Scottish and English sides through the story of Keith Wyndham, a British officer who is captured by Ewen Cameron, a Scottish laird. A seer has foretold they will meet 5 times, and that Keith will perform a great service for Ewen but also cause deep pain. It does not go deeply into the politics or the battles, but instead shows the slow building of a friendship based on honor and liking despite the temperamental and political differences they have. The lonely and somewhat embittered Keith grows through the friendship, performing actions that are humane, even though detrimental to his military career. Some reviews comment on the 'bromance' but I feel that cheapens the deep feelings you can have for a friend of the same sex.
Although there is a slant showing the Scots as the nobler side, it does not over romanticize 'Bonny Prince Charlie' and the doomed nature of the rebellion. Scotland was drastically changed by the rebellion, with death, famine and political repression causing a diaspora to Ireland, Europe and America.
The novel does an excellent job of showing the rebellion from both the Scottish and English sides through the story of Keith Wyndham, a British officer who is captured by Ewen Cameron, a Scottish laird. A seer has foretold they will meet 5 times, and that Keith will perform a great service for Ewen but also cause deep pain. It does not go deeply into the politics or the battles, but instead shows the slow building of a friendship based on honor and liking despite the temperamental and political differences they have. The lonely and somewhat embittered Keith grows through the friendship, performing actions that are humane, even though detrimental to his military career. Some reviews comment on the 'bromance' but I feel that cheapens the deep feelings you can have for a friend of the same sex.
Although there is a slant showing the Scots as the nobler side, it does not over romanticize 'Bonny Prince Charlie' and the doomed nature of the rebellion. Scotland was drastically changed by the rebellion, with death, famine and political repression causing a diaspora to Ireland, Europe and America.
November 10, 2025
after intentionally horrifying my Scottish friend and her parents by telling them that I'd read the first outlander book, this much much better novel was recommended to me. a smashing, lyrical, and heartfelt read
September 12, 2024
like Waverley blended with Armadale (and a little sprinkle of Sylvia's Lovers too). It was at once good fun and devastating.
July 14, 2017
I did not expect to enjoy this anywhere as much as I did, fully expecting a cheesy romance novel set in the 1700's. In fact, although the writing style is a little dated (though certainly not unreadable), the story was less about the highland laird and his beautiful lady and more about a series of awkward and hilariously polite skirmishes between two men from either side of the Jacobite fence. Throw in a dash of prophecy, treachery and misguided loyalty, all set against a mostly historically accurate backdrop and it makes for a fun romp through the highlands. Not to be taken too seriously, I found myself laughing aloud at several places. 1 star off for the ending, which I felt was a dramatically unnecessary and put me off reading the next two books in the series because I was so annoyed by what it meant for the rest of the books. However, the author addressed this early in the second book well enough that I can forgive her.
September 5, 2020
I adored this book and it disgusts me that modern readers seem to think there is anything homoerotic about it. It was written in the early 1900s when it was perfectly acceptable for men to have close friendships without people automatically assuming they were in love with each other. Think David and Jonathan. I think the author herself would be horrified at such a complete misreading of her book. For myself, I saw it as a beautiful and ultimately heartbreaking story of two men from opposing sides of a war who developed a deep and abiding friendship through saving each others' lives and shared war experiences.
September 23, 2018
One of those books that should be on every reading list. Great on first reading, but strangely disposable after that. The second and third parts of the trilogy suffer from the same symptom. Of their time.
November 21, 2021
Listen: I love people angsting about their honor and duty and making decisions that would seem kind of bizarre in a modern context because of it. If you like honor and homoeroticism and soldiers swooning in their friends' arms, this is for you.
November 30, 2013
Scotland, Bonny Prince Charlie and the Jacobite revolt. Set in the highlands. I remember many of the places mentioned. Interesting to see the writing style of 1925 historical fiction.
January 25, 2015
Great historical fiction from my youth. I picked this up again after reading an interview of Shirley Hazzard where she commented that this was one of her favorite books.
August 21, 2020
Broster wasn’t Scottish but the background to her story most certainly is, probably the most worked-over seam in Scottish history, the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745-6, from Scott kicking off the whole historical novel malarkey with Waverley to Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander.
The focus here is very much not on the battles of that rebellion but on the relationship between Jacobite Ewen Cameron (of Ardroy) and a Government Army Officer, the Englishman Captain (later Major) Keith Windham of the Royal Scots.
Just after Bonnie Prince Charlie has landed in Scotland, Windham is captured by Cameron (due to no fault of his own - his horse shying at a heron rising in front of it, which only slightly injures him but breaks the horse’s leg - leaving him all but defenceless.) Windham is surprised to find Cameron not the barbarian of his expectations but a gentleman with fine and chivalrous manners. Having given his parole, Windham is indebted to Cameron for intervening when on a stroll he comes across locals retrieving their arms cache from the thatched roofs of their houses and is thereby thought to be a spy. In the meantime, we find that Cameron’s foster-father - who is a seer - has predicted that Cameron and Windham will meet a total of five times, leaving the reader totting up their encounters. Sure enough the pairs’ paths cross again in Edinburgh after the Battle of Prestonpans when Windham has sallied from the castle in an attempt to capture the Prince - to whom Cameron is now aide-de-camp – who is visiting a house nearby, and once again Windham finds himself indebted to Cameron for allowing him to escape the clutches of Highlander reinforcements.
Windham’s opportunity to repay these favours occurs in the aftermath of Culloden when he arrives just in time to prevent the execution of an almost dying Cameron -wounded and exhausted, barely able to stand - at the hands of a detachment of Government soldiers sweeping the countryside for rebels. Wjndham’s speiring of Cameron as to the whereabouts of Clan Chief Lochiel then becomes a source of distrust between them before two final meetings in prison resolve their situation.
The book is dedicated to Violet Jacob, whose Flemington - which covers much the same ground as this - and Tales of Angus I read in 2015. Broster is not as good a stylist as Jacob was, though. Indeed, her prose tends to the utilitarian, but she does have an eye for landscape.
It is, however, impossible to read this book nowadays without wondering about its undercurrent, Windham’s several times expressed “strong attraction” for Cameron. His striving to ensure Cameron does not suffer unduly in the Government soldiers’ hands – even to the point of encurring the direct displeasure of the Duke of Cumberland – speaks of something more than mere obligation or friendship. A something that perhaps could not be addressed in so many words on the book’s first printing in 1925.
The focus here is very much not on the battles of that rebellion but on the relationship between Jacobite Ewen Cameron (of Ardroy) and a Government Army Officer, the Englishman Captain (later Major) Keith Windham of the Royal Scots.
Just after Bonnie Prince Charlie has landed in Scotland, Windham is captured by Cameron (due to no fault of his own - his horse shying at a heron rising in front of it, which only slightly injures him but breaks the horse’s leg - leaving him all but defenceless.) Windham is surprised to find Cameron not the barbarian of his expectations but a gentleman with fine and chivalrous manners. Having given his parole, Windham is indebted to Cameron for intervening when on a stroll he comes across locals retrieving their arms cache from the thatched roofs of their houses and is thereby thought to be a spy. In the meantime, we find that Cameron’s foster-father - who is a seer - has predicted that Cameron and Windham will meet a total of five times, leaving the reader totting up their encounters. Sure enough the pairs’ paths cross again in Edinburgh after the Battle of Prestonpans when Windham has sallied from the castle in an attempt to capture the Prince - to whom Cameron is now aide-de-camp – who is visiting a house nearby, and once again Windham finds himself indebted to Cameron for allowing him to escape the clutches of Highlander reinforcements.
Windham’s opportunity to repay these favours occurs in the aftermath of Culloden when he arrives just in time to prevent the execution of an almost dying Cameron -wounded and exhausted, barely able to stand - at the hands of a detachment of Government soldiers sweeping the countryside for rebels. Wjndham’s speiring of Cameron as to the whereabouts of Clan Chief Lochiel then becomes a source of distrust between them before two final meetings in prison resolve their situation.
The book is dedicated to Violet Jacob, whose Flemington - which covers much the same ground as this - and Tales of Angus I read in 2015. Broster is not as good a stylist as Jacob was, though. Indeed, her prose tends to the utilitarian, but she does have an eye for landscape.
It is, however, impossible to read this book nowadays without wondering about its undercurrent, Windham’s several times expressed “strong attraction” for Cameron. His striving to ensure Cameron does not suffer unduly in the Government soldiers’ hands – even to the point of encurring the direct displeasure of the Duke of Cumberland – speaks of something more than mere obligation or friendship. A something that perhaps could not be addressed in so many words on the book’s first printing in 1925.
February 28, 2022
This was an interesting little book, a bit slow paced at times but not a bad read.
Some of the accents however were written phonetically and were nearly impossible to read. In some cases I had no idea what was being said and just skimmed over it. Also I think it was a bad idea to present two major characters with "L" names that had such similar construction. I also think the ending was a little weak and while I appreciate the strange bond between the lead characters ...
Those things aside, I think the story was interesting and the chemistry between the leads was sometimes very intense for all that they didn't meet much. They often thought of each other as striking or handsome or strange and were not sure why the other kept helping them being that they were hereditary enemies on opposite sides.
I enjoyed the writing itself as well and the characters' longing for various things and I feel like the highlands in particular were granted a kind of otherworldiness but in a good way.
There are sequels to this apparently as well. I wouldn't mind reading them but I'm not in a hurry.
Some of the accents however were written phonetically and were nearly impossible to read. In some cases I had no idea what was being said and just skimmed over it. Also I think it was a bad idea to present two major characters with "L" names that had such similar construction. I also think the ending was a little weak and while I appreciate the strange bond between the lead characters ...
Those things aside, I think the story was interesting and the chemistry between the leads was sometimes very intense for all that they didn't meet much. They often thought of each other as striking or handsome or strange and were not sure why the other kept helping them being that they were hereditary enemies on opposite sides.
I enjoyed the writing itself as well and the characters' longing for various things and I feel like the highlands in particular were granted a kind of otherworldiness but in a good way.
There are sequels to this apparently as well. I wouldn't mind reading them but I'm not in a hurry.
September 1, 2020
I first read this book as a teenager, more decades ago than I care to remember or admit to! At the time, I enjoyed it tremendously. Now, I find the style rather stilted and the characters slightly wooden. Despite this, I finished the book and will read the other two in the trilogy, though perhaps not immediately. The descriptions of the landscapes and the cold, incessant rain were excellent.
The storyline was not what I expected. This is not really a historical novel in the true sense. It focuses on relationships, particularly the growing friendship between the hero, Ewan Cameron, and an English officer, Keith Windham, as each man realises that the other, nominally an enemy, is in fact a man of great integrity, honesty and dignity.
If you are hoping for a novel that will detail the second Jacobite uprising, culminating in the fearsomely bloody Battle of Culloden and the horrendous reprisals that followed it, ordered by the victorious Duke of Cumberland, you will be sorely disappointed. Culloden warrants only a couple of lines.
I think that this is a novel of its time. Life and literature have moved on, become freer and less hide-bound by conventions. However, if you can ignore the style, you may enjoy this book so I would recommend it with the above provisos.
The storyline was not what I expected. This is not really a historical novel in the true sense. It focuses on relationships, particularly the growing friendship between the hero, Ewan Cameron, and an English officer, Keith Windham, as each man realises that the other, nominally an enemy, is in fact a man of great integrity, honesty and dignity.
If you are hoping for a novel that will detail the second Jacobite uprising, culminating in the fearsomely bloody Battle of Culloden and the horrendous reprisals that followed it, ordered by the victorious Duke of Cumberland, you will be sorely disappointed. Culloden warrants only a couple of lines.
I think that this is a novel of its time. Life and literature have moved on, become freer and less hide-bound by conventions. However, if you can ignore the style, you may enjoy this book so I would recommend it with the above provisos.
February 22, 2025
To reacquaint myself with DK Broster's novel has been a pleasure, although it's never really left my imagination. Written a hundred years ago, this eighteenth century tale of two lives fatefully entwined during the second Jacobite rebellion continues to resonate.
Ewan Cameron and Keith Wyndham are on opposite sides of the conflict, yet their lives cross several times. Each encounter happens at a critical juncture, with the actions of one holding the fortunes of the other in their hands. Ties of obligation and gratitude deepen into a friendship that, if you were reading a modern novel, you could easily describe as the start of a queer romance. That DK Broster seems to have been queer herself only adds weight to that thought. The actual romance element (Cameron and his betrothed) is dealt with and then largely forgotten.
Broster's writing is vivid, emotional, based on fact, and takes pains to differentiate between the ways Scots can talk: Gaelic, Gaelic inflected English, Lowlands dialect, educated Edinburgh. This point is brought to life by Peter Forbes' excellent narration.
I don't know why someone decided to make audio versions of these books, but I'm very, very glad they did.
Ewan Cameron and Keith Wyndham are on opposite sides of the conflict, yet their lives cross several times. Each encounter happens at a critical juncture, with the actions of one holding the fortunes of the other in their hands. Ties of obligation and gratitude deepen into a friendship that, if you were reading a modern novel, you could easily describe as the start of a queer romance. That DK Broster seems to have been queer herself only adds weight to that thought. The actual romance element (Cameron and his betrothed) is dealt with and then largely forgotten.
Broster's writing is vivid, emotional, based on fact, and takes pains to differentiate between the ways Scots can talk: Gaelic, Gaelic inflected English, Lowlands dialect, educated Edinburgh. This point is brought to life by Peter Forbes' excellent narration.
I don't know why someone decided to make audio versions of these books, but I'm very, very glad they did.
March 4, 2025
I had no idea what I was getting into with this, I thought it would be a sort of Outlander, but I was wrong. This book is just beautiful. It is an empassioned bromance between an English Soldier Keith and a young Scottish Laird Ewen Cameron.
D K Broster brings to life this time, not the grand battles or huge moments, but those singularly small meetings between these two men. Now it is clear that Ewen is all for his Allison and values Keith deeply, however Keith is somewhat more ambiguous. Still as it was written in the 1920s there is nothing vaguely explicit in it at all.
Time and time again Keith goes against his country, his self interest and even his deep desires to fulfill his duty and retain his honour whilst looking out for Ewen. Though he is not always successful.
There are many beautifully poignant scenes which had me both smiling and almost in tears.
I honestly loved every minute of it.
D K Broster brings to life this time, not the grand battles or huge moments, but those singularly small meetings between these two men. Now it is clear that Ewen is all for his Allison and values Keith deeply, however Keith is somewhat more ambiguous. Still as it was written in the 1920s there is nothing vaguely explicit in it at all.
Time and time again Keith goes against his country, his self interest and even his deep desires to fulfill his duty and retain his honour whilst looking out for Ewen. Though he is not always successful.
There are many beautifully poignant scenes which had me both smiling and almost in tears.
I honestly loved every minute of it.
March 18, 2021
A tragic, campy, swashbuckling romance (friendship? Nah, I'm reading all the gay subtext in this), grab this book for a mixture of Pride and Prejudice, Brokeback Mountain and Outlander. Utter madness, not sure if all the laughs were intentional, mixed with genuinely touching moments and historical reflection, plus an insight into the futility of warfare and wasted youth.
The only downside is it's quite dated in writing style, but don't let that put you off this yarn!
Get the audiobook if you can, Peter Forbes has the *perfect* voice for this.
The only downside is it's quite dated in writing style, but don't let that put you off this yarn!
Get the audiobook if you can, Peter Forbes has the *perfect* voice for this.
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October 2, 2022Set during the Jacobite uprising of 1745, dashing Highland laird Ewen Cameron (there is no other word for him but dashing, it is the only word) seems fated to continually cross paths with dour English officer Keith Windham.
Every time they meet, they save each other - they can't help recognising the other as an honourable soul who'd be a friend in a different life. With both of them on opposing sides and the Jacobite uprising doomed to fail, this story can't end happily for both of them but it's a enjoyably dramatic ride.
Every time they meet, they save each other - they can't help recognising the other as an honourable soul who'd be a friend in a different life. With both of them on opposing sides and the Jacobite uprising doomed to fail, this story can't end happily for both of them but it's a enjoyably dramatic ride.
October 7, 2022
A surprisingly gentle story about a Scottish and English soldier on opposite sides of the Jacobite Rising who form an unlikely respect and near-friendship (honestly more intense than “friendship,” but they’re never able to truly become friends because of their loyalties). There’s a lovely passage where Ewen Cameron is facing his death and is grieved not so much to be parting from his new bride—because he knows they’ll meet again in Heaven—but to be leaving Scotland, because countries don’t have immortal souls. It felt romantically true to the image of the fervent patriot of the times.
May 21, 2024
A duty driven novel set during the 1745 Jacobite rebellion. A desire to do what is right and honourable leads the protagonists (a Jacobite Scot and an English officer) into conflict and cooperation. The story plods at points but as an insight into a world of honour and chivalry seen from an age of cynicism and pragmatism today it does what a good novel should do, help one to see the world through a different pair of eyes.
April 11, 2021
Good read and interesting story!
An enjoyable and light hearted historical fiction! I definitely recommend it especially if you are heading to Fort William in Scotland! I would have given 5 stars but I struggled to translate the Scottish accent and thus it was frustrating at times to follow but I really enjoyed the characters and story. On to book 2!
An enjoyable and light hearted historical fiction! I definitely recommend it especially if you are heading to Fort William in Scotland! I would have given 5 stars but I struggled to translate the Scottish accent and thus it was frustrating at times to follow but I really enjoyed the characters and story. On to book 2!
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