Rose Nicolson by Andrew Greig
1574 winter in Embra. Queen Mary left Scotland in order to assemble a French army. Jamie, her son and heir, is being confined in Stirling Castle for safety. John Knox passed away. Under this country’s erratic rule, the populace is unmoored and lurching. Will Fowler, a young student who is poor in birth and size but fiercely ambitious, is trying to make his name at a dangerous moment. Fowler has come to a place where the burn marks of the martyrs who were burned at the stake can be seen on every street, where religious disagreements can be fatal, and where bloody family feuds drag innocent people into their sphere.
Rose Nicolson by Andrew Greig
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There, he makes friends with the stern, stick-wielding philosopher Tom Nicolson, the fishing family’s untaught, smart, and breathtakingly beautiful sister Rose, who demonstrates a free-thinking mind that can only put her and her admirers in danger.
The wealthy and influential are drawn to the humble pupils, particularly Walter Scott, the bold and cunning heir to Branxholm and Buccleuch who is determined to use the civil wars to promote his dynastic and political goals. Will will end up at the heart of a plot that will decide who will rule Scotland thanks to his friendship and support.
A character’s ascent echoes the struggles he chronicles, the conflicts between religion and reason, love and friendship, self-interest and devotion. Rose Nicolson is a vivid, emotional, and fascinating novel about this most dramatic period of Scotland’s history. It reaffirms Andrew Greig’s status as one of the best fiction writers working today.
The historical adventure novel Rose Nicolson follows in the great literary tradition of Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson. The frantic run through the foggy alleyways of sixteenth-century Edinburgh, the chilly gusts of wind against the granite walls of St. Andrews, and the excitement of a river raid across the border were all things we were unable to resist. Esmé Stewart, the peacock courtier, and William Fowler, the main character, with all of his doubts and concerns, as well as his virtues and endearing flaws, are all masterfully brought to life by Andrew Greig.
Seven years after Mary, Queen of Scots, was compelled to abdicate, in 1574, the story takes place. This time in Scottish history was tumultuous.
William Fowler, the protagonist, is the son of a wealthy merchant who forges his own path through reformation-era Scotland, first as a student and then on the periphery of authority. It was discouraged to think creatively, and the arts were viewed with considerable mistrust. It was expected of people who had sharp minds. The presence of James VI, who will go on to become James 1 of England, is prominent on these pages, but once I flip the final page, what will stick with me is the writing’s inherent humanity and that of the key characters.
This is historical literature at its finest, demonstrating Andrew Greig as one of the top writers in the UK. An excellent portrayal of a historically underappreciated time period, with well-rounded characters and Greig’s customary exquisite sense of environment. Both brilliant and menacing.
