Why a Booktrail?
1984: All families have secrets but some have more than others
Orkney Twilight
What you need to know before your trail
Jim is a brilliant storyteller whose tales get taller with each glass of whisky he drinks. Daughter Sam thinks it’s time she found out the truth about her dad instead of the stories he likes to spin.
So when they’re on holiday in Orkney, Sam spies on Jim as he travels across the island. She’s sure that he’s hiding something in his abandoned watchtower and meeting someone in the stone circle at duskShe knows he’s always been interested in Norse myths but now his interest borders on the obsessive.
As Sam is drawn into Jim’s shadowy world, she begins to realise that pursuing the truth is not as simple as it seems…
Travel Guide
Orkney
The harsh beauty of the remote Scottish islands of Orkney is the setting for this novel inspired by the author’s own childhood.
Although the novel is set in at the peak of the Summer solstice where daytime never turns into night, this is also the most magical time on the island and the peak time for tales of folklore and magic. The dark and sobre story contrasts well against this backdrop
This is an island well known for its Norse mythology and viking heritage and a landscape covered in some of the most mythical sounding wildlife and wild flowers
Author recommended sites include:
Maes Howe, the Ring of Brodgar, Skara Brae. Her favourite was probably Cuween Hill – a chambered cairn near Finstown.
London
In contrast with Orkney, the scenes in London are fast and furious and they dig deep into the heart and soul of the old London, the hidden London such as the Greenwich foot tunnel. The way they get around the city, she says is like something out of a car chase:
“Jim insisted on throwing the Cortina around the seedy, litter -strewn streets of south London”
They are staying in Nethergate and this is where the piece of paper in a shoebox comes in handy.
This is the London of the Heinz Factory, where shifty spirits live on the south London streets and where nothing is as it seems.
Booktrail Boarding Pass Information: Orkney Twilight
Destination: Orkney, Londoon, Departure Time: 1984
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