The Redemption of Alexander Seaton by Shona MacLean

On a dark and stormy night the disreputable Dawson sisters stumble across the dying body of Patrick Davidson, the apothecary’s apprentice. Unwilling to be implicated in his demise, the sisters drag the body to the School House in the hope that the young man may be found in time. Instead Patrick is left to die an agonising death. Thus begins Shona MacLean’s debut novel, set in the Scottish town of Banff in the 1620s.
When his close friend is accused of the murder, Alexander Seaton resolves to solve the crime. Burdened by his own unsavoury past, Seaton is soon immersed in a world of witchcraft, poison and murder. MacLean writes with a historian’s eye for detail and captures the oppressive nature of rural life in 17th Century Scotland well. At times elements of cliché are allowed to creep in, particularly with characters such as the Wise Woman of Darkwater, who is everything the reader would expect her to be (…three things, my Lord, must ye know of the Wise Woman of Darkwater!) Yet the novel is redeemed by a gripping climax and with the indication that there will be further literary outings for the amiable Seaton, MacLean proves herself to be a notable new voice in Scottish fiction. [Katie Gordon]