Sir Walter Scott
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Set in the 16th century when Elizabeth I ruled England, and her cousin, Mary, ruled Scotland, The Monastery depicts the religious tension and restlessness that existed along Scotland's border. While Elizabeth ruled with her Anglican beliefs, Mary was a Catholic, and with much of their culture intermixing, this sowed unrest. While this feud between the Catholic church and the Anglican heretical church rages on, two families, the Glendenning's and the...
2) Waverley
Author
Series
Language
English
Formats
Description
First published anonymously in 1814, "Waverley" was Sir Walter Scott's first novel and one of his most popular. The story is set in the Scotland of 1745 amidst the Jacobite uprising and follows the young Edward Waverley, an English officer in the Hanoverian army. He is sent to Scotland and while on leave from training he visits friends of his family in the Lowlands and the Highlands. Waverley meets lairds and chieftains, and he is soon caught up in...
Author
Series
Language
English
Formats
Description
"The Antiquary" (1816) is Sir Walter Scott's self-proclaimed best novel. Set in Scotland during the late 18th century, this tale follows the mysterious Mr. William Lovel and the various relationships that shape and transform his life in Scotland. Considered Scott's only gothic novel, "The Antiquary" is replete with a fantastic grittiness that is unseen in his "Ivanhoe" (1819). As Lovel reaches the seaside town of Fairport he meets and befriends a...
Author
Language
English
Description
In ill health following a stroke, Sir Walter Scott wrote 'Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft' at the behest of his son-in-law, J. G. Lockhart, who worked for a publishing firm. The book proved popular and Scott was paid six hundred pounds, which he desperately needed. (Despite his success as a novelist, Scott was almost ruined when the Ballantyne publishing firm, where he was a partner, went bankrupt in 1826.) 'Letters' was written when educated...
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
The remarkable person, called by the title of Old Mortality, was we'll known in Scotland about the end of the last century. His real name was Robert Paterson. He was a native, it is said, of the parish of Closeburn, in Dumfries-shire, and probably a mason by profession-at least educated to the use of the chisel. Whether family dissensions, or the deep and enthusiastic feeling of supposed duty, drove him to leave his dwelling, and adopt the singular...
Author
Language
English
Formats
Description
Edgar, the brooding young master of Ravenswood, retains none of his ancestral estates but a crumbling castle. Embittered by the lawsuits that have stripped him of his patrimony and shortened his despairing father's life, he determines to confront Sir William Ashton, the lawyer whose machinations led to the decline of Ravenswood's fortunes. But Edgar's plans take an abrupt turn upon meeting Sir William's lovely daughter, Lucy, and a romance blossoms...
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
The Betrothed is the first of two Tales of the Crusaders. The action takes place in the Welsh Marches during the latter part of the reign of Henry II, after 1187. Eveline, the 16-year-old daughter of Sir Raymond Berenger, is rescued from a Welsh siege by the forces of Damian Lacy. She is betrothed to his uncle, Sir Hugo, who leaves on a crusade. Rebels led by Ranald Lacy attempt to kidnap her, and Damian fights them off, but a confused sequence of...
8) The Pirate
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
The arrival of the shipwrecked captain, Cleveland, spoils young Mordaunt's relationship with the Troil girls, and soon a bitter rivalry grows between the two men. Minna falls in love with Cleveland, not knowing his true profession. Brenda however is in love with Mordaunt. The pirates capture the Troils, but after an encounter with the frigate HMS Halcyon, they are freed. Brenda and Mordaunt are reunited, and Minna and Clement parted.
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
This book contains Sir Walter Scott's 1823 historical novel, "Peveril of the Peak". Julian Peveril is a Cavalier accused of being involved with the "Popish Plot". He is also desperately in love with Alice Bridgenorth, the daughter of a Roundhead. Set in Derbyshire, it is a masterful piece of English civil war fiction and part of Scott's famous Waverley Novels series. "Peveril of the Peak" is the longest novel written by Scott and constitutes a must-read...
10) Kenilworth
Author
Language
English
Description
Kenilworth is a novel set in 1575, about the secret marriage of Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, to Amy Robsart, daughter of Sir Hugh Robsart. Tragedy befalls the ambition-driven Earl and his spoiled young wife at the hands of the greedy and villainous Varney. This poignant tale of love and intrigue in Elizabethan England is particularly enjoyable because of Scott's impeccable accuracy in describing settings, as well as his richly symbolic language....
11) Quentin Durward
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Quentin Durward, an archer and mercenary, gains the favor of Louis XI of France and the love of the beautiful Burgundian heiress, Isabelle de Croye. This is a captivating tale full of action, adventure and unexpected challenge. A poor Scotsman named Quentin Durward travels to France to find military work. He joins the royal party of King Louis XI, who is at odds with Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. When the king is attacked by a boar, Quentin...
12) The Talisman
Author
Language
English
Description
This book contains Sir Walter Scott's 1825 novel, "The Talisman". It is the second novel in Scott's "Tales of the Crusaders" series (itself a subset of the Waverly novels) and a sequel to "The Betrothed". Political intrigue and scheming is threatening to bring the Third Crusade to a end as King Richard the Lionheart's health deteriorates at an ever-increasing rate. Brimming with betrayal, redemption, and double-crossing, "The Talisman" constitutes...
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Members of Montrose's army, Allan M'Aulay and Earl of Menteith, navigate the perils of war after falling for a young woman with a hidden heritage. The men go on a physical and emotional journey that will put their loyalty to the test. Allan M'Aulay and Earl of Menteith are royalists in favor of Montrose. Allan has a personal vendetta against the MacEagh clan, who previously brought harm and death to his family. Both Allan and Menteith are in love...
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Nigel Olifaunt, a Scottish nobleman, travels to England to collect a debt on his late father's behalf, but is ultimately met with deception and disappointment. The Fortunes of Nigel is one man's tumultuous journey to keep what's rightfully his. Following his father's death, Nigel Olifaunt leaves his native Scotland for London, England. He plans to meet with King James VI to recoup the money his family originally lent to the crown. Despite a legitimate...
Author
Language
English
Description
After James Douglas and his daughter Ellen are banished from their home, they go into hiding with the help of several enemies of the king. The Lady of the Lake is an intricate story filled with political and social intrigue, romance and chivalry.
James Douglas is the former Earl of Bothwell, who once mentored King James V of Scotland. He is currently exiled from the realm and living on the outskirts of the kingdom. Douglas and his daughter Ellen...
Author
Language
English
Description
From the opening sequence, a horse ride home by the surgeon of the title, Scott takes us straight into his story which contains some Dickensian surprises and later on an exotic Empire location. Scott's childhood lameness might go some way to explaining the liberating horse riding sequences which in turn might explain his popularity in America. This is a Western set in a Scottish climate.
Author
Language
English
Description
This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading. "Everything belonging to the Highlands of Scotland has of late become peculiarly interesting. It is not much above half a century since it was otherwise."-Sir Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott placed the Scottish Highlands on the map of popular tourist destinations. This timeworn work-consisting of the 1816 essay "Manners, Customs and History of the Highlanders of Scotland"...
18) Redgauntlet
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Redgauntlet is a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott and part of his Waverley Novels series. Set in Dumfries, Scotland in 1765, it describes the genesis of a third Jacobite Rebellion. It also includes "Wandering Willie's Tale", a well-known short story frequently featured in anthologies. An entertaining and masterful-written novel, Redgauntlet is highly recommended for fans of English civil war fiction and is not to be missed by lovers of Scott's...
19) The Black Dwarf
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
The story is set just after the Union of Scotland and England, in the Liddesdale hills of the Scottish Borders, familiar to Scott from his work collecting ballads for The Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border. The main character is based on David Ritchie, whom Scott met in the autumn of 1797. In the tale, the dwarf is Sir Edward Mauley, a hermit regarded by the locals as being in league with the Devil, who becomes embroiled in a complex tale of love,...
Author
Language
English
Description
Guy Mannering is set in the 1760s to 1780s, mostly in the Galloway area of southwest Scotland, but with episodes in Cumberland, Holland, and India. It tells the story of Harry Bertram, the son of the Laird of Ellangowan, who is kidnapped at the age of five by smugglers after witnessing the murder of a customs officer. It follows the fortunes and adventures of Harry and his family in subsequent years, and the struggle over the inheritance of Ellangowan....