Think Gone Girl goes to Scotland for the feel of this haunting, claustrophobic  novel written in the first person that pulls you in on page one.  I read it on a flight to New York and was sorry when we landed as I had a few pages to go.

In the book Shona has what seems an idillyic life with her partner Michael (Mikey) and gorgeous baby daughter Isla. They’ve just moved to a charming cottage on the outskirts of Aberdeen. The only negative is that Mikey works on an oil rig for two weeks out of every month. Loneliness ensues until Shona meets the captivating Valentina.  This book explores love, trust, female friendship and the loneliness and loss of confidence that can accompany new motherhood.

Lynes is working on her second novel which has the working title of Rope. The interview appeared in 26‘s January issue which is packed with ways to beat the winter blues including matinees – when you’re finished it’s cocktail hour. February is looking up.

January 2017

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Julia is very funny – in person and on the page. Ideas for novels just seem to come to her. A curious fact will spark her imagination and off she canters. Below is an excerpt from Julia’s blog.

The book was inspired by a visit to a family friend in Scotland. At the time I was living in Bahrain, and had just been diving for pearls. After telling Ann that I’d actually found one, albeit the size of a freckle, she promptly disappeared and returned with a pearl necklace. The pearls had been found in Scottish rivers, she insisted. In mussels. I must have blinked several times, the way I do when required to do maths. Like most people, I’d always assumed that all pearls come from marine oysters.

Julia above diving for pearls

The idea got stuck in Julia’s brain and she says she had to write her way out it. The Last Pearl Fisher of Scotland is the delightful result.

Her book tells the story of Brodie McBride, the last pearl fisher of Scotland, who is determined to finish a gorgeous pearl necklace for his wife thinking that will save his 19-year marriage.  Just one pearl is all he needs to find, the big one to sit in the middle. Whether he finds it and what happens next is something you’ll have to find out by reading this book. Suffice to say, I loved this book, and got pleasantly lost in it. The characters feel real, never dull, and the interwoven plots are both original and believable.

September, 2016

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The real reason for last weekend’s adventure was to support and check out a brand new pop-up shop in Edinburgh called Rail launched by my close friend Isy Ettedgui’s daughter Gigi, and her talented collaborators, Hugo and Nanette (pictured below).

The opening party was such a success that even the barman over-indulged (or maybe that’s the norm). Here’s one guest wearing a Rail black velvet coat. Phoebe Philo would approve. Note to chic shoppers: Rail is popping up in London’s Mayfair in June.

Location, location, location – Rail is next door to one of Edinburgh’s top coffee shops –  the Brew Lab on South College. After buying up everything on the rails (pun intended), my tour guide Isy took a group of us to lunch to the Timberyard, a delicious rustic spot that used to be Lawson’s Timber. Look out for the red door.

Dishes come in varying sizes- bites, small and large. After the waiter told us that the large plates are actually kind of small and the small plates are kind of large, we decided to just order everything, less confusing.

From there we caught a cab to Ingleby Gallery, a top gallery by any standards, where Richard Ingleby gave us an illuminating tour of the current show. This man knows and loves his artists. I especially liked his stories about artist Kevin Harmon, an original thinker with a capital O. In one series of works Harmon meticulously tidies and organises the contents of rubbish skips at night and then photographs them plus the construction workers’ reactions the next morning. Harmon also completely disassembles hotel rooms over night, photographs the neat results and then puts the room back together again before checking out. In addition to being odd, his works are lovely. Here’s one made with household paint applied to a double-glazing unit.

Below is a moonlit shot of the walk from Ingleby back to our hotel, The Balmoral.

What The Balmoral, a Rocco Forte hotel, lacks in glamour, it makes up for with its warm and helpful staff and top-notch location smack in the center of town.

Edinburgh may have been a sleepy town when I visited sans bike years ago, but it’s alive and kicking now. Restaurants are heaving so book ahead. Thankfully, there’s a lot more to eat than haggis, neeps and fried Mars Bars. We loved the buzzy gastropub Scran & Scallie in Stockbridge opened by two of Scotland’s top Michelin star chefs.  Or the teeny-weeny Gardener’s Cottage on Royal Terrace Gardens, originally the cottage for the gardener, but now a foodie haven. It’s run by Edward Murray and Dale Mailley, the latter of whom has worked at the two starred Michelin Ledbury in London, as well as several Mark Hix spots. If you’re short on time (like your train is leaving in 45 minutes) I heartily recommend grabbing a bite at Valvona & Crolla, Scotland’s oldest delicatessen and wine merchant set up in 1934 to feed the fledgling Italian immigrant community.

There was so much I missed seeing on this brief jaunt, like the National Portrait Gallery and those men in kilts. One can dream. Apparently, Armstong’s is the vintage place to shop for 21st century kilts.

Fare thee well Edinburgh. Long may yer lim reek. That’s Scot for ‘May you live long and stay well’  – especially those men in skirts!

January, 2015

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