Happy Furrowed Middlebrow Friday! πππ΄σ §σ ’σ ³σ £σ ΄σ Ώ
Now that I've read Much Dithering in April and All I Desire in May, I'm continuing my lovely and enjoyable reading with even more Dorothy Lambert novels by Dean Street Press (coming soon—July 2026!) Here are my thoughts on the second to-be-republished novel!
4.25π Family drama to the max!
If (for some reason) your family is driving you batty, this is the perfect book to read. You'll immediately start feeling grateful for who you have in your life—and their faults will probably be greatly reduced in your mind. lol!
On the other hand, if your family is making you feel like running away, this Dorothy Lambert title may be too close to the heart. Eek!
Either way, it's absolutely worth reading!
"A hotel is all very well, but I didn't bargain to find myself running a lunatic asylum." - Neil McPherson, Laird of Glenlochart House
Scotch Mist is a truly entertaining (though maddening) domestic novel that starts off in London and moves quickly on to a beautiful (but rundown) rural estate in Scotland. The Laird (Neil McPherson) is forced to start taking in guests in hopes that he will earn enough money to repair Glenlochart to its former glory. Meanwhile, Alison Fairlie (a responsible, hardworking artist who has never married) takes a much-needed vacation from her redecorating business and her demanding (and lazy) family and, strangely, ends up at Glenlochart.
Although Alison had dreamed of peaceful and solitary moments to paint and relax, she is soon faced with unwanted family and a whole host of new problems. One of them includes the disapproval of Neil's housekeeper, Mrs. McCaig. More craziness occurs when a rich businessman and his son take rooms at Glenlochart House—Andrew and Roderick Tosh are unbearable, entitled and entirely ungrateful. The circumstances reach a breaking point pretty quickly after that.
WHAT I LOVED:
π The atmospheric descriptions of the gorgeous Scottish landscapeπ Wonderfully charming estate of Glenlochart
π Being in Alison's mind when she's trying to reason out difficult situations
π Alison's loyal and down-to-earth friend and business partner, Jane Barclay
π The ending!!!
The characters that frustrated me the most were:
❊ Handsome and Dependent Lady Caroline (Omg...how does one deal with such a selfish and greedy mother??)
❊ Beautiful and Dazzling Pamela (She's no different from Lady Caroline, only with a more dangerous temperament!)
❊ Wealthy and Entitled Andrew Tosh (Can he stop bragging about his wealth for one minute?!)
❊ Roddy Tosh (He's far too idle and conceited. He needs something to do that isn't "having fun" and spending money!)
From the first moment Alison arrives at the Scottish estate, there are non-stop scenes, melodrama and misunderstandings. You get swept into a sea of tension and comedy...but, somehow, you enjoy every minute. (Or, I did when I wasn't feeling frustrated or annoyed by the characters.) Overall, I was rooting for Neil and Alison to get together—and for Glenlochart House!
You'll just have to read this highly entertaining book to find out what happens in the end! I think you'll be pleasantly surprised!
π MY FAVORITE PASSAGES/QUOTES:
"Life is serious, " agreed Pamela; "that's our chief trouble, Binkie, so I try to keep smiling."
Alison swung round in astonishment and found herself facing a strange man with pleasant blue eyes, rain-soaked hair that curled close to his head, and a bronzed, dark face with a well-shaped nose and a firm mouth with a glimpse of good teeth under a small dark moustache.
She looked thoughtfully at her extra suitcase—"an emergency case," she called it, and it would appear that the present circumstances were in the nature of an emergency. She stroked her cheek with a little smile. "A single lady out to set a bachelor by the ears? I'll teach them their mistake." - Alison
He wished Alison were with him to appreciate the loveliness of the morning light over the panorama of mountains, the blueness of the hills, the freshness of the birch woods in the sunshine, the gleam of silver where the loch sparkled in a setting of dark pines, the purple shadows where the big, slowly-piling clouds passed over the sun. - Neil
She paused, breathless, and before Neil could find any words to answer the astounding questions she hurled at him, Alison appeared on the stairs and said in a tone of the utmost horror, "Mother!"
At present, it was like a third-class boarding-house, and he loathed everyone in it and never wanted to see any of them again. - Neil
Pamela was just a little fool, born to make trouble for herself and other people, but Lady Caroline was a really dreadful person.
The wonder of the hours on the loch would be the most beautiful memory of her life, so beautiful as to be almost a pain. - Alison
(See end of post for SPOILER passages/quotes!)
Endless thanks to Victoria at Dean Street Press for sending along this book (and three other new Dorothy Lambert books) for me to read and review! I always get so much enjoyment reading any DSP Furrowed Middlebrow book! π₯°❤️π
Right now, I'm more than halfway through the last Dorothy Lambert title and I'm super excited share my thoughts on two more novels! Yay! π₯³π
Have you read any Dorothy Lambert books yet? Let me know in the comments!
Happy Friday! Have a fabulously fun weekend, friends! ππΈπ€πΈπ
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FAVORITE "SPOILER" PASSAGES/QUOTES:
Neil raised her hand and kissed it. "I'm satisfied, as long as Glenlochart is my only rival."
"I'd take on the old trout, I said, and see he didn't have to worry, so Roddy skipped off to Gretna with the blooming bride, and now what I've got to say is just this: Lady Caroline, will you do me the honour to marry me?" Lady Caroline clenched her hands and sprang to her feet. "I've never been so insulted in my life!" she said furiously. "Go away, you dreadful man!" - Andrew
"It's not funny, Alison, and it's all your fault." "My fault?" "Yes, coming to stay in this outlandish place, and dragging poor little Pamela and me into your disgraceful goings-on, and throwing us—yes, Alison, literally throwing us at those dreadful Tosh men in order to get us off your hands and out of your way. Now what have you to say?" "Nothing," replied Alison feebly. "You seem to have said everything."
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