
Synopsis/Details
All Accolades & Coverage
For any reader who enjoys historical fiction, The Road to Wick is a must read.
My interest in this novel came about as I have read “ A Slight Case of Death” another offering by Robert Lee Beers. That story featuring the smart wise cracking detective Tony Mandolin was pure entertainment and a completely different genre. I was curious to see if the author could switch to a different style. This he has managed with a great deal of panache.
The covers alone of Mr Beers’ books entice the reader. The art work on The Road to Wick is stunning.
An essential ingredient of historical fiction is painstaking research. I couldn’t fault this one.
The story starts with two Scottish friends, Robert McAllen and Duncan McDonald, attempting to make their way home after suffering defeat at the Jacobite uprising of 1745. The uprising was the attempt by Charles Edward Stuart, AKA Bonnie Prince Charlie, to regain the English throne.
As one would expect, there is an abundance of blood and gore, and what historical novel doesn’t feature extreme violence? “His blow opened Duquesne up from shoulder to sternum. Gushing black looking blood. The body slumped to the floor, the sword falling with it.”
Horrible tortures and ghastly executions were the order of the day.
I must congratulate the author on the dialogue, it’s authentic the reader lives and breathes the horrors of the period.
The novel is about the adventures of the two central characters, I won’t give the ending away but I will say the story ends on a hopeful note. Sadly, not so for Bonnie Prince Charlie who escaped to France and died in Rome in 1788, a bitter man.
This really is a terrific story; I have no hesitation in giving it 5 stars