Welcome to History Undressed, guest author, Sherrie Hansen! She's written a great post for us today about Scotland! Enjoy!
Seeing the World in
Blue and White
by Sherrie Hansen
I’ve been hearing Scottish accents in my head for over a
decade, and now, after returning from my second trip to Bonnie Scotland, my
mind’s eye is just as steeped in images of the highlands and islands I’ve been
writing about.
Our trip was a flurry of wildflowers and walled gardens,
castles and keeps, and lochs and legends. My mind is whirling with the
characters and construct of a new story, ancient ghosts and curses, and modern
day longings and desires set to clash like pitchforks and swords at Culloden.
One of my characters is the “rightful” heir of a castle and as
fascinated and enamored of Scotland as I am, the other is there only because
she could find no other way to wiggle out of her duties as the legal heir of a
castle she cares nothing aboot.
Even more exciting is the sense of déjà vu I feel about the
Wildflowers of Scotland books I’ve already written.
As I spotted each of the wildflowers I’ve featured in
Thistle Down, Wild Rose, Blue Belle, Shy Violet, and Sweet William, and the
castles and kirks that provide a backdrop for each of the stories, the
characters have come to life for me all over again.
One of the highlights of the trip was the day I left a copy
of Shy Violet with a random staff member at Eilean Donan’s Castle Café, where
many scenes in the book take place. A few days later, on our way back from the
Isle of Skye, we stopped once more to eat lunch. The recipient pulled me aside,
and in her delightful Scottish accent, said “I’ve begun to read yer book, and
I’m loving it! Ye’re a very good author, and I thank ye so much.”
The whole time we were at Eilean Donan Castle, I kept
catching glimpse of people who looked like Nathan or Violet. William and
Lyndsie, the stars of Sweet William, felt very close to me when we were on Skye
- walking around the mysterious Fairy Glen at Uig, watching the cows graze on
Claigon Coral Beach near Dunvegan and dipping a toe in the Fairy Pools at
Glenbrittle. Because I know what happens to William while he’s on Skye, I had a
deep, sense of foreboding until we were on our way home, and I knew everything
was okay.
There’s a magical connection between Scotland and me. I’m a
Blue Belle, and always will be. (For those of you who don’t know me, I have a
B&B and Tea House called the Blue Belle Inn.) Loving the blue and white
Saltire of Scotland is a natural extension of my love of blue.
If you’ve yet to fall in love with Scotland, I hope you’ll
pick up a copy of one of my Wildflowers of Scotland novels and see if the
highlands and islands of Scotland resonate with you like they do me.
Age old castles and blue-watered bays,
White sandy beaches and quaint cottage stays.
A rainbow of colors and chocolates, hand-dipped,
A valley of bluebells and sheep, freshly clipped.
Legends galore, buried treasure, and more…
In the Wildflowers of Scotland novels, that’s what’s in
store.
Twenty-four years ago, Sherrie Hansen Decker rescued a
dilapidated Victorian house from the bulldozer’s grips and turned it into a
B&B and tea house, the Blue Belle Inn. Sherrie and her husband, Mark, who
is a pastor, live in 2 different houses, 85 miles apart. Sherrie writes murder
mysteries and novels whenever she’s not working at her B&B – or trying to be
a good pastor’s wife. Her contemporary romantic suspense novels include Night
and Day, Love Notes, and Thistle Down, Wild Rose, Blue Belle, Shy Violet and
Sweet William, her Wildflowers of Scotland novels.
You can see what’s she’s up to at:
http://sherriehansen.wordpress.com/
www.BlueBelleInn.com or www.BlueBelleBooks.com
Sherrie’s new release is Sweet William.
He’s a real sweetheart. She’s a wee bit tart. When Minnesota
farm boy, William McKnight, and sassy Scot, Lyndsie Morris, are forced to work
together in the kitchen of Rabbit Hill Lodge, the atmosphere is as charged as
an episode of Chopped. Will someone get cut, or will they find a recipe that
works? Things just start to get spicy when an angry bull butts his way into the
picture, and Lyndsie has to decide if she loves William more than everyone and
everything she holds dear.
4 comments:
Just breathtaking pictures!! Thank you for sharing.
''Twas a joy to share our visit to Scotland with you. Hopefully we will return soon.
Thanks for making my blog and photos look so beautiful, Eliza! If anyone is interested, the link to Sweet William is: https://amzn.com/B01H2TUD3U
I finally got her, Sherrie. Your pictures are so lovely and evocative. Sigh. I visited Scotland a couple of years ago and didn't have nearly enough time there. Wonderful inspiration for books, although I've yet to have a story set in Scotland come to me. Clearly, I need to go back.
Best wishes on your books.
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