Book Review: ‘Scatterwood’ by Piers Alexander

Looking for something to keep yourself entertained until the fighting season starts again? Looking for the perfect companion to being squished in the back of the car next to all the kit for another weekend of re-enacting?

Well look no further as Newcastle’s regiment start foraying into the world of book reviews! Over the next few months we’re going to review various books that are related to the 17th Century and/or The English Civil Wars. Some will be great non-fiction reads for broadening your knowledge and others will be exciting fiction to transport you back to our favourite century as if you were right there in the thick of it.

Our first book is a new fiction novel based at the very end of the century. The Sequel to ‘The Bitter Trade’,  which was based in the coffe houses of 1688 London during the time of the Glorious Revolution, Scatterwood is a fast paced tale of life in Jamaica four years later.

The Protagonist, Calumny Spinks, finds himself on a ship to the colonies ready to endure 10 years servitude to the Crown on a sugar plantation but as always, life for Calumny is far from ordinary and his family and honour are at stake.

An exciting and unpredicatble story is made better by realistic descriptions of life in the 17th century as Alexander never misses an opportunity to tell it like it is. There’s no romanticism about anything here to make it sound like a fairy tale, this is full of brutally honest descriptions that make you wince and conjure up very vivid images of how hard life can be for those who aren’t in the upper elite.

The story is well researched and doesn’t scream out with glaring inaccuracies which can often let a historic novel down. Alexander has done his research and done it well and this is reflected in the great prose and details throughout the storyline.

Always one to keep you guessing, the story twists and turns its way through the forests and mountains of the island before careering through a dramatic ending that will leave you wanting to know more. A thoroughly recommended read!

As much as we highly recommend getting stuck in straight away, it’s definitely advisable to get your hands on a copy of ‘The Bitter Trade’ to start with to be able to work your way through the story from the start.

Where can I buy it?:

You can buy ‘Scatterwood’ here.

You can buy ‘The Bitter Trade’ here.

Want to know more? Check out Piers Alexander’s website.

Don’t forget to let us know what you think if you read it! You can either leave a comment or catch us on our social media: FacebookTwitter & Instagram.

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