Alan Warner is the latest author to join Polygon’s series of Darkland Tales where moments in history are plucked from the past to sit as a visual feast in the present. Charles Edward Stuart walks straight out of 1746 and the Highlands of Scotland onto the page in the most successful and vividly appropriate way. I felt as though this fictional take on Bonnie Prince Charlie could have taken place in reality. Effective storytelling links to what is known of the escape and also creates a bond with the people, the characters on the page. I could hear their speech, picture their dress, almost reach out and touch them. It feels as though the author has a profound connection with the history of this land. The landscape itself becomes as one with the cast and story. The weather, coast, islands, and way of life sit intimately on the page and ensure that a fully formed jigsaw is created while still allowing whispers of possibilities to emerge around the individuals from history. So, so beautifully evocative, Nothing Left to Fear from Hell is a resounding success of a novella and comes as highly recommended by our team.
Nothing Left to Fear from Hell Darkland Tales Synopsis
A battle lost. A daring escape. A long walk into obscurity. The ultimate failure….
In the aftermath of the disastrous Battle of Culloden, a lonely figure takes flight with a small band of companions through the mountainous landscapes of the north-west Highlands of Scotland. His name is Charles Edward Stuart: better known today as Bonnie Prince Charlie. He had come to the country to take the throne. Now he is leaving in exile and abject defeat.
In prose that is by turns poetic, comic, macabre, haunting and humane, multiaward-winning author Alan Warner traces the last journey through Scotland of a man who history will come to define for his failure.
'Polygon Books' Darkland Tales series of novellas have been among Scottish literature's most exciting books of recent times' - Snack Magazine,10 Best Scottish Books for 2023
'There's something about the author's style and use of language that draws you into the moment in a very visual way' -- Ken Lussey - Undiscovered Scotland
