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The Cromarty Library Circle

From the author of The Bookseller of Inverness comes an atmospheric and immersive historical novel

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The Cromarty Library Circle

By: Shona MacLean
Narrated by: Shona MacLean, Siobhan Redmond
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About this listen

 From the bestselling author of The Bookseller of Inverness comes the unforgettable story of a Scottish town on the cusp of change and the group of townspeople whose lives will be irrevocably altered over the course of one tumultuous year.

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'Rich, insightful . . . [an] impressive novel' Sunday Times

'Shona MacLean's novels are smart, soulful and deeply engrossing. An exceptional, wise and compassionate storyteller, she can make any 'historical period sing with life' Antonia Hodgson

'Superbly researched, entirely convincing, very clever and at times unbearably poignant. I loved it.' Andrew Taylor

'Riveting' Daily Mail

Cromarty, The Black Isle, 1831.

As seagulls shriek and rise on the coastal winds, a circulating library in the bustling port town of Cromarty is meeting for the first time.

Ostensibly united by a love of books, the demands of social convention have brought together a disparate group of people. Charlotte Mackenzie, the remote and fragile wife of the local laird, seeks an escape from a loveless marriage; her best friend, Rachel Mackay, a former governess who is ardently in love with her own older husband, the town's minister; the young schoolmaster, John Learmonth, newly arrived from Edinburgh with secrets in tow; and the gentle bank clerk, Ludovic Cameron who dreams of a new life across the ocean, far from his erstwhile schoolmate, the malevolent Farquhar Hossack. When the laird befriends a wounded officer, a chain of events is set into motion that threatens to upset the delicate equilibrium of the community.

Against the backdrop of mass emigrations, an encroaching cholera epidemic, political unrest and the campaign to abolish chattel slavery in the British Caribbean, the people of Cromarty must negotiate their new world and each other, flitting in and out of each other's lives through one extraordinary year.

The Cromarty Library Circle is a richly woven and immersive portrait of connected lives, changing fortunes and the often-unseen forces that shape our destinies.

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Praise for Shona MacLean

'MacLean can make any period sing with life' Antonia Hodgson

'An excellent work of historical fiction' Literary Review

'A wonderful storyteller' The Times

'Well-researched and fascinating' Guardian©2026 Shona MacLean Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Small Town & Rural World Literature Marriage Highlander

Critic reviews

A riveting portrait of a small community slowly transforming as the wider world begins to upend its old ways
Credible and immersive
An unforgettable story
'[A] rich, insightful portrait of a community . . . MacLean's impressive novel reveals lives changed and challenged by larger historical forces that her characters do not fully understand' (The Sunday Times)
All stars
Most relevant
I have enjoyed every novel that I have listened to\read by Shona MacLean whether the Seeker Novels or the Andrew Seaton series. With this novel, MacLean abandons the usual S G MacLean and writes with her given name of Shona, perhaps signifying a different kind of novel. For this IS different though no less for the attention to detail and the sense of place, for here she delves into the characters living within a small town in close proximity during a tightly religion gripped period of history with its social confines and prejudices. Let alone dramatic changes. There is no single plot thread, apart from people living, working and hoping. There so many characters that pull on your affections generating a keen desire to see them prevail. No plot spoilers here though. This is a novel that looks at relationships, disappointments, loss, making good and making do. For this it is a triumph. Colour-washing this novel are significant issues such as slavery and its abolition, reform of voting rights, and the ever present sense of possession of someone's love, the hope for love, the loss of love. Do not be alarmed at what might seem an initial torrent of characters greeting you at the novel's heart, they quickly settle down in your mind, and you will miss them when you finish the novel. However, it did help me to photocopy the town map and the list of characters against what property they live in from my hard copy of the novel. It would help if these were made available as a Pdf by Audible as they accommodate for other titles. I was delighted to see the mother of the novelist, Anthony Trollope appearing as an author within the Library circle discussions, exactly at a time I was realising the impact that she created. with her views on American life. The audiobook is performed well and convincingly by Siobhan Redmond.

Different - No Less Good

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An absorbing listen to the story of this year in Cromarty with the many characters in the town leaping off the page and willing you on. One is pulled into the circle and is bereft when the tale comes to a close. The historic events of the time in Scotland and beyond are essential to the story, but not heavily inserted. The humour and pathos combined with the characterisation makes for a most pleasurable audio experience.

Wonderful to share this year in Cromarty

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Liked the historical accuracy of this novel of 1830ss Cromarty. Pity about the mispronunciation of Fortrose, Ben Wyvis and Avoch.

Excellent historical novel

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