As the Women Lay Dreaming by Donald S Murray (Saraband)
In the small hours of January 1st, 1919, the cruellest twist of fate changed at a stroke the lives of an entire community.
Tormod Morrison was there that terrible night. He was on board HMY Iolaire when it smashed into rocks and sank, killing some 200 servicemen on the very last leg of their long journey home from war. The disaster would mark Tormod indelibly.
Two decades later, Alasdair and Rachel are sent to the Isle of Lewis to live with Tormod in his traditional blackhouse home. Their grandfather is kind, compassionate, but still deeply affected by the Iolaire shipwreck – by the selfless heroism and desperate tragedy he witnessed.
A deeply moving novel about passion constrained and coping with loss, As the Women Lay Dreaming explores how a single event can so dramatically impact communities, individuals and, indeed, our very souls.