Donna Grant is one of those authors.
I loved the Dark Sword Series from the first book and that love hasn't changed. What's not to like about fierce Scot warriors, as magical and tough as the land that bred them? Women who are strong enough to stand up to and for their men when needed and with their own magic.
Scotland is, in itself, a land of magic. It's been many years since I was last there but there's something about the land and history that has always called to me. When I found out Donna and her family were going to Scotland I told her, "You have to do a blog spot on your visit."
So here she is to tell us about her impressions of Scotland.
Thanks, Sia, for once more inviting me to your blog. J
Sia asked me if I’d talk about my recent trip to
Scotland. Of course I said yes. I mean, who wouldn’t want to talk about such
a beautiful land?
I’ve wanted to go to Scotland for so long, that it was
almost surreal to have finally gone.
I’d spoken so much about Scotland and what there was to do and what I
wanted to do, that imagine my surprise when my parents wanted to come with us.
So, we made it one big family vacation.
As soon as our plane was wheels down on Scottish soil, I had
my camera out. We landed in Edinburgh,
and then made our way northwest were we had rented a cabin for a week in a well
known ski resort.
It was a fabulous base for us. I was amazed at all the differences between home (the US) and
there. For one, there’s no litter
there. None. You don’t see anything.
No huge SUVs or 4x4 trucks. No
four lane highways. No McDonald’s
around every corner.
Small cars were everywhere, and instead of huge chain
restaurants, there were tons of individually owned eateries. Which made picking which restaurant an
eeny-meeny-miney-moe situation every day. J
Pictures just don’t do Scotland justice. The land is as untamed, ancient, and magical
as I’d always expected. So many times
I’d just stop and stare at where I was, wondering how many thousands of Scots
(and invaders) had stood where I was, how many had died in battles, how many
had loved. How many had survived.
The history of the land cannot be ignored. Scotland has taken great pains to keep the
country much as it was hundreds of years ago.
Yes, there are roads, but not over every mountain. The roads are few and far between, but the
views are majestic.
So many times my breath was taken away by the
landscape. Even the kids would stare
silently at what was around us, because words couldn’t begin to describe how we
all felt.
I took tons of pictures.
At one point standing in the tower looking out over the sea, you could
almost hear the echo of history. You
could almost imagine the castle filled with people, the lord and lady reining
over the land. The sound of swords
clanging over the sea breeze.
There were other castles, but none that held me like
Dunnottar. There was, however,
something so special about being on Loch Ness.
The water is as dark as you think it is, and very peaceful.
Now, it was not my intention to stay at a castle with a
ghost. I believe in them. I’m scared of them. So I wanted no part of them.
But guess what we had?
Yes. I’m not
exaggerating. I was touched. Twice.
And I can attest to not sleeping at all that night. My daughter also had an experience while she
was reading in the sitting room in the tower a floor above us. She heard footsteps above her and
voices. She thought it was her
brother. So she called for him, but he
didn’t answer. He didn’t answer because
he was with me and my hubby.
Needless to say, my daughter ran down the stairs
shaking. I’d not told her of my being
touched because we didn’t want to scare either of the kiddos, but she kept
insisting there was something in the tower.
Knowing how frightened I was, my hubby waited until we were
driving away before telling me he heard footsteps during the night, and even
voices. My son heard footsteps, but
he’d thought it was me or his daddy walking around during the night.
My parents, who stayed in another room, never heard or saw
anything, but then again, the ghost is only seen, heard, and felt in the
tower. Freaking stuff for sure!
I loved Scotland. I
loved the way they did things, the way they lived, the way they used everything
local (even in their Burger King), and how proud a people the Scots are.
I never wanted to leave.
And I cannot wait to return.
Return we will because once we landed back home, we met my
brother for dinner right off the interstate.
While we were inside eating, someone broke into our vehicle and stole
every piece of luggage and tried to steal the truck.
Every souvenir we bought, every item of clothing (my favorite
jeans!), everything you’d pack for an 11 day vacation, and my camera was
stolen.
No one was caught, and nothing returned. We lost hundreds of pictures, pictures that
cannot be replaced. Yes, we have our
memories of a fabulous family vacation, but it isn’t the same.
(The pictures you see here were taken from the web.)
I’m hoping to go back very soon and return with lots of
wonderful pictures.
~*~*~
~*~*~
SHADOW HIGHLANDER, DARK SWORD #5
Available now from your favorite bookstore or online.
HE CAN FEEL HER MAGIC
Sent on a dangerous mission into the shadowy world of the Druids, Galen must find a powerful ancient relic to defeat the enemies of MacLeod Castle. But what he discovers is far more powerful—and far more dangerous. A Druid lass whose beauty is as spellbinding as any magic...
CAN HE FREE HER SOUL?
Reaghan is the most enchanting woman Galen has even met—and the most enigmatic. She alone is immune to his mind-reading gifts. He alone makes her feel safe and secure. But Reaghan holds a secret power deep inside her that could destroy them both. And if Galen hopes to hold this captivating woman in his arms every night, he must defeat the darkness that draws closer around her every day...EXCERPT
The Dark Sword series captures all the power, passion, and magic of Scotland’s legendary warriors—sworn to fight for victory, in battle and in love…
To find out more about Donna please visit her website at www.donnagrant.com. To read more about the Dark Sword and Dark Warriors series,
see pics of the Warriors, take the quiz, download wallpaper, search characters,
or watch the book trailers, please visit www.donnagrant.com/darksword.
