John Splendid: The Tale of a Poor Gentleman, and the Little Wars of Lorn
A Highland Historical Romance of Clan Rivalry, Civil War, and Vanishing LoyaltiesBy Neil Munro
Length13h
About this audiobook
Neil Munro's John Splendid: The Tale of a Poor Gentleman, and the Little Wars of Lorn is a historical romance set amid the political and military turbulence of seventeenth-century Argyll. Combining adventure, regional history, romance, and comic observation, it follows the fortunes of an impoverished gentleman whose experience of the "little wars" of Lorn places private loyalties against the larger conflicts of clan, crown, and conscience. Munro's prose is vigorous, richly idiomatic, and attentive to the speech, landscapes, customs, and social hierarchies of the Scottish west. The novel belongs to the late-Victorian tradition of romantic historical fiction, yet its local knowledge and wry narrative intelligence give it a distinctive Scottish character, resisting any reduction of the Highlands to picturesque scenery alone. Born in Inveraray, Argyll, Munro worked as a journalist and editor before becoming one of the most important literary chroniclers of the western Highlands. His intimate familiarity with Gaelic culture, oral storytelling, clan history, and the region's changing social order profoundly informs the novel. As both a Scottish nationalist-minded writer and a sophisticated man of letters, he sought to preserve local voices while examining the ambiguities of heroism, allegiance, and historical memory. John Splendid is especially recommended to readers interested in Scottish history, historical fiction, regional literature, and the development of modern Celtic writing. It offers spirited narrative entertainment, but also rewards close attention to language, cultural detail, and the uneasy relationship between legend and documented history.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.7 (21)
Includes Goodreads
GenreHistorical Fiction, Romance
Length13 hrs
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 26, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Luck of Roaring Camp, and Other Sketches (Annotated)
2William Blackwood And Sons Edinburgh And London MDCCCXCVIII
3DEDICATION.
4CHAPTER I.—FROM THE FOREIGN FIELD.
5CHAPTER II.—GILLESBEG GRUAMACH.
Show all chaptersShow less
6CHAPTER III.—THE LADY ON THE STAIR.
7CHAPTER IV.—A NIGHT ALARM.
8CHAPTER V.—KIRK LAW.
9CHAPTER VI.—MY LADY OF MOODS.
10CHAPTER VII.—CHILDREN OF THE MIST.
11CHAPTER VIII.—THE BALE-FIRES ON THE BENS.
12CHAPTER IX.—INVASION.
13CHAPTER X.—THE FLIGHT TO THE FOREST.
14CHAPTER XI.—ON BENS OF WAR.
15CHAPTER XIII.—WHERE TREADS THE DEER.
16CHAPTER XIV.—MY LADY AND THE CHILD.
17CHAPTER XV.—CONFESSIONS OF A MARQUIS.
18CHAPTER XVI.—OUR MARCH FOR LOCHABER.
19CHAPTER XVII.—IN THE LAND OF LORN.
20CHAPTER XVIII.—BARD OF KEPPOCH.
21CHAPTER XIX.—THE MIRACULOUS JOURNEY.
22CHAPTER XX.—INVERLOCHY.
23CHAPTER XXI.—SEVEN BROKEN MEN.
24CHAPTER XXII.—DAME DUBH.
25CHAPTER XXIII.—THE WIDOW OF GLENCOE.
26CHAPTER XXIV.—A NIGHT’S SHELTER.
27CHAPTER XXV.—THE ANGRY EAVESDROPPER.
28I caught M’Iver by the coat-lapels, and took him off the gasping cleric.
29CHAPTER XXVII.—A TAVERN IN THE WILDS.
30CHAPTER XXVIII.—LOST ON THIS MOOR OF KANNOCH.
31CHAPTER XXIX.—THE RETURN.
32CHAPTER XXX.—ARGILE’S BEDROOM.
33CHAPTER XXXI.—MISTRESS BETTY.
34CHAPTER XXXII.—A SCANDAL AND A QUARREL.
35CHAPTER XXXIII.—THE BROKEN SWORD.
36CHAPTER XXXIV.—LOVE IN THE WOODS.
37CHAPTER XXXV.—FAREWELL.
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