Scotland's Brimming with Love
Hands down, my favorite book in the 44 Scotland Street series so far! Alexander McCall Smith's Love Over Scotland takes the reader back to those quirky characters on Scotland Street, as well as bringing in a few more to mix things up. There is a lot that happens to each of the characters in this installation and all come out in a different place than they started.
Pat finally has a viable love interest...or two, though one might not be as honest as the other, and has started at the university studying Art History. Domenica is off on her anthropological study of pirates in the South China Sea. Angus is missing Domenica tremendously. New character Antonia Collie, an old friend of Domenica's, is subletting her flat in Scotland Street while she's away. Angus does not like this. Poor Bertie has been forced into yet another extra-curricular activity; one that provides him with utmost embarrassment: the Edinburgh Teen Symphony. Embarrassing because Bertie is not a teenager...he's not even a preteen. His very pregnant mother, Irene, is still as delusional as ever. Stuart, Bertie's bowled over father who had so much promise at the end of the last book, has fallen back into his submissive ways, alas. Big Lou has saddled herself with a philandering chauvinist...whom everyone but her sees through. And Bruce has moved to London in pursuit of greener pastures.
As the story unfolds there are a series of events that take place: Pat falls for a wolf...not in sheep's clothing; Matthew's feelings are revealed; Domenica gets lost at sea and finds some music; Angus's dog, Cyril, is dog-napped and goes on an adventure of his own; Bertie gets lost in Paris and makes some friends; Big Lou loses a lot of cash; and the mob comes to town. Yikes!
I, honestly, loved every aspect of this story. In fact, there was only one thing that I was slightly disappointed in. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I missed the presence of Bruce...egotistical Bruce with his clove scented hair pomade. Who would have thought?!
Pat finally has a viable love interest...or two, though one might not be as honest as the other, and has started at the university studying Art History. Domenica is off on her anthropological study of pirates in the South China Sea. Angus is missing Domenica tremendously. New character Antonia Collie, an old friend of Domenica's, is subletting her flat in Scotland Street while she's away. Angus does not like this. Poor Bertie has been forced into yet another extra-curricular activity; one that provides him with utmost embarrassment: the Edinburgh Teen Symphony. Embarrassing because Bertie is not a teenager...he's not even a preteen. His very pregnant mother, Irene, is still as delusional as ever. Stuart, Bertie's bowled over father who had so much promise at the end of the last book, has fallen back into his submissive ways, alas. Big Lou has saddled herself with a philandering chauvinist...whom everyone but her sees through. And Bruce has moved to London in pursuit of greener pastures.
As the story unfolds there are a series of events that take place: Pat falls for a wolf...not in sheep's clothing; Matthew's feelings are revealed; Domenica gets lost at sea and finds some music; Angus's dog, Cyril, is dog-napped and goes on an adventure of his own; Bertie gets lost in Paris and makes some friends; Big Lou loses a lot of cash; and the mob comes to town. Yikes!
I, honestly, loved every aspect of this story. In fact, there was only one thing that I was slightly disappointed in. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I missed the presence of Bruce...egotistical Bruce with his clove scented hair pomade. Who would have thought?!
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