The Whisky Widow
By (Author) Karen Brooks
HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd
HQ Fiction
2nd July 2025
Australia
Fiction
Narrative theme: Politics
Narrative theme: Social issues
Historical fiction
Historical adventure fiction
Paperback
528
From a bestselling and award-winning author comes this celebration of the art of whisky distilling and the defiant spirit of the Scottish Highlands.
1780 Scottish Highlands
In every glass of whisky lies a little defiant magic...
When Greer MacKenzie's despised husband dies, she and her young daughter Fen find themselves in a remote whisky smuggling community in the heart of the Highlands. Here, illicit whisky making is a means of survival in a Scotland under occupation by the British, decades after the disastrous Battle of Culloden. The villagers are suspicious of the widow, but when Greer tricks British excise officers away from their illegal stills with a courageous and daring act, they warm to her.
But the excise men are out for revenge, smuggling is a dangerous business, and whisky - a drink that has long ignited passions, songs, stories and danger - is at the rebellious heart of it all. But Greer and Fen have no choice but to fight for the life they want.
This rollicking story of bravery, adventure, love and murder brings to vibrant life the Scottish Highlands of long ago. It is a poem to the art of whisky distilling and the Highland way of life, as well as a eulogy for those who were forced to leave it.
Karen Brooks is the author of sixteen books - historical fiction, historical fantasy, YA fantasy, and one non-fiction. She was an academic for over 20 years, a newspaper columnist and social commentator. She has a Ph.D. in English/Cultural Studies and has published internationally on all things popular culture, education and social psychology. An award-winning teacher, she's taught throughout Australia and in The Netherlands and keynoted at many education conferences. Nowadays, she finds greatest contentment studying history and writing, and helping her husband in his Brewstillery, Captain Bligh's. She shares a beautiful stone house in Hobart, Tasmania, built in 1868, with her husband, adorable dogs and cats, and shelves brimming with books.