A Small Death in the Great Glen

Set in 1956 in an isolated village in the Scottish Highlands, Scott's slow-paced debut centers on the death of eight-year-old Jamie Fraser, who's found in a canal, the apparent victim of a tragic accident. Hoping to turn the local paper, the Highland Gazette, into something more than a sleepy weekly gossip rag, new editor John McAllister investigates Jamie's death, with the help of part-time typist Joanne Ross, who has a troubled home life, and eager young cub reporter Rob McLean. In one of several less than relevant side plots, a strange man suddenly turns up soon after the discovery of Jamie's body, claiming to be a Polish war refugee from a nearby ship. He initially sought help from the Travelers—the nomadic "walking people" of Ireland and Britain—in escaping an abusive captain, but the villagers are suspicious of all foreigners, particularly anyone with ties to the Travelers. By the end, few will care about the killer's identity. (Aug.)