The Healing of Luther Grove

A boundary dispute in the Scottish Highlands escalates into obsession, intimidation and violence in this darkly atmospheric psychological thriller. John and Laura Payne arrive at their newly renovated Highland home hoping to leave their problems behind in the city. Wealthy newcomers seeking an idyllic rural life, they soon disturb the fragile world of their neighbour, local eccentric Luther Grove. Their presence forces Luther to confront secrets he has kept buried for years. Drawn inexorably towards Laura and immediately antagonistic towards John, he becomes entangled in an increasingly volatile relationship with the couple. When John’s brother Frank arrives, his presence provides the spark that ignites an already combustible situation. As suspicion, resentment and buried trauma rise to the surface, the isolation of the landscape leaves all four increasingly vulnerable. An apparently ordinary dispute between neighbours becomes a struggle over territory, belonging and control propelling them towards a brutal and tragic reckoning. Set in the present-day Scottish Highlands, The Healing of Luther Grove is a brooding work of Scottish noir combining the tension of a psychological thriller with the menace of modern Gothic fiction. Beautifully written and deeply empathetic, it explores outsiders and incomers, class, masculinity, obsession, isolation and the destructive power of the past. Perfect for readers of literary thrillers, rural noir, Scottish crime fiction and slow-burning psychological suspense. “A startling novel, dripping with Gothic tension, written with deep empathy and searing intelligence.”  Doug Johnstone“Page by page, the tension twists the knife.”  Daily Record