“Reminiscent of Mary Wesley, in style and tone”
Family saga for the 21st Century. Marianne’s writing is “reminiscent of Mary Wesley” with its unashamed sensuality and wicked family interactions. The Morar Saga will take you on an adventure of epic proportions to discover the power of mothers and daughters.
The Arch to Morar
Bertie Higginbotham doesn’t fit in. Not in the confined corridors of her office job, battling for promotion with her work bestie. Not in the generous proportions of her suburban home as her children prepare to flee the nest. Not behind the wheel of her husband’s new Jaguar as they take a final family holiday to Scotland. Certainly never in the tiny space of her travelling mother’s campervan as a child. But when she stumbles upon the broken archway to the abandoned Scottish estate of Morar, Bertie begins to realise that perhaps all along, life was simply too small for her.
Aided by the free-wheeling Amy and enticed by a gruff Highlander with gentle hands, Bertie learns about the mystery of the legendary Agatha Cameron-Swann, who murdered her own husband and lost her beloved daughter and only heir. But Bertie’s curiosity unearths a storm of dread in her distant mother whose own long journey away from Morar ended in the antipodes of New Zealand, propelling Laurie to take the long-avoided step on the way home.
The Key of Morar
Returning home to rescue her marriage and secure her promotion, Bertie battles her dreams of Morar and the enticing riddle of the lost key that grants ownership of the estate. With her youngest son preparing for the start of university and a new phase of life looming, Bertie knows she needs to focus on reality, not the thick calves of Highlander Thom. But when her husband Troy betrays her, she throws duty to the office wall and returns to Morar.
Thrilled to see Bertie back in Scotland, Amy encourages her obsession with Morar and enlists Thom to help them solve the riddle of the key. Unearthing the truth will take all their ingenuity and strength, not to mention breaking a few laws. But while Bertie is prepared to dig as deep as she must to find her family, she may not be prepared for the arrival of her mother. Laurie has survived storm and ocean to face the heartbreak of her own past and she’s not about to indulge Bertie’s ridiculous fantasies about Morar.
The Hearth at Morar
Uncovering the key of Morar brought only more mysteries and now Laurie’s adopted brothers have descended to contest Bertie’s claim to Morar. To make a point they begin by evicting Highlander Thom from the lost village of Feorlindhue and issuing a warrant for his arrest. Bertie is determined to find Thom first but is conflicted by the arrival of her husband. For the first time in her life it seems Bertie’s mother and husband are united in their fervour that she go home.
While Bertie battles the Scottish elements and self-doubt, Amy is determined to uncover the secret of what really happened to Agatha Cameron-Swann and enlists Laurie to help them. If anyone knows the truth it will be Amy’s distant relative Dr Lachlan Eachan, the man who signed Agatha’s death certificate. Lachie’s had his fill of keeping Morar’s secrets and the arrival of Laurie gives him one final chance at keeping a long-held promise. As Morar reveals its final mysteries, Bertie must decide how much of the past she’s willing to burn in order to save Thom and find herself.