Cover

The Last
Summer

Karen Swan

Dedication page

For Laura Tinkl, who is part of our story now

Glossary

BOTHY: A basic shelter or dwelling, usually made of stone or wood.

CATCH A SUPPER: To receive a scolding.

CLEIT: A domed stone storage hut or bothy, only found on St Kilda.

CRAGGING: Climbing a cliff or crag; a CRAGGER is a climber.

DREICH: Dreary, bleak (to describe weather).

FANK: A walled enclosure for sheep, a sheepfold.

GREET: To cry or weep.

HIRTA: Principal island in the St Kilda archipelago and the only one inhabited. The other islands are Dun, Boreray and Soay.

LAZYBEDS: Parallel banks of ridges with drainage ditches between them; a traditional, now mostly extinct method of arable cultivation.

PEELY-WALLY: Looking pale or sickly.

QUERN: A simple stone hand mill used for grinding grains.

SOUTERRAIN: An underground chamber or dwelling.

STAC: A sea stack – a column of rock standing in the sea – usually created as a leftover after cliff erosion.

Map

Prologue

21 June 1930

Glen Bay, St Kilda

The three young women sat cross-legged in the grass, their shadows long behind them as the sun softly dropped from its high arch. Sheep dozed on the slopes, tails flicking at the flies as they sought pale shelter against the stone dykes, waiting for the fluttering kiss of a breeze. It was summer’s longest day and the sky was holding its breath, the dry heat suspended above their heads like a tethered veil. Their fingers worked in unison as they pulled feathers from the bird carcasses, plumes of white down speckling the meadow like daisies.

Flora pressed the back of her hand to her brow. ‘I’ll not miss this.’

‘Of course you won’t. You won’t even remember it,’ Effie said with a wry glance. ‘You’ll be a grand lady in your house with stairs and you’ll have lipstick and a wireless and you simply won’t believe that you ever had to pluck the fulmars.’

Flora preened, delighted by the image. ‘You must come to visit. James says there’ll be a bedroom for each of you and we’ll get you a new dress every time you come to stay, and we’ll go to shows and we’ll dine in restaurants . . .’

Mhairi frowned. ‘Real-life restaurants?’

Effie laughed. ‘Yes! Actual places where they pluck and cook the birds for you.’

‘Oh . . . That must be nice.’

‘James says in Glasgow you could go out every night for a month and not eat in the same place twice.’ Flora tossed her long dark hair back from her face.

‘So long as m’ belly’s full, I’ll not much care what’s in it,’ Effie shrugged.

Mhairi’s hands had fallen still and the sudden absence of activity was jarring to the others. They looked up to find her biting her lip, trying to hold back tears.

‘Hush now, Mhairi,’ Flora said quickly. ‘You’ll be fine.’