Hawthorn: A Scottish Ghost Story

Paperback Published on: 24/09/2026
Price: £10.99
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Published 24/09/2026
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Coming soon
Published 24/09/2026
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Bookseller Reviews

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Hawthorn
A stunning read.
‘Hawthorn’ by Elaine Thomson is a haunting tale set in the desolate moors of 19th-century Scotland. It follows cartographer Robert Sutherland, who after a... READ MORE
Erika at Cambridge
Hawthorn
Completely creepy
This is a perfect ghost story - a spooky setting, complicated characters and the supernatural just there, in the corner of your eye. I loved the concept of... READ MORE
Olivia at Telford
Hawthorn
Gripping…
I was gripped from the outset - a wonderfully atmospheric tale.
Nicola at Glasgow Sauchiehall Street
Hawthorn
Super creepy
Hawthorn is set out like a traditional ghost story with our main character Robert Sutherland narrating events that have already happened. Creepy, gothi... READ MORE
Sarah

Synopsis

For fans of Michelle Paver and Sarah Waters, the first in a haunting quartet of ghost stories set in the wilds of Scotland.

'I was so impressed by Hawthorn' MICHELLE PAVER, author of Dark Matter

'Delightfully brooding and gloriously gothic, Hawthorn sucked me in like the deepest bog, refusing to let me go' CJ COOKE, author of The Book of Witching

'Reminded me of The Little Stranger . . . a hugely entertaining and evocative treat' BRIDGET COLLINS, author of The Binding
'A new classic' SARA SHERIDAN, author of The Fair Botanists

Caithness, October 1871.

The Ordnance Survey are charting Scotland's most remote north-easterly county, a bleak landscape of endless moorland and lonely crofts. When a strange vision leads cartographer Robert Sutherland out onto the moor one night, an accident leaves him inches from death. He is taken to Leask House, to recuperate under the care of Mrs Sinclair and her beautiful daughter Isabel.

At first, Robert thinks the dreadful visions that plague him at Leask House are the result of the laudanum he has been prescribed. But as events take ever stranger and more terrifying turns, Robert begins to wonder whether his presence at Leask House is really a coincidence at all.

Someone - or something - has summoned him here.

And they don't intend for him to leave.

Publisher information

  • Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
  • ISBN: 9781408724705
  • Number of pages: 320
  • Dimensions: 198 x 126 x 22 mm
  • Languages: English

Customer Reviews

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Hawthorn
The field of Gothic horror has a new mistress.
"Hawthorn" opens in Inverness, 1871, where Robert Sutherland, geographer and cartographer, is writing his account of the events which led to his incarcerat... READ MORE
Martin  Paul
Hawthorn
Review
A perfectly spooky book that is reminiscent of classic Victorian ghost stories. I thoroughly enjoyed this creepy ghost story and its classic feel as we... READ MORE
BookishSteph1
This reviewer received a free of charge product for review.
Hawthorn
Surprisingly good!
You see and feel the atmosphere. Is the ghost real or imagination? A nice and good read.
EliNL