Nigel Tranter (1909-2000) was one of Scotland’s most prolific authors with an output that included children’s books and Westerns as well as non-fiction and his stock-in-trade historical fiction novels which covered centuries of Scottsh history.

He had a strong interest in Scotland’s castles and fortified houses which fostered his writing on the subject and allowed his creative output to extend into the retelling of history within the fictional medium. He did much to help save and restore many of Scotland’s ancient landmarks. His thorough knowledge of Scotland and his innate ability to relate it made his work extremely accessible to readers, many of whom learnt much of Scotland’s history from these works.

Rob Roy MacGregor is perhaps one of the best examples of this approach. It is a concise, evocative portrait of a man that mainstream history – and Sir Walter Scott in particular – have failed to reveal honestly. In this book, Nigel redressed the balance.