The new softback of my book “Daughters of the North: Jean Gordon and Mary, Queen of Scots” is out in April – very soon now! You can pre-order it direct from my publisher here: https://www.whittlespublishing.com/Daughters_of_the_North
I have been working hard going over the final proofs, including checking some of the details of the endnotes. This is fiddly, difficult work, but definitely worth it. I always look at the endnotes in history books and biographies: they give you details of the research, and an idea of the quality and quantity of work that the author has put in. They can also be a place where extra, quirky information is hidden, and can give ideas on what to read next – and spark new thoughts.
The original spark for “Daughters of the North”, many years ago, came from a footnote.
In Antonia Fraser’s classic biography “Mary Queen of Scots”, in amongst the disaster of Mary’s court and bad choices, I read a small note, which briefly told the story of Jean Gordon and her happy ending with her first love Alex Ogilvie.
After reading this, I immediately wanted to know more about Jean Gordon. A long time after I first read about Mary, Queen of Scots (and after a lot more research, which took me in many different directions) “Daughters of the North” is the end result. And Jean Gordon’s life was so much more than I ever imagined – not just a love story, but a family story, a royal story, an adventure story, a sad and a happy story – a true story of the North.
I will be doing some events in April to celebrate the publication of the paperback of “Daughters of the North”. More details on these to follow shortly – but here is advance notice that I will be speaking in the Rebel Row shop (Prickly Thistle) in Inverness in the evening of Wednesday 23rd April, from 7-9pm – check out their website for more details: https://pricklythistle.shop/pages/rebel-row-events
Jennifer Morag Henderson 