The Stolen Hours: Escape with an epic, romantic tale of forbidden love

'A wonderfully satisfying read: love, passion, drama, violence, menace and peril, and characters you fall in love with' – Santa Montefiore

An Island full of secrets . . .

Summer, 1929. Mhairi MacKinnon is in need of a husband. As the eldest girl among nine children, her father has made it clear he can’t support her past the coming winter. On the small, Scottish island of St Kilda, her options are limited. But the MacKinnons’ neighbour, Donald, has a business acquaintance on distant Harris island also in need of a spouse. A plan is hatched for Donald to chaperone Mhairi and make the introduction on his final crossing of the year, before the autumn seas close them off to the outside world.

Mhairi returns as an engaged woman who has lost her heart – but not to her fiancé. In love with the wrong man yet knowing he can never be hers, she awaits the spring with growing dread – for the onset of calm waters will see her sent from home to become a stranger’s wife. . .

When word comes that St Kilda is to be evacuated, the lovers are granted a few months’ reprieve. But will a summer of stolen hours together just lead to more heartbreak . . . ?

The Stolen Hours is the second book in Karen Swan’s bestselling Wild Isle series, which began with The Last Summer.

Praise for The Last Summer

'This sweeping love story gripped us from the start' - Independent

'The most exciting, enchanting and evocative story of forbidden love I've ever read' - Cathy Bramley

'A delicious, romantic tale' - Rachel Hore

'The queen of destination books' - Woman & Home

'Vividly drawn and beautifully atmospheric' - Heat Magazine

© 2023 Macmillan (Audiobook): 9781529084450

Release date

Audiobook: 20 July 2023