Thanks to Pan MacMillan and Netgalley for a review copy of this novel. Karen Swan is a novelist that I want to read regardless of blurb or endorsements, because she always delivers in her novels. This novel is no exception and even as it continues a series that is a departure from previous standalone books it has all the hallmarks of a Karen Swan novel. The sense of place is outstanding, with deeply immersive descriptions of the St Kildan culture and landscape that are tangible and outstanding and compelling characters and plot. In this second book of the series, Mhairi MacKinnnon is at the centre of the story on the eve of the evacuation of the inhabitants of the remote island of St Kilda. Mhairi’s life is taken up by the daily drudgery women faced to eek out an existence on the sparse and unforgiving island. She is keenly aware that her father can no longer provide for her and her eight siblings and as the eldest daughter her duty is to marry. Unfortunately, there are no suitable prospects among the small community and so her father eagerly takes up their neighbour Donald’s suggestion they look to the son of a business acquaintance in the isle of Harris for a prospective husband. Mhairi has no wish to leave the island, her friends and all that she knows, and it’s with reluctance that she embarks on the whaling boat, with Donald as her escort. The next few days will change her life and eventually involve her in events on St Kilda that will follow her even after the evacuation.

Book 2 is primarily takes place in parallel time to the first book, with Effie, and the other characters woven in to the story. Despite the overlap there is no repetitive feeling and the story takes off from the start, making for compelling and often tense filled reading. A wonderful instalment in the Wild Isles series.

Wow what a brilliant book. I had recently read the first book, and whilst you can read Stolen hours as a stand alone, I think it is much better if you have read the first.
Absolutely brilliant book. I loved Mhairi’s story so much. So much I never would have guessed and kept going with its twists and turns. I really could not put it down. Highly recommend and please bring out the next book soon!

The second book in the trilogy of The Wild Isles.

This book follows.Mhairi MacKinnon, one of 9 children in her family. A tough life on St Kilda, when her father hears of an opportunity to marry Mhari to a farmer's son on a neighboroughing island, he takes it... Mhari travels with Donald a neighbours husband as her father is late arriving to go on the ship.

The farmer's son, is good looking, but turns out to be rogue, and rapes Mhari in the barn prior to her departure back to St Kilda. She persuades Donald to tell her father that everything is fine and she should marry the man.

A love story with many different twists and turns... really enjoyable read.

This is such an amazing series, I was delighted to be able to read the 2nd book and it just didn’t disappoint. There were nice reminders of what went on in the first book and the various characters whilst taking on a completely new story. The research into the background has been meticulous, with detailed descriptions of what life must have been life through these traumatic times for the islanders.

I really cannot recommend this series enough and look forward to the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley the author and publishers for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review

Loved this second book. This time about Mhairi and her life on St. Kilda. Hard to imagine what it would have been like but they lived like that for centuries

I absolutely loved this book! It is the second in a series (I read the first one last year) and think that this book is just as good as the previous book. It tells the story of families on the island of St Kilda in the lead up to the evacuation of the island, the stories of everyone weave together nicely and you really feel like you are there. I can’t wait for the next instalment.

Thoroughly enjoyed this second instalment of the series.

I continue to appreciate learning about life in the Outer Hebrides prior to/around the evacuation of St Kilda. It’s made me wish I could time travel to visit… but this is a good alternative!

I felt as though this book focused more on love affairs than the first one… but maybe I have misremembered. I definitely enjoy that aspect but what stayed with me from the first book were the insights into what life was like, more than the relationships between characters… in fact I was shocked to realise just how much I’d forgotten… but there’s enough in this instalment to bring it all back, without rehashing the first book.

It's now a few days since I finished this book and I find that I keep thinking of scenes/characters which is surely the sign of a great book!

I’m looking forward to the next book already and rather wish I’d come to the whole series once it was complete, rather than having to wait a year each time I finish one!

I was pleased to receive an advance copy from NetGalley.

Essentially a love story entwined with the harsh reality of life on St Kilda.
It’s the second in a series of books about the inhabitants of the remote isle, but I didn’t feel I needed to have read the first book (which I haven’t yet) to follow the second.
Thank goodness for the glossary of colloquialisms and phrases - although difficult to refer to on an e reader so sometimes difficult to follow.
This is not my usual genre, but I was surprised how much I enjoyed Mhairi’s story.
Thank you NetGalley and publishers for the copy.

Having read the first book in the series I was interested to have the chance to read the second. It is, as always from Karen Swan, beautifully written, but I did find that so much of the first book re appeared in the second. It was of course a very different and harsh life that the islanders led on St Kilda, but perhaps one could have done without the many references to what we would see as animal cruelty these days.
At the end, I felt that I had come away feeling depressed about the book, so few happy moments, so many struggles with harsh realities.
Thank you to NetGalley for a chance to review the book. I hope to be able to read the next story.

A well-written novel set in the remote island of St Kilda just before the inhabitants left for good. Mhairi is the heroine this time and we follow her life as she is sent to meet a prospective husband. There are unbelievable parts to this story but the whole book is entertaining and you will be rooting for Mhairi as she struggles to make the right choice.

I seem to have somehow missed the first book in this series and will have to now search it out. Nevertheless I enjoyed the unusual setting and the various characters. A little far fetched at times but who doesn’t love a bit of escapism. Definitely looking forward to the next in the series. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC

Another good read. The second book in this series and it doesn't disappoint it focuses on Mhairi , when she leaves St Kilda to meet a prospective husband she finds herself in a situation that will have an impact on her future. It has love,loss and friendships that will make you want to keep reading but it's also quite dark in places. Fans of the first novel will love it and will once more leave you on a cliffhanger.

This is the second book in the series, I read the first book and immediately followed it with up this one. I really enjoyed the setting and descriptions of life in St Kilda and after leaving for the mainland. I hope the author writes a third book, as I want to know what happens to the characters. Recommended wholeheartedly.

Another aboslutly banger from best selling author Karen Swan. This is the second book in the series. But can be read as a stand alone if you haven't read the first one. But I do always recommend reading the first book first. This is another book full with love, romance, drama and amazing characters. Loved it.

Another beautifully written book based on St Kilda, the remote Archipelago in Scotland. I loved the first one in this series and gave it five stars so was excited to see if this one lived up to expectations and it did. Great characters, so well researched you can actually see St Kilda and its inhabitants going about their very hard lives. Looking forward to the next one!

This is the second book in the Wild Isle series and although it can be read as a stand-alone I highly recommend you read the first book to get a full understanding of the plot, characters and relationships. I read this not realising it was the second in a series, and that is completely my fault, so it took me a while to get a full understanding of what was going on. However I can say this is beautifully written with an incredibly intriguing plot and great characters who's lives you get engrossed in. This is truly a great book and I really enjoyed it I just wish I had read the first book first.

Wow. What a book. Filled with unbelievably well captured feelings and emotions. I was only afraid of the descriptions of the animal cruelty that I complained about when reviewing "The Last Summer", hoping that they wouldn't come, but nope, they were there, and I hated them, I mean, I understood those were the times, people were ticking a bit differently then, animals were there to be killed and be eaten, but I don't need those bloody descriptions about dogs being thrown from the mountains or bloody whale's eyes looking at you and their guts exploding, I mean, we have enough such information daily and I don't need them in a story, but the author's explanation in the acknowledgments at the end of the book is fully understandable and I accept it that she needed to include those scenes as well. That I skim - read.

Other than that, this story was gorgeous. Brilliant. Addictive and thrilling, full of passion - passion of love, friendship, living. The writing is so expresive, rich and eloquent, bringing all the things, places and characters to life. The characters are exquisite - larger than life, full of compassion, loyalty and passion and I was completely engrossed in Mhairi's life, laughing with her and crying with her.

The last third of the book felt a bit repetitive, it is the moment when the evacuation is mentioned - it feels a bit the same but also bit differently, told through different point of view.

There are so many things that the author touches upon in her story - love, friendship, drama, loss and gain, mystery and intrigue, heartbreak, hope and forbidden love, to name only a few of them, but everything has its own place in this book and is wonderfully written about. There is not a single word out of place, the mood and atmosphere are brilliantly captured and I more than once found myself holding my breath in anticipation. Highly recommended, I am already impatiently waiting for Flora's story.

The Stolen Hours by Karen Swan

Part two in the Lost Isles series and set on the fascinating St.Kilda island in the Hebrides ( an island abandoned in the early 30s ) The story continues about Effie and her friend Mhairi as they begin their adult ( let's call it romantic / finding love ) adulthood / growing up years.
It also takes us away from the island and how the people from it learn to go forward and adapt to a very much different world.
I enjoyed catching up with the characters and as r the book unfolds we find out there is more to come in the 3rd book which for me can't come soon enough. Totally engaged in this series.

I loved reading this second book in The Wild Isles series, it was a real pleasure. Having read book one, The Last Summer I have been waiting impatiently to continue with the story and I wasn't disappointed. This is Mhairi's story and goes back to before the last book ended, telling her story leading up to and past book one's cliffhanger ending. I loved how the story did this, it wasn't retelling the first storyline but a parallel story. It was gripping and exciting, read and had me rooting for Mhairi and desperate to see how her life went.

The book is set on the Scottish Isle of Kilda, leading up to and following the evacuation of the whole community in 1930. The writing brings the island and its inhabitants to life and I really felt part of the story. I didn't want it to end and but, equally, needed to find out what happened. I loved the characters, well hated some too of course, but overall they are a wonderful cast. Mhairi is such a sweet girl and I loved her kindness. She bent to everyone's wishes except her own and I so wanted her to occasionally say no, but that made me feel close to her. Good writing indeed.

Karen Swan writes a good story and, her first series is no exception. I loved every minute of it and can't believe I have to wait another year to read the next instalment. I might just have to get books one and two as an audiobook and listen to them again before then. I highly recommend this book and book one, you could read this without having read book one but I wouldn't you will miss out so much if you do.

As a fan of Karen Swan, I eagerly awaited the publication of. The Stolen Hours, the second book in the Lost Isles series. These books are set on the remote Hebridean Isle of St Kilda just before and after it's abandonment by the islanders in 1930.
The previous book The Last Summer unlike Swan's usual happy ending finished on a cliffhanger after the death of a central character.
The Last Summer told the story of islander Effie, her relationship with her family, the Islanders and two men who desire her, only one of which she reciprocates. The Stolen Hours covering the same time period tells the story of Effie's friend and fellow islander Mhairi who similarly has two men who lust after her.
The most successful and engaging part of The Lost Summer was the first half which introduces the reader to the harsh and isolated world of St Kilda with its strong family bonds, strict religious and moral code, wildlife and wild beauty. Seen through the eyes of Effie who loves the Island, we were taken to a poverty-stricken rural economy with more in common with the 1870s, than 1930s. This has an extra poignancy in the knowledge that is was about to come to an end. For me that book dropped in intensity when the action moved to the mainland and we meet somewhat stock representatives of 1930s classes and attitudes.
In The Stolen Hours we no longer have the novelty of St Kilda's lifestyle and Swan has to rely on character and plot to re-engage her audience. As she readily admits in the afterword, she really struggled to bring Mhairi and her swains to life in this sequel and it shows. I also struggled with the first half of the book, only being engaged again, ironically in the mainland second half where there is more jeopardy, plot and at very long last some movement in explaining the cliff-hanger from the first book. All is not answered and it appears we will be revisiting St Kilda again next year to read the story through yet another character's eyes. Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read a review copy of this work