The Laird of Drumlychtoun by Hilary Pugh review: A fun P.I. story

If you like an old-fashioned private eye story, you’ll want to turn your attention to The Laird of Drumlychtoun by Hilary Pugh. It’s a fun little tale that is sure to keep you entertained.

Disclaimer: I got this book for free via Voracious Readers Only in return for an honest review.

Every now and then, you want an old-school mystery. You don’t want the blood and gore that modern-day thrillers always seem to include. It’s not the murder that enthralls you but the journey to discover who the murderer is.

In the case of The Laird of Drumlychtoun, there’s not even a murder. Ian Skair gets a letter from the titular Laird who has a task he wants to hire the P.I. for. It’s a case of a missing sister and a missing ring. Both have been missing for about 50 years, and it seems like a lost cause. However, Ian soon finds himself down a rabbit hole of discoveries.

A descriptive tale around Scotland

One thing I want to say about the novel is that Hilary Pugh has done her research into the area. I lived in Dundee for a while and moved to the outskirts of Glasgow, and so I recognized a lot of the names of places throughout the book. I could imagine exactly where Ian was on his travels, and I wasn’t distracted by thinking “well, that’s not possible” or “that’s not how it looks” at all.

We’re taken on a descriptive journey. There are a few parts where Ian goes to London, but for the most part he’s in and around Dundee and at the castle. And I adore the description of the fictional castle.

I’m glad a fictional castle was used. It allowed for some great storytelling with the castle’s history and the legend around the ring that Ian was tasked with locating.

A book that will take you on a few twists and turns

The main part of the story is focused on finding Ailish, Xander’s missing sister. She hadn’t been taken by anyone. Instead, she left her family after a falling out with her father in the 1960s, never to return again. The ring is mentioned, but it’s clear that this old laird just wants to find his sister and see if he has any family.

Of course, there wouldn’t be a story if there wasn’t a villain. Who would the villain be? This is someone lurking in the background who you know is going to show up at some point, but you’re not quite sure when.

There are times that you’ll wonder if someone who Ian finds along the way is really who they say they are. This comes with reading a lot of thrillers. You’re always expecting something else; someone to not be who they say they are.

I’ll say I really enjoyed how it ended up. I’m not going to share whether everyone was who they said they were throughout. You don’t want to be spoiled.

Don’t expect a huge mystery within the story, though. It’s fast-paced and pretty simple. If you like to be taken on a lot of twists and turns, then this isn’t going to be for you. When you want something fun and light, this is the novel for you.

The Laird of Drumlychtoun is just the start for Ian Skair

It looks like there will be more Ian Skair novels coming. With the way things end for Ian in The Laird of Drumlychtoun, it only seems like the beginning of things.

After wrapping up the case in the castle, Ian gets an email with another intriguing opportunity. He just can’t say no to it, and hopefully, we’ll get to read that journey soon. I’ll be sure to buy the novel.

I give The Laird of Drumlychtoun by Hilary Pugh 4 out of 5 stars.

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