Hot Scots, Castles, and Kilts

April 1, 2008
Gr 7-10-When Sami lands in Inverness, she's looking forward to 45 days of hot Scots, kilts, and a stay at the castle of a long-lost relative. However, the 16-year-old finds herself living in one of the castle's crofts, a guinea pig in the family's attempt to turn the run-down estate into a working farm for tourists. She pumps her own water, makes her own soap, counts sheep, and has to deal with an unfriendly cow. Sami's cousin Fiona is obsessed with two things: the ghost living in Sami's bedroom and the long-standing feud with the neighboring McClintoggs. Unfortunately, the McClintoggs have a cute son, Adan, and he and Sami immediately hit it off. Days pass while readers are left to struggle with the flow of time and lack of depth in both story and character. Sami's mother is a famous romance novelist who is supposedly known for researching her stories, but Swoish can't be bothered to use even simple Scottish words like "dinnae." Despite hopes that the annoying ghost side story is the product of an overactive imagination, there turns out to be a "real" ghost haunting Sami's room. This is a quick read, and the diary style should appeal to fans of Meg Cabot's books, while the content is a more accessible, less slang-filled, version of Louise Rennison's books. An uninspiring but ultimately harmless addition to larger collections."Cara von Wrangel Kinsey, New York Public Library"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.