Ashes to Ashes (Ashes to Ashes #1)

Introducing Rebecca Reid and Michael Campbell, who also appear in the Jean Fairbairn/Alasdair Cameron series


Historian Rebecca Reid comes from Missouri to a replica of a Scottish castle located outside the small town of Putnam, Ohio, to catalog a collection of historical artifacts. She knows that James Forbes, the castle's owner who had just been found dead at the foot of a stairway, owned the Erskine letter—a letter which might prove that Mary, Queen of Scots' son died at birth and was secretly replace by another woman's. It’s just what Rebecca needs for her Ph.D. dissertation.
The castle was originally built by James’s parents, John Forbes, captain of industry and collector of all things Scottish, including a young Scottish wife, Elspeth—who threw herself from the fifth story window when she lost her infant daughter.
At Dun Iain Rebecca finds herself saddled with a co-worker, Michael Campbell, a Scottish professor sent from the Museum of Scotland to separate out the Forbes' family treasures and decide what would go to home to Scotland and what would stay with the historical society. He has a tartan chip on his shoulder and, Rebecca suspects, a hidden agenda. Sparks fly.
Sparks of a different kind fly between Rebecca and Eric Adler, the charming, handsome executor of the Forbes estate. Then there’s Dorothy, the eavesdropping busybody of a
housekeeper who had been cleaning Dun Iain for thirty years or more, and handyman Phil Pruitt, his son Steve, and Steve’s girlfriend Heather, all of whom always seem to be in the wrong place
at the wrong time.
And there’s a castle cat that Michael and Rebecca find personable but that Eric fears.
Ghostly presences stalk the halls, throw dishes in the kitchen, turn lights on and off, and
move objects around. When valuables start vanishing and accidents start happening, Rebecca suspects more than just ghosts are at work. Someone wants her and Michael out of Dun Iain. And
amid all the precious artifacts, she can’t find the Erskine letter.


“...a real page-turner of a story...descriptive detail brings the reader on the scene...characters come to life through Carl's ear for everyday dialogue...especially spell-binding is the realistic description of the ghostly presence that stalks the twisted corridors...the reader is drawn into the mystery as well as the love story that unfolds...a believable story laced with historical fact and delicious humor. I highly recommend it.”

--Barbara Leskey, Ohioana Quarterly


“...a Gothic novel with a twist...this is a fantastic mystery in more ways than one...a novel of
gradually intensifying tension, as the incidents go from the odd, the mildly frightening, to the very
dangerous...a very fine book, well worth reading.”

--Timothy Lane, Fosfax

“Lillian Stewart Carl is a master hand at providing light, entertaining reading. The haunting of the
castle adds tension but is not the sort of thing to keep the timid reader up nights. Ashes to Ashes is a fun read and I look forward to reading more of the series.”

--Christine Duncan, Murder Express

“Gothic fans will be overjoyed...all the trappings of that subgenre are present--the brooding men,
sinister servants, and a mysterious mansion--but the setting is decidedly modern...will make the reader glad that the author is planning a sequel.”

--Toby Bromberg, Rave Reviews

“There are ghoulies and ghosties (honest) and long leggety beasties (a wonderful cat) and a myriad of things that go bump in the night...a host of suspects to sift through...