Black Rigg - Mary Easson

Recently returned to the family estate where he meets prospective medical student Rose Matheson, reluctant heir David Melville must make Rashiepark pay in a difficult time for the landowners. He develops an uneasy relationship with the mining community as local hero and self-educated blacksmith Neil Tennant is drawn into the lives of the miners. When Neil crosses the class divide in search of love, others conspire against him. Friends Phee, Elizabeth and Rose ask what the future holds whilst the women of the Stoneyrigg Rows struggle to raise their children in poverty and poor living conditions. Socialist miner Alex Birse speaks out against injustice but is anyone listening?

Told across the four seasons of 1910, this gritty but heart warming tale of village life follows the interwoven lives of the men, women and children of a Scottish mining community. As the old order is challenged by workers and women who are daring to ask for more, optimism and resilience shine through.

Some of the dialogue is in Scots which is easy to follow.