Valentines Choice for 2007: Scottish Romance
O my luve is like a red, red rose,
That's newly sprung in June:
O my luve is like the melodie,
That's sweetly played in tune.
As fair art thou, my bonie lass,
So deep in luve am I;
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry.
Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun;
And I will luve thee still my dear,
While the sands o' life shall run.
And fare thee weel, my only luve!
And fare thee weel a while!
And I will come again, my luve,
Tho' it were ten thousand mile.
Robert Burns: My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose, perhaps one of the most famous of Scottish love poems. No stranger to love, Burns' poetry is a rich source for romantic couples - Antonia Fraser's collection, Scottish Love Poems: A Personal Anthology is a great place to start. It gathers together poems, ballads and sonnets from the 15th century to the present day. Polygon's collection, Love for Love, contains contributions from 50 Scottish and international poets writing in English, Scots and Gaelic.
If short stories leave you all a-flutter, then you might enjoy Outlandish Affairs, an anthology of international amorous encounters.
With a rugged and beautiful landscape, it is little wonder the Highlands and Islands of Scotland inspire passion and romance. There are many steamy tales of wild Highlanders and fiery-haired women in our Romantic Fiction category, with authors such as Sue-Ellen Welfonder, Amanda Scott, Hannah Howell and Claire Delacroix writing popular bodice-rippers.
Learn more about Scottish romantic fiction in Eileen Ramsay's article Oh, Power of Scotland, and Maggie Craig's rather different perspective in Is Scotland Afraid of Romance?.
Evelyn Hood writes romantic sagas such as A Certain Freedom, her most recent novel, which is now available in paperback. Her next novel, Birds in the Spring, is set in Paisley in the 1920s and will be published in the summer. Jessica Stirling's most recent book is Blessings in Disguise. Diana Gabaldon is very popular on both sides of the Atlantic and combines convincing historical research and epic love stories - try Voyager or Cross Stitch.
Don't forget the classic Scottish writers, such as Lewis Grassic Gibbon and A Scots Quair or Nigel Tranter. John MacKay has written The Road Dance, a heartbreaking romance during the Great War in the Hebrides.
Getting Married in Scotland
If your have already found your true love, then where better to seal the knot than Scotland? Madonna chose Skibo Castle to marry Guy Ritchie, but if your finances don't stretch that far there are plenty of alternative - check out VisitScotland.com's guide to Getting married in Scotland.
The Scottish Wedding Book by GW Lockhart is a guide to the traditional Scottish wedding, whereas Marianne Rogerson's Your Scottish Wedding has a more modern outlook.
For a church wedding, 1000 Churches to Visit in Scotland is a practical guide to 1000 Scottish churches, while John R Hume's Scotland's Best Churches is an illustrated guide to the architecture of over 150 of Scotland's best churches.
The Scottish Poetry Library have produced an anthology of Scottish poems suitable for weddings (and, I dare say, civil partnerships). Handfast is named for a traditional marriage ceremony in Scotland and Ireland.
Soon to be published is Nicola Taylor's Fabulous Places To Get Married in Scotland, with details of 140 unusual wedding venues.
- 1000 Churches To Visit In Scotland
This guide to abbeys, cathedrals, churches and other places of worship across Scotland is compiled from information supplied by the churches themselves. Architectural details of the buildings, times of services, disability access, location details and other visitor amenities are featured. - Birds In The Spring
In Paisley in the 1920s, Fiona MacDowall has made it clear she intends to inherit her father's furniture emporium. However, her half-brother, although born out of wedlock, has other ideas. But it's Alex's wife, Rose, who objects most. She is sure that Fiona will stop at nothing to get what she wants. - Blessings In Disguise
When Nolan McKenna and his sisters arrived on Cissie Cassidy's doorstep claiming to be her late husband's long-lost relatives, the lonely widow is all too willing to be taken in. While Nolan wields a shovel for 12 back-breaking hours, the beautiful Clare takes up with the wrong man instead of the collection agent who yearns to make her his bride. - A Certain Freedom
After the death of his wife, Hamilton Forsyth scandalises the small Ayrshire town of Saltcoats by departing for pastures unknown. His three adult children are left reeling with shock and with the family ironmongery shop to run. - Cross Stitch
Claire Randall, a wartime nurse is transported back to the dangers of life in Jacobite Scotland, leaving behind her husband and finding herself in a state of desire for a courageous renegade. - Fabulous Places To Get Married In Scotland
This text explains how to go about arranging a wedding in Scotland and covers scores of fabulous places for the ultimate romantic celebration. It provides details of 140 of the most stunning and unusual wedding venues in the country, including fairytale castles and ancient abbeys. - Outlandish Affairs: An Anthology Of Amorous Encounters
Each tale in this volume explores the different aspects of cross-cultural relationships often highlighting the awkward and humorous situations born from simple misunderstanding. There are also tales of lost love, haunting love and indefinable love all trying to break down the barriers of culture. - The Road Dance
Life in the Scottish Hebrides can be harsh - the edge of the world some call it. For Kirsty MacLeod, the love of Murdo promises a new life away from the scrape of the land and the repression of the church. But the Great War looms. - Scotland's Best Churches
Over one hundred and fifty churches still used for worship are illustrated with line drawings and photographs, with pithy texts drawing out where they fit into the fabric of Scotland, and into nearly a thousand years of church construction. - A Scots Quair
A Scots Quair represents Lewis Grassic Gibbon's classic trilogy of novels. Each novel relates a chapter in the life of Chris Guthrie, torn between her love of the land and her desire to escape the narrow confines of a peasant culture. - Scottish Love Poems: A Personal Anthology
From ballads and sonnets to more modern rhythms, from vital Scots tongue to plain English, from sharp wit to evocative romanticism, this book presents a kaleidoscopic vision of humour, love and life. - The Scottish Wedding Book
This book is about the traditions that make Scottish weddings so distinctive. It includes technical and legal information necessary for church and registry office ceremonies. Information on kilts, dresses, customs, duties and dances is also included. - Voyager
This time-travelling adventure is set in Scotland in 1960 and in Scotland and America after the second Jacobite Rebellion. It is the third title in the Cross Stitch series, which won the Romance Writers of America Novel of the Year Award in 1991. - Love for Love: Proposals For A New Scottish Parliament
This anthology was compiled by asking 50 poets to select their favourite love poem and write a poem of their own in response. The contributors, writing in English, Gaelic and Scots, include Andrew Greig and more. - Your Scottish Wedding: A Modern Bride's Guide To Planning Her Big Day
From engagement to honeymoon, the author comes up with practical information, unique ideas and count down lists for the perfect Scottish wedding. She urges the reader to leave nothing to chance - always a have contingency plan - so that by the big day the bride knows she has done everything.