| The Candlemass Road | |
| Author: | George MacDonald Fraser |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
| Genre: | historical fiction |
| Publisher: | Harvill Press (UK) HarperCollins (US) |
| Release Date: | 1993 |
| Pages: | 156 |
The Candlemass Road is a historical novel from George MacDonald Fraser set in the time of the Border Reivers, a period Fraser had earlier written about in The Steel Bonnets and would later return to in The Reavers.[1] [2]
Fraser later described it as "a rather dark morality tale - at least I meant it to have a moral - in what I hope was a reasonable imitation of Elizabethan English".[3]
The author said he had another purpose in writing the book, to emphasise the decline in law and order. "We're becoming a nation of broken men," he told a journalist. "Now that the law fails to protect us, people have just got to look out for themselves - within the custom of the country, which is not necessarily within the law."[4]
The book is mentioned in the film All My Friends Are Leaving Brisbane.
The Washington Post said "Readers who enjoy a snatch of history brought to life will enjoy this brief but fascinating tale. However, the slightness of the plot, along with the old-fashioned treatment of point of view and the lack of character development, will leave those looking for a satisfying story disappointed."[5]