Just finished “Winter the Story of a Season” and it’s a great little book for anyone who loves winter (like I do). McDermid loves the juxtapositions of winter (the cold outside and the warmth within) and the hope that light and warmth gives during the season. A few gems…

“Winter means soup. I believe the world is divided in two: those who think soup is a meal and those who are wrong.”

“There is something magical about train travel through a dark landscape. There are so few clues as to where we are. A sudden stream of light flashes past out of nowhere with the promise of strange mysteries; a range of hills is rendered unfamiliar, black on blue; a darkling river glints briefly alongside. Anything could happen while we’re cocooned in our carriages.”

It’s the time to snuggle indoors without guilt; to curl up on the sofa with a good book or a box set, a hot drink or a wee whisky to hand.

For most people, winter means short days and harsh weather and nipping cold and clothes that disguise us. It’s tinged with the longing for warmth and light and escape. Outside, the cold bites our faces and sneaks in around the cuffs of our gloves and jackets.

“the contrast between our comfortable lives and the tribulations of those for whom winter was a gruelling battle for survival – for homeless people struggling in freezing temperatures to stay alive; for travellers with no security, spurned and insulted, and driven off the land.”

“I celebrate the end of the winter festivals because it promises not just the light returning but also that the darkness will come back to be illuminated by words.”