Fiction

One of the Top 20 Scottish books of all time (The List).

 Laura Marney

9781908643001 Paperback, £8.99 

9781908643049 (epub/mobi)

Also available in audiobook

'A biting laugh-out-loud satire,' Louise Welsh

Trisha, a lonely unsentimental boozer, unexpectedly inherits a home in the Highlands. She wastes no time leaving Glasgow, and with it her estranged husband, her insolent teenage son and her boring job. Having pictured a rural idyll, she finds rain, sheep, and kamikaze midges. And more rain. Her only companion is a smelly, brain-damaged dog, but a night of whisky-fuelled high jinks with a frozen salmon leads to a dramatic discovery that will change her future, and maybe even her past.

Buy the book at your favourite indie bookshop, or from here on Amazon UK, Waterstones, for Kindle (UK), Kindle (USA).

NEW! Audiobook is now available from Audible.co.uk

“A gently humorous take on an incomer’s life in the West Highlands.” – The Guardian

“Laura Marney is one of Scotland’s best-kept literary secrets. This is a biting laugh-out-loud satire which is never crueller than life. Marney’s unlikely heroine meets life head-on and lives on in the reader’s imagination long after the book is finished. An energetic, edgy book with wide appeal.” – Louise Welsh, author of The Cutting Room

“The pacing has an engaging confidence, a comic brio which, as readers soon see, comes from completely inhabiting her narrator’s character... Her jokes are seldom laboured, almost always rooted in character or language. And either way, she’s a natural comedy writer.” – The Scotsman

“The word on Laura Marney is that she’s Scotland’s best-kept literary secret, and for once, the goods live up to the fanfare. [No Wonder I Take a Drink] is a sparkling black comedy with guaranteed out-loud laughs. Marney displays a natural flair for storytelling and her warts-and-all characters ring true.” – York Evening Press

“Laura Marney writes about strong characters who are utterly believable and all too human. She consistently examines their experiences, relationships and foibles with insight, compassion and a rollicking, earthy humour, which makes for great reading. If you suffer from giggle incontinence, beware!” – Zoe Strachan, author of Negative Space

“Biting wit, brilliant characterisation and hilarious antics – whether you are 16 or 60, you’ll be rocking in your chair.” – Scottish Daily Record

“Marney’s book is consistently engaging and hits all the right notes.”
– The Glasgow Herald