I think as soon as you start a novel set in yesteryear and featuring three sisters living in a manse, you know you're assured a gripping read. And this one is fabulous: set (we assume) in 19th century Highland Scotland, and narrated by youngest sister, Lisbet (a sort of go-between, necessarily prevailed upon to escort her older sisters on clandestine meetings), this put me somewhat in mind of Wuthering Heights.
As the three sisters break out from a strict home to wander on the hills and mix with locals, there is throughout an overlying sense of the supernatural. Even beautiful sights are charged with an eeriness:
"When I went up the path, butterflies' wings blinked in the shadows and a dragon-fly pursued me, its head like an eye...The shadow of each newly-made haystack in Gow's field stretched to its neighbour, as if their spirits were trying to reach out to one another. From the edge of the field marguerites stared, their petals drawn back from their yellow faces, as though scared at something they had seen pass."
This constant sense of unease adds to the story which unfolds...
Should be much better known than it is...utter enjoyment! ( )