NATURE IN SCOTLAND | The mystery of Shetland and Orkney, the wildest and most extreme coast of Scotland

With its extreme climate and rugged geography, Shetland is an ideal destination for nature lovers, as we are talking about one of the most important breeding areas for seabirds in the world. In addition, it is the most important refuge for wild otters in the United Kingdom, a dream for geologists and a perfect territory for the study of terrestrial and marine plants. The remoteness of the setting and the presence of nature without the filters of civilization was precisely what inspired Cleeves to write his mystery novels. “My husband, who I met in Shetland, was a passionate birdwatcher and spent most of his career working in conservation work,” she explains. “One day, in the middle of winter, he was informed of the arrival of a very rare bird to the islands. We decided to make the trip to see it. That meant driving to Aberdeen and taking a night ferry for 14 hours. Fortunately, the bird, an American coot, was still there. It was a beautiful day. It had snowed and then the snow had frozen. Everything was very clear. There were crows playing in the sky, black against the snow. Since I’m a crime writer, I thought that if there was blood too, it would be an almost mythical scene, like a fairy tale, Snow White or Sleeping Beauty. “That image stayed in my mind and formed the beginning of the novel.”