The Isle of Lewis, Scotland: Real Locations Behind The Iron Fin

This summer, I dragged my family to Scotland… to its outer edges. I so very badly wanted to see the Inner and Outer Hebrides. Skye was beautiful beyond compare. But…

What about the Isle of Lewis? While writing THE IRON FIN, I’d spent SO much time on Google, looking, reading about the place both now and in times long past that I couldn’t wait to see it with my own eyes.

Two particular locations surface in this novel that I was keen to visit: a blackhouse and the beaches north of Stornoway. Even more so, I wanted to be able to share this with you, my readers. And so I took photos and more photos. And videos.

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When Isa returns to the Isle of Lewis with Alec, we visit her family home: a blackhouse. Though such houses were common into the early 20th century, few remain today. While on vacation, I visited the Arnol Blackhouse Museum… and took these photos and a video of the interior for my readers!

North of Stornoway, there are a few sandy beaches. I drove up to Traigh Mhòr, a long strip of sand where Isa’s sister, Nina, would have been found. At one end of the beach, I found a rocky cove and climbed over the black rocks to explore a *small* sea cave.
Our last stop was at a smaller beach – both rocky and sandy – closer to Stornoway. This would have been the beach where Isa and Alec first met face to face:
Ebook and audiobook of the historical fantasy steampunk gaslamp romance novel The Iron Fin by Anne Renwick showing a sexy female selkie wearing a corset with a knife strapped to her thigh and a handsome navy military man holding a weapon as they stand in front of the rocky entrance to an underwater cave and a Special edition hardcover for the historical fantasy steampunk gaslamp romance novel The Iron Fin by Anne Renwick from the Elemental Web Chronicles series displaying images of an octopus, a spyglass and compass, a shark fin, test tubes, a seal, an antique dive helmet, and a submersible submarine

Off the windswept shores of Scotland, unnatural and deadly secrets lurk beneath the waves

THE IRON FIN

Book Three of the Elemental Web Chronicles

Isa McQuiston is caught between two worlds

Strange creatures are attacking her people, the injuries inflicted beyond her medical expertise. Men tossed ashore by the waves, drained of blood, a severed tentacle piercing their flesh. Any hope of finding answers involves forging a cautious alliance with a handsome outsider.

Dr. Alec McCullough, recovering naval officer, is investigating a rash of inexplicable octopus attacks, but his every effort is met with resistance. Coaxing an attractive young widow—the local healer—to allow him to examine the latest victim only leads to further complications. 

Together, they uncover layers of deceit—and creatures fabricated from a fusion of both living and mechanical components. As innocent lives are callously sacrificed, Isa and Alec struggle to forge a future together while attempting to prevent a disaster of international proportions.