Title: I Know You
Author: Russell Govan
Genre: Time Travel romance, Romantic Mystery
Book Blurb:
Eilidh, bright, headstrong and feisty, gets sparkling exam results that confirm her university place. Her boyfriend reveals he has deceived her. In the ensuing argument she is knocked unconscious. She arrives in 1984, in an Ethiopian refugee camp, where she nurses a dying child, then a wounded aid worker before wakening back home in present-day Scotland. Three days later, at an isolated beauty spot trying to come to terms with her ex-boyfriend’s betrayal and her experience in Ethiopia, she encounters Walter, who is in the early stages of dementia. He is there because of a tattoo on his wrist that simply states the date and location of the beauty spot. Eilidh recognises Walter’s symptoms, takes him home and contacts his niece to come and collect him.
Over the following 48-hour period Eilidh finds herself transported to various locations in Europe and North America, and time periods from the previous fifty years. Each episode draws her further into an unexpected and unconventional romance. Eventually she travels to WW2 blitzed Liverpool and meets a fellow time traveller who explains that Eilidh faces a decision with life and death consequences.
Excerpt:
It’s another glorious morning. The sunlight arrowing into the room through the curtain gaps confirms it. The dawn chorus is fading, and the stillness that goes with the early quiet is returning. I slide my legs off the side of the bed and sit up. I reach into the drawer for the candle and place it on top. Then I reach for Dad’s lighter, fire the wick, and sit back, looking at the flame. I used to do this a lot in the first few months after he died. Not so much recently. The minister said that some people find it a comfort. I was desperate and would’ve tried anything. I’m still kind of surprised I do it.
The flame’s white and steady. I was a Daddy’s girl. I still am, and I always will be. I was his favourite. He never said it, of course, but I know. The sly winks, the smiles, that time I overheard him boasting about me, the in-jokes we shared. The flame looks like it’s fixed, almost solid but not quite. My eyes are moist. Today would’ve been important to him. He wouldn’t have gone into his work until he knew my results, like he did when I got my National 5s. He’d want to be here to celebrate, or to comfort me. I wish he was here. So much. Tears roll down both cheeks, and the flame flickers ever so slightly. I watch it as it steadies and fix on it for long enough to see wax run down its length on all sides. Eventually, I know it’s time to blow it out, even though I don’t want to. I love you, Dad. A firm, gentle puff, and the flame is gone. The delicious smoke fills my nostrils.
I roll onto my back, head on pillow. I look up and see dust motes pirouetting in the sunbeams, energized by the draft from my movement. I hope there’s a heaven, or some kind of afterlife. It’s too painful to think that when someone dies, so does their love.
I’ve thought a lot about love this last year. Although my head said differently, my heart knew I’d never get over losing Dad. Then Findlay came along. He’s not a substitute, obviously. But he’s filled my heart and brought me joy and comfort and hope. I can still hardly believe we’re an item. No, not that. We’re more than an item. We’re blessed to have met each other so young. We’re perfect together. Perfect.
I’ve had a few boyfriends—well, seven to be precise, if we exclude anything before I was fourteen. None of them were serious, and the longest any of them lasted was a couple of months. I just get bored. They always seemed to become clingy or jealous or both. I got quite good at ending things without too much upset, mainly. Eventually, I’d get asked out by another boy that I fancied enough to say yes to and that would last as long as it lasted.
Anyway, Findlay had been going steady with Roxanne McAllister for nearly two years when they split up. She wanted to go to uni, and he wanted to stay on and do Sixth Year. And that was that. It was the talk of the school. They were the golden couple. She was beautiful and smart. A bit up herself, but okay to talk to when you got to know her. He was just heart-stoppingly handsome—tall, blond, and with a smile that melts glaciers. He captained the rugby and debating teams, and he was super smart to boot. He got five straight A’s in his Highers. Too good to be true, except he was real, because I saw him every day.
Everyone was amazed when he and Roxy broke up. But not half as amazed as I was the following weekend when he asked me out. He just came up to me at the checkout on the Saturday afternoon and asked me what time I finished. Then asked if I wanted to go for a meal. And I said yes. We went for that meal. We kissed—and pow! That was it. I’d kissed boys before, but this was completely different. Within a few weeks, we were an item. We’d probably already fallen in love with each other by then.
Findlay had stayed on because he thought he’d have a better chance of getting in to study PPE at Oxford if he did Sixth Year. His heart was set on doing what he called “the world’s most prestigious degree” there. But he’s given that up for us. For me. When he realized the prospect of us being apart was bringing me down, he volunteered to go to St. Andrews as well. He really did that for me. I would never get into Oxford, probably. And anyway, I don’t want to go that far south and be so far away from Mum and Gran, even my brothers. So Findlay said he’d stay in Scotland so we could still be together. That’s how much he loves me. Sacrificed his dream for us. It simply couldn’t be better.
Now all I need is for my results to be good enough to get in, and we’ll spend the next four years together in St. Andrews. We’ll do the first year in halls. Findlay thinks it’s the best way to meet people. Then we’ll get a flat together for second, third, and fourth years. I just need to get those results.
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What makes your featured book a must-read?
“Perfectly crafted stories populated by unforgettable characters. Contemporary fiction doesn’t get better than this.”
RICHARD MORIARTY – THE SUN
“A breathtakingly original romance that will make you laugh, cry, and gasp in surprise.”
THE LONDON ECONOMIC
“A superb storyteller whose writing never fails to astound and delight.”
CHRIS RICHES – DAILY EXPRESS
“Romance novels are ten-a-penny but I Know You is so different and yet still so moving that it’s worth its weight in gold.”
FEMALE FIRST
“I Know You draws you in, and leaves you wanting more.”
THE READING DEVIL
“I Know You delivers a fresh take on time travel.”
NOVELS ALIVE
“An intricate and powerful story of love, loyalty, and loss told across time that will stay with you long after you’ve finished reading.”
GWYNETH REES - THE SCOTSMAN
“A brilliant premise for a novel with a dramatic dilemma for the central character about where she truly belongs.”
THE YORKSHIRE EVENING POST
Giveaway –
Enter to win a $35 Amazon gift card:
Open Internationally.
Runs August 8 – August 21, 2023.
Winner will be drawn on August 22, 2023.
Author Biography:
Russell Govan is a Scottish, Oxfordshire-based author who had two well- received thrillers published in 2020 and 2021. His works have been shortlisted in numerous writing competitions, including an extract from a draft of this novel which was shortlisted for the 2019 Grindstone International Short Story Prize.
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