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Table of Contents
About The Book
“Viscerally vivid…half Tarantino and half pitch-black northern realism.” —The Guardian, Named a Best Book of 2024 * “Unfolds with a pleasurable, slow-burn assurance.” —The New York Times Book Review
A stunning and “spiky debut” (The Times, London) novel set in the rugged, rural landscape of northwest England, where two sheep farmers lose their flocks and decide to reverse their fortunes by stealing sheep from a rich farm in the south—for fans of Annie Proulx and Cormac McCarthy.
In early 2001, a lethal disease breaks out on the hill farms of northwest England, emptying the valleys of sheep and filling the skies with smoke as they burn the carcasses. Two neighboring shepherds lose everything and set their sights on a wealthy farm in the south with its flock of prizewinning animals. So begins the dark tale of Steve Elliman and William Herne.
As their sheep rustling leads to more and more difficult decisions, the struggles of the land are never far away. Steve’s only distraction is his growing fascination with William’s enigmatic and independent wife, Helen. When their mountain home comes under the sway of a lawless outsider, Colin Tinley, Steve must save himself and Helen in a savage conflict that threatens the ancient ways of the Lakeland fells.
Told in the hardscrabble voice of a forgotten England, Scott Preston creates an uncompromising vision of farmers lost in brutal devotion to their flocks, the aching love affairs that men and women use to sustain themselves, and the painful consequences of a breathtaking heist gone bad. The Borrowed Hills “strides confidently across its pages, like the seasoned work of a veteran” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis), a thrilling and gritty adventure that reimagines the American Western for Britain’s moors and mountains where survival is in the blood.
A stunning and “spiky debut” (The Times, London) novel set in the rugged, rural landscape of northwest England, where two sheep farmers lose their flocks and decide to reverse their fortunes by stealing sheep from a rich farm in the south—for fans of Annie Proulx and Cormac McCarthy.
In early 2001, a lethal disease breaks out on the hill farms of northwest England, emptying the valleys of sheep and filling the skies with smoke as they burn the carcasses. Two neighboring shepherds lose everything and set their sights on a wealthy farm in the south with its flock of prizewinning animals. So begins the dark tale of Steve Elliman and William Herne.
As their sheep rustling leads to more and more difficult decisions, the struggles of the land are never far away. Steve’s only distraction is his growing fascination with William’s enigmatic and independent wife, Helen. When their mountain home comes under the sway of a lawless outsider, Colin Tinley, Steve must save himself and Helen in a savage conflict that threatens the ancient ways of the Lakeland fells.
Told in the hardscrabble voice of a forgotten England, Scott Preston creates an uncompromising vision of farmers lost in brutal devotion to their flocks, the aching love affairs that men and women use to sustain themselves, and the painful consequences of a breathtaking heist gone bad. The Borrowed Hills “strides confidently across its pages, like the seasoned work of a veteran” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis), a thrilling and gritty adventure that reimagines the American Western for Britain’s moors and mountains where survival is in the blood.
Reading Group Guide
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This reading group guide for The Borrowed Hills includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.
In early 2001, as foot and mouth disease breaks out across farms in northern England, two shepherds lose their flocks and decide to reverse their fortunes by stealing sheep from a rich farm in the south. So begins the dark and riveting tale of Steve Elliman and William Herne in Scott Preston’s debut novel. A lyrical crime thriller, a meditation on a dying landscape, and a reimagining of the American Western, The Borrowed Hills is an insightful and gripping tale that celebrates the language and folklore of a forgotten England. With violent shootouts, tender love affairs, and a breathtaking heist alongside a luscious portrait of a mystical landscape, the novel raises the question: What are we leaving for the next generation, and what keeps us going in difficult times?
Reading Group Guide
Consider the narrative point of view. How does this POV, which at times resembles a court testimony or an emotional end-of-life monologue, impact the emotional tenor of the book?
The foot and mouth disease wreaked havoc on the financial stability of farmers—many of them were instructed to slaughter healthy animals, thus contributing to their own financial ruin. Discuss the ethical issues of this policy. What routes were farmers left with once they slaughtered their animals?
Consider the relationships between Helen, William, and Steve. What draws each person to each other? What repels them?
When a young Steve is swimming with Helen in the mountain lake, he bursts into tears and both stifles and creates a moment of intimacy. What do you think was the source of Steve’s emotional outbreak? How would that moment, and thus Helen’s and Steve’s relationship, have changed if he hadn’t started crying?
The narrator notes that “everything special about the fells is in our heads” (page 239). Do you agree?
Steve subtly remarks on a sort of gentrification that has taken place in the fells, as the shifting landscape, where “families used to [actually] live” (page 240), is now riddled with empty homes not for sale and restaurants seemingly made for tourists. Discuss what has happened to the people of the fells. Where are the families? What do you think pushed them out?
Consider the title of the book and its context in the text: “I keep a mountain herd and leave them on those shelves of rock. On borrowed hills” (page 274). In that section, Steve remarks on his general lack of direction in life. How does this part shape your view of Steve? Why has he chosen to live “on borrowed hills” and not any land owned?
Why do you think Steve stayed, working on William’s land and joining in on his schemes, even when he wasn’t promised payment?
How does masculinity, in all its positive and negative manifestations, contribute to the characters’ successes and downfalls, their understanding of the world, and the choices they make? What do you make of Steve’s comment that “crying’s for when you want someone else [to get things done] for you” (page 197)?
While William plans to give the property to Danny, his son, Danny seems to grow increasingly distant and absent. Discuss what factors may have contributed to Danny’s absence.
Does your opinion of various characters change throughout the book? How, and at which points?
Revisit the heist scenes in the book. What went wrong with each one? What would have success looked like for the men?
Helen seems to have forsaken her own dreams and happiness for much of her life but eventually develops the strength to leave the fells and make a new start. What finally propels her to carve out her own path? How do you think she would have fared if she stayed?
How do the characters in the book seem to grapple with morality? How do you think their relationships to morality, to right and wrong, influence their decisions?
Enhance Your Book Club
Research the instances of foot and mouth disease in Europe and throughout the world and the different policies enacted to deal with the epidemics. Discuss the social, political, and economic ramifications of the policies.
Consider one of these books, which capture the lives of working-class people with dignity and lyrical prose, for your next book club pick: The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks, American Rust by Philipp Meyer, or Barkskins by Annie Proulx.
Visit the Lake District! Go to https://www.lakelandretreats.com/lake-district-fells/ to plan your trip, or take a virtual trip at https://virtualmountains.co.uk/LakeDistrict/LakeDistrict.html.
In early 2001, as foot and mouth disease breaks out across farms in northern England, two shepherds lose their flocks and decide to reverse their fortunes by stealing sheep from a rich farm in the south. So begins the dark and riveting tale of Steve Elliman and William Herne in Scott Preston’s debut novel. A lyrical crime thriller, a meditation on a dying landscape, and a reimagining of the American Western, The Borrowed Hills is an insightful and gripping tale that celebrates the language and folklore of a forgotten England. With violent shootouts, tender love affairs, and a breathtaking heist alongside a luscious portrait of a mystical landscape, the novel raises the question: What are we leaving for the next generation, and what keeps us going in difficult times?
Reading Group Guide
Consider the narrative point of view. How does this POV, which at times resembles a court testimony or an emotional end-of-life monologue, impact the emotional tenor of the book?
The foot and mouth disease wreaked havoc on the financial stability of farmers—many of them were instructed to slaughter healthy animals, thus contributing to their own financial ruin. Discuss the ethical issues of this policy. What routes were farmers left with once they slaughtered their animals?
Consider the relationships between Helen, William, and Steve. What draws each person to each other? What repels them?
When a young Steve is swimming with Helen in the mountain lake, he bursts into tears and both stifles and creates a moment of intimacy. What do you think was the source of Steve’s emotional outbreak? How would that moment, and thus Helen’s and Steve’s relationship, have changed if he hadn’t started crying?
The narrator notes that “everything special about the fells is in our heads” (page 239). Do you agree?
Steve subtly remarks on a sort of gentrification that has taken place in the fells, as the shifting landscape, where “families used to [actually] live” (page 240), is now riddled with empty homes not for sale and restaurants seemingly made for tourists. Discuss what has happened to the people of the fells. Where are the families? What do you think pushed them out?
Consider the title of the book and its context in the text: “I keep a mountain herd and leave them on those shelves of rock. On borrowed hills” (page 274). In that section, Steve remarks on his general lack of direction in life. How does this part shape your view of Steve? Why has he chosen to live “on borrowed hills” and not any land owned?
Why do you think Steve stayed, working on William’s land and joining in on his schemes, even when he wasn’t promised payment?
How does masculinity, in all its positive and negative manifestations, contribute to the characters’ successes and downfalls, their understanding of the world, and the choices they make? What do you make of Steve’s comment that “crying’s for when you want someone else [to get things done] for you” (page 197)?
While William plans to give the property to Danny, his son, Danny seems to grow increasingly distant and absent. Discuss what factors may have contributed to Danny’s absence.
Does your opinion of various characters change throughout the book? How, and at which points?
Revisit the heist scenes in the book. What went wrong with each one? What would have success looked like for the men?
Helen seems to have forsaken her own dreams and happiness for much of her life but eventually develops the strength to leave the fells and make a new start. What finally propels her to carve out her own path? How do you think she would have fared if she stayed?
How do the characters in the book seem to grapple with morality? How do you think their relationships to morality, to right and wrong, influence their decisions?
Enhance Your Book Club
Research the instances of foot and mouth disease in Europe and throughout the world and the different policies enacted to deal with the epidemics. Discuss the social, political, and economic ramifications of the policies.
Consider one of these books, which capture the lives of working-class people with dignity and lyrical prose, for your next book club pick: The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks, American Rust by Philipp Meyer, or Barkskins by Annie Proulx.
Visit the Lake District! Go to https://www.lakelandretreats.com/lake-district-fells/ to plan your trip, or take a virtual trip at https://virtualmountains.co.uk/LakeDistrict/LakeDistrict.html.
About The Author
Photograph by Melanie Preston
Scott Preston is from Windermere in the English Lake District. He studied philosophy at the University of Sheffield before working as a copywriter. He is a graduate of the University of Manchester’s creative writing program and received a PhD in prose fiction from King’s College London. The Borrowed Hills is his first novel.
Product Details
- Publisher: Scribner (June 4, 2024)
- Length: 304 pages
- ISBN13: 9781668050675
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Raves and Reviews
"Viscerally vivid . . . a sucker-punch of a novel, edged with knife-sharp black humour and shot through with moments of startling beauty . . . half Tarantino and half pitch-black northern realism." —Guardian (UK)
“The Borrowed Hills is the strangled, savagely beautiful swan song of the Cumbrian peasant farmer. . . . The passages that stay with us are those that expose the human qualities of frailty and compassion, hitherto hidden or distorted, under the pure and clarified light of the natural world.” —New York Review of Books
"Preston's sinewy, supple prose showcases a cast of desperate sheep farmers as they grapple with the elements and their own clandestine urges . . . a modern-day Moses and Aaron tending their flock. Tragedy feels as inevitable as biblical prophecy. . . . Preston's gifts are abundant. He taps the cadences of northwest England, lopping off the subjects of his sentences, molding idiosyncratic nouns ('nowt' and 'owt') like putty . . . The Borrowed Hills strides confidently across its pages, like the seasoned work of a veteran. Preston is already firing on all cylinders, a writer to watch." —Hamilton Cain, Minneapolis Star-Tribune
“Unfolds with a pleasurable, slow-burn assurance . . . The Borrowed Hills is at its most resonant and powerful when the human drama . . . takes its proper place in the pitiless and timeless landscape on which all of nature’s tenants—man and animal alike—live and die.” —New York Times Book Review
"A tremendously exciting novel . . . A brilliantly realized voice: Steve's every utterance is the product of where he comes from . . . as blunt and brutal as the fells he works among." —Times Literary Supplement (UK)
"A spiky debut . . . precisely focused with flavour, intensity, and oodles of character." —The Times (UK)
"Preston’s debut arrives like a punch to the gut . . . a Wild West–type tale of rustling and villainy, blood and belonging, transposed to the bleakly beautiful fells and sheep flocks of northern England. . . . This is an elemental tale shaded in tones of heroism, machismo, moral intensity, and mythmaking. It’s also a love song to the landscape . . . Gritty, gripping, and fearlessly committed." —Kirkus (starred review)
“[A] blistering debut . . . Preston’s brilliant tonal range extends from epic heroism, as the men scramble after sheep on shale knee-deep in muck, to uncompromising realism. . . . This dark and inspired tale pulses with life.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Preston’s debut is everything it sets out to be: picturesque but brutal and uncompromising . . . this steely tale will have a lasting effect on the reader." —Booklist
"The Borrowed Hills shows us the Lake District from the inside, from the viewpoint of those who struggle to make a living from the land and who, when the bad times come, are driven to extremity and violence in order to survive. It’s a startlingly original addition to the literature of northern England." —Ian McGuire, author of The North Water
"Scott Preston lifts the veil from the picture-postcard beauty of Britain's Cumbrian fells to expose an atmosphere of festering despair in the lives of two farmers who lose everything when their sheep are destroyed by the government in order to contain an outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease. When they take desperate measures to rebuild their shattered world, what happens feels tragically inevitable. The Borrowed Hills is a story of anger and violence, devotion, love, and back-breaking hard work, told with dark, dead-pan humour and a rough kind of poetry." —Carys Davies, author of West and Clear
"A remarkable debut. Taut, intelligent and beautifully told." —M. J. Hyland, Booker Prize–shortlisted author of Carry Me Down
"You could read this remarkable novel just for its dazzling prose, but there’s more: razor sharp dialogue, meshed gear plotting, and above all a powerful evocation of a landscape and a way of life unknown to most of us, until now." —Joseph Kanon, author of Leaving Berlin
"Utterly absorbing and original, Scott Preston writes with a poet’s heart and a cinematic eye. A painfully truthful account of the foot and mouth outbreak and the effects it had on the farming community, The Borrowed Hills shows the other, darker side to the Cumbrian Fells and to rural life up and down the country." —Rebecca Smith, author of Rural: The Lives of the Working-Class Countryside
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- Author Photo (jpg): Scott Preston Photograph by Melanie Preston(0.1 MB)
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