Overview

Music in the Dark takes place over one night in Rutherglen in 1884. Jamesina Ross, a widowed woman living alone, agrees to take in a lodger. The man who arrives, Niall Munro, is tied to her past, and their long conversation begins to uncover shared memories of a Highland glen and the forced evictions that destroyed it. As the night unfolds, love, loss, music, and unfinished business rise to the surface.

Voice & Atmosphere

We found the writing calm, clear, and deeply felt. Sally Magnusson moves easily between the tight streets of an industrial town and the wide landscapes of remembered glens. Songs and remembered sounds shape the mood throughout. The tone is gentle but firm, allowing painful history to speak without being overstated.

Characters

Jamesina is sharp, resilient, and quietly funny, shaped by hardship without being defined by it. Her scars, both physical and emotional, are treated with respect. Niall carries regret and hope in equal measure, and the connection between them feels grown up and honest. The surrounding figures show how communities are marked by loss, displacement, and silence.

Themes

This novel looks closely at memory, dispossession, and the lasting effects of the Highland Clearances. It asks who is allowed to remember, and whose stories are pushed aside. Music becomes a way of holding onto truth when land and home are taken away. It is also a tender exploration of love later in life, with all its hesitation and need.

What Worked

• Focused structure: one night carries the weight of many years with clarity and care.
• Use of song: music deepens emotion without feeling decorative.
• Later-life love: a rare and moving portrait of connection after loss.

Minor Quibbles

• Some key events from the past are described rather than fully shown.
• The quiet pacing may take time to settle for readers expecting action early on.

Final Thoughts

We found Music in the Dark to be a powerful and compassionate novel that gives voice to hidden histories and shows how love and memory can survive deep injustice.