Customer Reviews
'Faction', not convincingly researched history? - By: R. Murdoch, 05 Oct 2008 
As a borderer born & raisedin Annandale I found this book disappointing. Written by somone who workedin television it bears all the hallmarks of that medium's 'drama-documentary' genre. I didn't doubt that the central thrust was valid, but would have liked to see footnoted or end-noted references. The author's assertion that this would amount to showing off is unconvincing, & merely listing a bibliography isn't good enough. There must be a better account of this turbulent period!
Wonderful popular history... - By: Fraochale, 27 Mar 2008 
I found this book at Melrose Abbey on a recent trip to the UK & discovered hours of fun reading. Moffat's style is like talking to a favorite uncle who shares delicious family secrets through his recollection of the period, complete with humor & a bit of honest sarcasm. He makes the history of the Anglo/Scottish Borders & the lives of the Border Reivers come alive. This is wonderful social history, presentedin a way that appeals to the larger public audience. I have recommended this book to many American Romance authors who are looking for a great research source on the culture of the Borders, be it the English or Scottish Marches. This is a great companion piece to his THE BORDERS book: same style & presentation. Both should be read & savored for their honest & witty presentation without being too scholarly.
Good book but not much new material - By: Surf dude, 27 Jan 2008 
While this book has its own style & brings a new angle to an old topic, it doesn't offer much new material & covers a lot of ground already coveredin Moffat's other book "The Borders". I still enjoyed it but would always rate "The Steel Bonnets" higher.
Mindless appaling slaughter - By: Robert Clive Turnbull, 02 Oct 2007 This is a marvellous book, which deals with one of the most contentious periodsin British history. For almost 300 years from the time of Edward 1st until the Union of the Crowns under James 1stin 1603, the border region between England & Scotland was little more than a bloodbath,in which it was said that on wakingin the morning, the first thing people did was touch the fingers to the throat, to make sure that it had not been slit overnight.
This appalling gratuitous violence, is brought to life brilliantlyin this book,in which the violence reaches such a peakin the middle of the 16 century, that it is a wonder there was any border to pacify. Witness the slaying of a fugitivein York, or the genocide carried out by the Johnston's against the Maxwell'sin which some 700 Maxwell's were wiped outin a single afternoon, with the blood apparently running through the streets of Lockerbie.
The remarkable thing is that all this actually happened. It is not a figment of a writers imagination. The text is very easy to read, & the pictures are very evocative. If you only ever buy one book on the Reivers, buy this
A brilliant read on a fascinating period - By: T. A. Gordon, 10 Aug 2007 I've long been a fan of MacDonald Fraser's 'Steel Bonnets' so I was interested to see what Alistair Moffat's book would add.
The hardback is just over 320 pages, grouped into two main parts, four chaptersin the first, & threein the second. Add to this five appendices, the bibliography & a concise & easy to use index, there's a lot here to immerse yourself in. Andin the centre of the book you have the illustrations, thirty-two superb colour photographs of the landscapes of the Borders that do so much to evoke the mood of the era. They compliment the text admirably.
As you cruise through the book you often have additional box inserts that take the reader off into interesting sidelines of yet more fascinating information. There are just to many to mention, & all add to the flavour that the author provides the reader, with his view of the troubled times of the sixteenth century.
I have to say that from start to finish, I couldn't put this book down. It adds to MacDonald Fraser's work & is a 'must-have' for anyone interestedin the hardy doughty folk of the Border, their lawless ways & customs, the feuds & the politics that shaped their life. An inspiring read.
