Long-percolating legacy sequels have been very much in vogue the last several years. Top Gun took to the skies again 36 years after the original film launched, there have been two Ghostbusters reunion flicks in the last half-decade, and even Beetlejuice came back from the dead just last year, just to name an exceptional few.
Something must be in the air, because much like those dusted-off film franchises, Canadian author Gil Waugh felt the creative compulsion to return to a narrative universe he began more than a quarter-century ago and has added a new volume to his Sandalwood Investigation Agency series.
“The first two books – Mind Surfing and Evening Song – were published over 25 years ago and provide much of the origin story and background that fed into this newest work,” the author shares with Celtic Life International in an email correspondence. “The Piper’s Lullaby is the third instalment.”
Hailing from both Highland and Lowland Scottish heritage, Waugh is something of a polymath; he took to the arts following his recovery from a spinal cord injury in 1993, but before that, he had storied careers in private investigation, computer programming, commercial piloting, IT architecture, and security analysis.
He draws from all these well-trodden career paths to inform his prose, but his most recent tome borrows much from yet another one of his former professions – music.
“I am a lifelong musician and multi-instrumentalist, with over two decades of experience as both a bagpiper and a piping tutor. Music has always been central to my life, and I’ve long sought ways to connect that passion with my heritage – especially with my ancestral island of Islay and the rich cultural landscape of 18th-century Scotland.
“It all began with a seemingly wild idea; what if my favourite classical composer had ties to royalty, who in turn had links to the ancient MacLeod clan of Dunvegan, and ultimately to the legendary MacCrimmon piping dynasty? It was a ‘what if’ born of curiosity, but as my research unfolded, the historical threads began to weave together, like echoes across time.”
Such is the inciting incident of The Piper’s Lullaby; a retired fisherman on the Isle of Islay suddenly dies, and his grandson Alasdair finds an ancient bagpipe chanter among his belongings that points to a mystery that the Sandalwood Investigation Agency – helmed by a married couple – is tasked with solving.
“Karen Simpson – a dedicated police officer – was my first long-form protagonist, introduced in Mind Surfing,” waxes Waugh. “In that first book, she meets Steve Johnson, an NRC physicist, and their relationship grows from friendship to love, culminating in their marriage before tackling their first major case together in Evening Song.
“Their dynamic continues to evolve in The Piper’s Lullaby, and one of the great joys of writing this series is discovering where their journey will lead next.”
With such a gap between the last instalment in the series and the newest chapter, Waugh was reminded of the toils – and the thrills – that come with penning a full-length novel.
“Writing a novel is no small feat; it’s a long, often solitary journey, and it requires a deep personal investment. There is something vulnerable about creating a full-length work and then releasing it into the world, trusting that it might resonate with others…”
“I had almost forgotten just how much work goes into producing a novel. It’s been 25 years since I wrote the previous books in the series. Of course, I’m now 25 years older; I also have 25 more years of experiences, ideas, and creative fuel to draw from.”
Waugh is already drawing from that well again and has no plans to wane anytime soon.
“This project has truly reinvigorated me. The next instalment in the series, The Ploughman’s House, is already halfway written and will be ready to finish this winter. I also have a solid concept and detailed plot line sketched out for the book that will follow.
“I have rediscovered how much I’ve missed the process of storytelling – especially the thrill of crafting narratives with more twists and turns than the catacombs beneath Odessa, Ukraine. It’s demanding, yes, but it is also deeply satisfying.”
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