Book of the Month: Dark Crescent by Lyndsey Croal

We are tingling with excitement to offer you the chance to win one of five copies of Dark Crescent by New Writers Awardee Lyndsey Croal in our July Book of the Month competition, courtesy of our friends at Luna Press Publishing.

Described by Joanne Harris as a 'terrific collection of Scottish folktales with a modern twist', there's something in this book for every season. Be in with the chance of winning a copy by answering the question at the bottom of this page by 31 July 2025.

All entrants must reside in the UK and full terms and conditions apply. Check out our competitions page to find more giveaways.

About Dark Crescent by Lyndsey Croal

Dark Crescent is a collection of seasonal tales inspired by Scottish folklore, landscape, superstitions and omens. In this book, readers will find reinterpretations of common folklore creatures and phenomena, like the Kelpie, Selkie and Will-o’-the-Wisps, as well as lesser-known ones, such as the Sea Mither, Ceasg, Marool, Sluagh, Ghillie Dhu, Nuckelavee, Baobhan Sith and The Frittening, all with dark and strange lore around them.

Moving through the seasons, from a darker Autumn and Winter to a more optimistic Summer, the often-interconnected stories cover a wide range of genres, including gothic, weird horror, speculative, dark fantasy and solarpunk. Many of the tales are also inspired by nature, climate and the environment, with feminist and eco themes throughout.

Q&A with Lyndsey Croal

How did you get into writing?

I really have been writing for as long as I can remember and have always loved penning fantastical tales with a touch of dark and strange. I’m also an avid reader of speculative and fantasy fiction and was drawn to fairies and stories of other worlds from a young age – which perhaps explains the darker-leaning route my writing ended up taking. Recently, my parents found a box of writing and stories from when I was younger, and there’s a tale about a 'Mysterious Brick' (what made it mysterious, I never actually got that far) and about a bear that roamed the town trying to help people but being mistaken for a monster, so I definitely was drawn into the strange early!

I finished my first novel at fourteen (a portal chosen-one fantasy), then wrote a dystopian zombie novel in my late teens/early twenties. Both remain documents in old folders that no one will ever read, but I then got more seriously into writing around seven years ago when I moved back to Edinburgh, and found a writing course with Skriva Writing School. There I met other authors and really started to learn more about the craft and how to turn my strange ideas into reality. I’ve been writing ever since and first started publishing short fiction in 2019. Winning the Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award in 2020 gave me a huge confidence boost and belief that this was something really worth pursuing – it’s been fantastic to get the chance to build on this writing journey and career since. I’m also a really active part of the Edinburgh SFF Writers group, and love being part of this active literary scene in Scotland that is so rich with talent, particularly in the genres I love.

What can readers expect from Dark Crescent?

Dark Crescent gathers dark and seasonal tales inspired by Scottish folklore, omens, landscapes, and superstitions. There are strange creatures, nautical nightmares, trickster gods, mythical horrors, messed-up nature, strange corvids, witchcraft, and elemental magic. The book is told through the seasons, starting off darker, and getting slightly more hopeful by the end of the summer section. In the book, readers may recognise some of the other common folklore within, like interpretations of the Selkie and Kelpie myths, but the book also features some lesser-known lore like The Frittening, Ceasg, Marool, and Cat-sìth.

There is also a novella in the book called 'Daughter of Fire and Water', which tells the tale of a goddess trapped by her mother in a dark underworld, but her freedom comes at a great cost – based on the myths of Cailleach and Bride. This is adapted and expanded from my audio drama of the same title with Alternative Stories & Fake Realities Podcast.

How would you say the seasons influence folklore in a country like Scotland?

Scotland’s landscapes and weather, throughout the seasons, evoke such a specific atmosphere, often dreary and dreich, but also with jaw-dropping scenic beauty. You have haar rolling in off of a still sea, stormy skies and rolling clouds, the low winter sun reflecting on frozen lochs and mountains, and foggy ancient forests and moors to name a few. Though we get fairly unpredictable weather, even that I can’t help but be fond of – the 'every season in a day' isn’t a myth!

This can definitely be seen in the folklore in Scotland, particularly in seafaring stories and the tendency in tales to lose yourself in ever-changing landscapes. Lots of the folklore manifests in this harshness of the weather – creatures like the Nuckelavee and Marool demonstrating the dangers of stormy seas. Then with the season origin myths like with the Cailleach and the Sea Mither, there’s always that moment of transformation from the harshness of winter to the beauty of spring and summer. So Scotland’s folklore definitely explores those stark contrasts.

This is a big part of Dark Crescent, which I hope is in conversation with those seasonal changes, affecting both nature and landscapes, and how we interact with them. When I was putting together the collection, the seasonal elements came out so naturally, possibly because I wrote stories at different points of the year, affecting the mood as I wrote. The seasonal sections also have absolutely stunning illustrations by Cheney Hewitt, capturing the moods of them. I hope readers will enjoy engaging with the stories in that way.