AUTHOR: M.C. Beaton
STARTED: August 6, 2010
FINISHED: August 7, 2010
PAGES: 272 (Audio Book)
GENRE: Mystery
FIRST SENTENCE: The letter lay on the doormat just inside the kitchen door of the police station in Lochdubh.
SUMMARY: [From Amazon.com
] At the start of Beaton's enjoyable 22nd Hamish Macbeth mystery (after 2006's Death of a Dreamer), the lovable Scottish constable stumbles over the body of a gossipy housecleaner, Mrs. Mavis Gillespie. She's been bludgeoned to death with her own pail, and there are plenty of suspects to go around in the Highlands village of Lochdubh. None of her clients liked her, but they insist she was a superb maid. Macbeth, noticing thick layers of dust in their homes, digs a little deeper and learns that Mrs. Gillespie was a more skilled blackmailer than housecleaner. His jealous senior colleagues try to thwart his investigation, but he's determined to get to the bottom of things. Meanwhile, the arrival of an erstwhile ladyfriend in town with a new beau makes lifelong bachelorhood appear not so appealing to Macbeth, who remains as charming a hero as ever in this funny, unpredictable read. THOUGHTS: This was my first introduction to both audio books and Hamish Macbeth. I now have to find the first book and read the series from the start. Yes, I liked it that much - that coming from a girl who doesn't do mystery.
Beaton's series has just enough humor and narrative storytelling mixed with the mystery plot to keep my interested. Hamish is a great character - a hero without all the alpha tendencies. I liked how he calls himself an anachronism and then lives up to it. Part of me wishes Hamish was real so that I could meet him in person. He seems like a really cool and pleasant guy. As a reader, I appreciated how Beaton kept him human. He was the town police officer with a manly streak who also had his faults. And I loved his beasties in this book.
I greatly enjoyed Beaton's writing style. It was simple enough to follow, but also impressed me with its eloquence and turn of phrase. I also enjoyed how the mystery was not telegraphed. I did not see the resolution coming at all, but the ending did not feel forced or completely out of the blue. Additionally, I loved how the story was about Hamish and not solely mystery. The book is clearly building a community of characters and their lives. If you're not normally a mystery reader, this series may work for you.
My enjoyment of the book was probably helped by the fantastic narrator. His voice was great to listen to and he knew when and how to throw in accents and character voices.
The Boyfriend and The Roommate have won the battle - I give in... please give me more of these.
RATING: 7/10 [Very Good]
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