Finished: 24/01/10
Genre: Mystery
Rated: B
Opening Sentence: ‘…Hamish Macbeth did not like change, although this was something he would not even admit to himself, preferring to think of himself as a go-ahead, modern man…’
This is the 18th mystery featuring the quirky Scottish highland police officer, Hamish Macbeth. A very nasty female TV reporter is starting a new show featuring Macbeth’s little corner of the Highlands. The aggressive reporter has few morals, and an eye for married men, especially if it helps advanced her career. The point of her TV show is to dig up dirty little stories of locals, make it up or embelish it a little if necessery, do a feature on them, and then release it to National TV. Not surprisingly she quickly turns up dead, it’s up to Hamish Macbeth to find who the murderer is.
I love Hamish – he is sharp, witty, brooding, and oh-so-unlucky at love. We also meet two new characters that I hope to see more of – Elspeth, a crazy astrologer, part Gypsy, who has the potential to be a romantic interest for Hamish. And Inspector Carson who has taken the place of the horrible Inspector Blair.
There are a few suspects, and when the guilty person is revealled it makes sense. The book looks at the fallout of the victims of the TV presenter (who all become suspects) in a very realistic way – I often feel that some TV reporters don’t care about anything other than getting that story to air. leaving shattered people behind them to pick up the pieces.
