Death of an Outsider
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3.8 • 5 Ratings
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
The third Hamish Macbeth crime mystery, from internationally bestselling author M.C.Beaton
The most hated man in the most dour town in Scotland is sleeping with the fishes, or - more accurately - has been dumped into a tank filled with crustaceans. All that remains of the murdered victim are his bones. But once the lobsters have been shipped off to Britain's best restaurants, the whole affair quickly lands on the plate of Constable Hamish Macbeth.
Exiled to the dreary outpost of Cnothan, Macbeth sorely misses his beloved Lochdubh, but before he can head back home he has to contend with a detective chief inspector who wants the murder hushed up, a dark-haired lassie who is out to seduce him, and a killer who has made mincemeat of his last victim, and will no doubt strike again . . .
Praise for the Hamish Macbeth series:
'First rate ... deft social comedy and wonderfully realized atmosphere.' Booklist
'It's always a treat to return to Lochdubh.' New York Times
'Readers will enjoy the quirks and unique qualities of the cast ... Beaton catches the beauty of the area's natural geography and succinctly describes its distinct flavour.' Library Journal
'Befuddled, earnest and utterly endearing, Hamish makes his triumphs sweetly satisfying.' Publishers Weekly
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The endearing Constable Hamish Macbeth (of Death of a Gossip and Death of a Cad ) is sent to the Scottish Highlands town of Cnothan, a place of ``dark hates and enmities'' whose inhabitants cordially loathe outsiders. Cnothan hospitality is mingy even toward the incoming constable, who finds his cupboard bare and his furnace set on a short timer. In view of the town's bad manners, few people display surprise when Mainwaring, an annoyingly brusque Englishman who settled eight years ago on his late aunt's estate, is reported murdered. There are plenty of suspects, among them the dead man's browbeaten widow, forced to wear mail-order-catalogue dresses. Suspicion falls on Sandy Carmichael, the drunken watchman for the nearby Fish and Game Company. And what of the two town ``lookers,'' glamorous Helen Ross or Jenny Lovelace, a young painter, possibly former mistresses wreaking revenge? Matters grow complicated when Hamish and Jenny become lovers. The characterization is wryly humorous, while a horde of ravenous lobsters give the plot a wildly ghoulish twist. Jaundiced views on love and marriage abound, and the visiting constable finds himself doubling as the local psychiatrist among this amusing cast of eccentrics.
