There are always new people coming to live in Lochdubh, but usually if the boredom doesn’t
finish them off, the winter does. Hamish is surprised that artist Effie Garrand is still
living there after a very hard winter, convinced against all evidence to the contrary that
fellow artist Jock Fleming is in love with her. When Effie is found dead, most people think
that it must be suicide, but Hamish is sure that it must be murder. He is about to uncover
a rather surprising case.
I knew that M C Beaton worked for the police in the past, but this
is perhaps the first book where it was obvious. Although as full
of fun as ever, this book also contains some first-rate profiles
of the sort of people who get involved in murder cases. This makes
it a more thought-provoking read, which lifts it above the common
run of detective novels. I guessed whodunit fairly early on and
so might you, but for once that is not the main appeal of this book
(not that it ever was). As usual, this is a delightful mixture
of humor and local color married with a lively plot and some impressive
profiling. One of the stronger entries in this series.
Reviews of other titles in this series