M.C. Beaton books

As the Pig Turns (2011)

Never a dull moment for Agatha Raisin. As with all Agatha Raisin stories there is an undercurrent of private life running through, but not to the extent it interferes with the plot. The gruesome crime in this novel didn't give me nightmares because there was so much else going on I wasn't force...

Death of a Valentine (2010)

As I get to the end of the series, I try to read slowly, to answer the questions that have cropped up in the previous 25 books."Death of a Valentine" follows the Hamish Macbeth formula. With each book the author has to be very clever and contrive a new means of motive and death without repeating...

Busy Body (Agatha Raisin, #21) (2010)

I like Agatha. She is a pip, and she is also a good detective. This is the first book of this series that I have read, but I already have a few copies of other books in this series. I do believe that I shall enjoy them. This village mystery takes place in a fictional area of the Cotswalds, my...

Agatha Raisin and the Busy Body (Agatha Raisin, #21) (2010)

The only reason I finished this is because the mystery book discussion group was reading it.I disliked the main character so much that I have absolutely no desire to read any of the other books in this series. I can't think of one redeeming quality for Agatha Raisin, except perhaps that at the e...

Hiss and Hers (2012)

If only the Agatha Raisin books did not run so hot and cold with me.For the most part, I enjoy the series, I like the recurring characters and Agatha’s annoying temperament, but sometimes the storylines just are not as fulfilling as I would like.Once again, there is a new man in the neighborhood,...

Death of Yesterday (2013)

This is the 29th book in the Hamish Macbeth series. I've read them all. Light, easy read. I enjoy Hamish, but I think its time he actually gets married. How many times is he going to be engaged to Elspeth let alone the other woman? The books are getting a little stale for those of us who have bee...

Agatha Raisin As The Pig Turns (2011)

Agatha Raisin discovers that the pig in the local hog roast is, in fact, a human body. Unfortunately, it's the body of PC Beech, who she recently said she'd murder herself and see roast in Hell. While still under suspicion, she's hired by Beech's first wife - Amy - to find the killer. But althoug...

Death of a Valentine [Hamish Macbeth Mysteries #25] (2010)

Another great read by M.C. Beaton. In this book Hamish has a suitor that will stop at nothing to be his wife, but does the wedding happen or does Hamish find a way to keep his bachelorhood? Josie McSween is desperate for a man to marry her and sets her sights on Hamish after she sees him on t.v....

Agatha Raisin and the Blood of an Englishman (2014)

ISBN? - 9781849019767Publishing? - 2014 by Constable and Robinson (first published 2014)Genre? - Crime / MysteryCharacters? - Agatha Raisin / Charles Fraith / Gwen Simple / John Hale / Walt Simple / James Lacey / Mrs Bloxby / Bill Wong / Inspector WilkesSetting? - Carsely & Winter Parva (England)...

Blood of an Englishman: An Agatha Raisin Mystery (2014)

This is the twenty-fifth Agatha Raisin book, and I've loved them all. Comfortable as cozy old clothes and intriguingly funny, this instalment lived up to all the rest. Agatha is hired to figure out who killed a performer at a local pantomime show, and this leads to dozens of characters and pred...

Agatha Raisin and the Christmas Crumble (2012)

It might have been a short read, but in that space I was able to imagine the charcters and feel an affinity for them. This has been really well written and moves the reader along at a good pace. Until reading this I had not read anything from the author, but I can see that that will be changing c...

Christmas Crumble (2012)

This is a short Christmas mystery in the Agatha Raisin series. It was a fun easy read that I enjoyed. Although I felt it would have been much better if it had been longer. The ending seemed abrupt.I have read quite a few in this series and enjoyed them much more than this short story. Agatha Rais...

Death of a Scriptwriter (1999)

Highlands Constable Hamish Macbeth once again finds himself wrapped up in another baffling village murder, this one in the queer Scottish village of Drim.Miss Patricia Martin-Broyd, whose mystery books have been out of print for decades, finds herself delighted to learn that Strathclyde Televisio...

Death of a Gossip (1999)

3.5 stars. This book is like cotton candy; it's fluffy and light on substance, but enjoyable all the same. Like Hamish himself, Death of a Gossip is like a sleepy, laid-back countryside where everything moves slowly. Not for readers who like their reads fast-paced and action-filled, but it's perf...

Death of a Poison Pen (2005)

The Highlands are habitually rife with humor and delicious mystery between the covers of a Hamish Macbeth book by author M.C. Beaton. Constable for a patch of Scotland where gossip and superstition often exasperate our favorite bobby, Hamish nonetheless loves his fair Lochdubh and its quirky resi...

Death of an Outsider (2005)

Dreary Cnothan's most hated man is dumped into a tank filled with lobsters then eaten in Britain's best restaurants. Exiled there with his dog Towser, Hamish Macbeth misses his beloved Highland village Lochdubh, Priscilla, and easy lazy days. His superiors want the business hushed up, a dark-hair...

Death of an Addict (2001)

The Hamish Macbeth Mysteries #15Author: M.C. BeatonReader: Shaun GrindellLength 5.8 hrs • Unabridged ℗ 2014 by Blackstone Audio, Inc.Hamish uses his 2 weeks off the beat in the Scottish Highlands to pursue drug lords following the death of a young drug addict. Hamish takes an unexpected step int...

Death of a Snob (1992)

Death of a Snob is obviously an early Hamish Macbeth mystery. He is friends with Priscilla Halburton-Smythe, but has almost (does he ever?) gotten over her; Priscilla herself is wearing herself out "helping" her father run their old castle which was just recently turned into a hotel. He has a do...

Death of a Dreamer (2007)

"In the Highland village of Lochdubh, every season has its special flavor. Lanky, red-haired constable Hamish Macbeth relishes them all, but spring is the mos grand. ... the winter storms have blown out to sea, the loch is smoth as glass, and Macbeth is content with dog, cat, and cup of tea bef...

Death of a Dentist (1998)

Author: MC BeatonNarrator: Shaun GrindellLength: 6.5 hours UnabridgedPublished: Feb 1, 2014Publisher: Blackstone Audio Inc.Hamish Macbeth's call for help is met with a snarky response from the dentist's receptionist. Medication from a fellow Loch Dubh resident comes with a warning as to the dent...

A Highland Christmas (2002)

It's Christmas time in Lochdubh, Scotland, although it doesn't feel like it. Christmas decorations have been banned in the village, at least outside decorations. Constable Hamish MacBeth isn't too happy but he has his work to keep him busy. Someone has stolen some Christmas trees and lights from ...

Death of a Celebrity (2003)

Lovelorn PC Hamish Macbeth, a policeman in the village of Lochdubh in the Scottish Highlands, is rather challenged to keep the peace in his usually so tranquil neighbourhood, when a TV crew from Strathbane Television invades the tranquillity of Lochdubh and threatens to produce rather slanderous ...

Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener (1995)

You can translate this review on: http://labibliotecadidrusie.blogspot.it/Avevo adorato Agatha già dal primo libro e ammotto di non riuscire più a staccarmi da lei. Prima di tutto perchè è adorabile, e difatti, pur senza accorgersene, nel paesino in cui si sentiva rifiutata, adesso tutti le sono ...

Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam (2001)

Agatha Raisin "well-preserved fifties" p 53 obeys fortune teller and rents in Fryfam village. Flickering lights down in the garden presage missing vase. After pricey painting vanishes from manor, PC p 51 "Framp guarding the house" p 63 "stand outside in the rain all night" p 61. Typing manuscript...

Kissing Christmas Goodbye (2007)

Death of a Cad (2004)

Beaton’s hero, Hamish Macbeth, is the town police constable, a rather lazy, unambitious, but happy man who often, because of his intimate knowledge of the community, manages to solve murders that have the more traditional CID inspectors baffled. It’s quite humorously written and makes fun of the ...

Death of a Bore (2006)

“Bore” is certainly a typical entry in the long-running, generally light-hearted, Constable Hamish Macbeth series, approaching 30 novels in all. They are set in the village of Lochdubh, northern Scotland, where Hamish uses mostly common sense and knowing his customers to outwit both the villains...

Death of a Village (2004)

There is something deliciously ironic about a Scottish Macbeth who is completely lacking in ambition. A Macbeth who flees from the spotlight magnetically attracted to his penchant for saving lives. M.C. Beaton’s Hamish Macbeth is a police officer in a small village in the Highlands of Scotland. H...

Death of a Perfect Wife (2006)

Fourth in the Hamish Macbeth mystery series. I've read the first two, and skipped the third because the shop didn't have it when I picked up 1, 2, 4 and 5. I have no intention of looking for the third, because this is the last of the series I'll bother reading.[return][return]As with the other bo...

Death of a Maid (2007)

After Constable Hamish Macbeth wins the cleaning services of Mrs. Mavis Gillespie in a church raffle, he wonders why anyone would hire her. She does a terrible job of cleaning and he suspects she's up to something when a personal letter of his goes missing. Macbeth suspects Mrs. Gillespie is trou...

Agatha Raisin and the Love from Hell (2003)

Ok, este foi o 1º livro em que tive pena da Agahta... Ela continua a fazer péssimas escolhas e tudo lhe corre ao contrário.No final do anterior ela acaba por ser pedida em casamento por James mas a coisa não parece correr lá muito bem pois ele é pouco dado ao sentimento e incapaz de lhe expressar...

The Dreadful Debutante (2011)

Romance fiction - even Regency romance - is not normally my choice in reading material, nor any of my preference, but my library's summary of this story intrigued me, and as I had one space left for ebook loans I decided to try it. I'm glad I did.With most of the romance fiction I've ever tried t...

Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham (1999)

OK so this is about an unlikeable, whingy, rich white woman and her tendency to hang out with a completely odious, emotionally abusive (in the push-pull sense) richer white male privileged aristocrat. Agatha is a self-pitying, image obsessed, lazy (that part was a bit fun), bored woman who solves...

The Quiche of Death (2006)

I've heard quite a bit about Agatha Raisin, here and there. Everyone loves her, from what I've seen, and I've read a little bit of M.C. Beaton's other series, so I paperbackswapped the first Agatha.Hm.It always irritates me when the blurb on the back reveals the first victim, and often details of...

Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (2009)

You can translate this review on: http://labibliotecadidrusie.blogspot.it/Voto: 7/10Proseguo con la serie della detective più anomala del regno giallo. Ben lontana dalle manze spettacolari alla Kate Becket di Castle, non si avvicina neanche all’anziana pettegola Miss Murple. Agatha è una pensiona...

Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House (2005)

As I have said before, the Agatha Raisin books are no longer about the dead body in the other room; they are about the interactions between the recurring cast of characters and the maturing of Agatha. As she comes to realize that she is important and that people do care about her - even if she tr...

The Perfect Paragon (2006)

Oh sure, wait until the last line of the book to grab my attention. After the way that Agatha’s life has been going, this was definitely an unexpected surprise and it will keep the Agatha Raisin lovers tuned into the next book. Agatha is feeling a twinge in her hip and refuses to believe that i...

The Deadly Dance (2005)

I was beginning to see a chink in the old Agatha armor and I do think that this book continues with this belief. She might still have tiny bearlike eyes, but they just might be softening a bit, thanks to the patience of the much-adored Mrs. Bloxby.While on vacation in Paris, Agatha is mugged and...

Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death (1998)

Funny Agatha I like. To ubiquitous "Telecom Call Minder .. irritating relic of .. elocution lessons" p 71 "'Did anyone not want to hear messages' thought Agatha crossly" p 72. Just when she seems toughest, she breaks down. She is human after all. Pressed by Guy to continue working after finding b...

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden (2000)

Agatha Raisin, author M C Beaton's splendidly flawed heroine and amateur sleuth, goes on holiday in an English seaside resort in the middle of winter to escape the loneliness of her Cotswold cottage and the cold shoulder her erstwhile paramour James Lacey, now her neighbour, keeps giving her. The...

The Vicious Vet (2006)

You can translate this review on: http://labibliotecadidrusie.blogspot.it/Secondo appuntamento con la detective improvvisata più anomala che abbia mai trovato.Questa volta Agatha è alle prese con la morte di un affascinante veterinario. Affascinante e crudele. E' ciò che realizza la protagonista ...

Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate (2015)

For me, the actual murder in the Agatha Raisin books is secondary to the ongoing of the characters involved. With each book you pick up, Agatha finds herself embroiled in another domestic situation, with it being either her missing almost ex-husband James, the new neighbor – which is always an a...

Agatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came (2003)

Trying to escape the misery Agatha Raisin experiences after her failed marriage to James Lacey, she spontaneously books a trip to Robinson Crusoe Island on the other side of the globe. There she meets some lovely Spanish-spoken people, but also a rather odd honeymooning couple. Blessed with the i...

Death of a Prankster (1993)

AudioBook Review:Stars: Overall 3 Narration: 4 Story: 3And another in the ongoing series of Hamish Macbeth stories by M.C. Beaton, Death of a Prankster focuses on Andrew Trent, a rich and elderly prankster who can’t seem to stop the jokes even after his death. Calling in relatives to tell them...

Our Lady of Pain (2007)

I've decided for this short series of books to review them as a whole. I read them one after the other in about a 24 hour time period, so they all sort of seem like one really long book to me, and I am not at all sure that I could review them separately.My plan is to copy and past the review to e...

Minerva (1984)

Eldest of the lovely Armitage sisters, raven-haired Minerva, is sent by their hunting-mad father vicar to find a rich husband under disreputable old Lady Godolphin. When Minerva's 'honesty' mars her London debut and alienates vengeful Dandies, eligible Lord Sylvester Comfrey offers her lessons in...

The Intrigue (1996)

The Daughters of Mannerling is somewhat darker than the other two Marion Chesney series that I've read. Yes, even compared to all the murder and mayhem in The School for Manners. I think the difference is in the sense of maturity. While DoM does contain elements of a comedy of errors, it foregoes...

To Dream of Love (Love, #5) (1993)

MUST ONE SISTER SUFFER IN POVERTY WHILE THE OTHERS LIVE IN THE LAP OF LUXURY?Must one indeed, thought Harriet Clifton. Inviting herself to her widowed sister Cordelia's posh London townhouse for the Season was surely the only way to meet a mate--and escape draughty old Pringle House forever. The ...

Lady Anne's Deception (1991)

Lady Anne Sinclair vows to marry before her spoiled sister. Tipsy on her wedding night, she confesses to the Marquess of Torrance. His formidable pride shuts the door on further communication. A major crisis brings the headstrong pair together. The chancellor of the exchequer with secret sinister...

The Taming of Annabelle (1987)

Blue-eyed blonde Annabelle Armitage envies eldest sister Minerva her intended, Lord Sylvester Comfrey. Their hunt-happy vicar father assigned Minerva the job of saving their family fortunes. Sylvester's best friend, Lord Peter, Marquess of Brabington, falls in love with Annabelle and has to fight...

Polly (Edwardian Candlelight, #1) (2012)

Edwardian London - city of contrasts - where women were only just starting to be accepted in the work place. Polly is ambitious and she wants to leave her working class upbringing behind and make a better life for herself. She gets a job as a stenographer with an import/export company which is ow...

The Banishment (1996)

When I want a quick, fun read, I like to pick up one of Marion Chesney/M.C. Beaton's Regency Romances. I can usually blow through one of these in a couple of nights and find them quite entertaining. I thought the Daughters of Mannerling series looked interesting, so I downloaded this first book a...

Tilly (1987)

This is my first book by M. C. Beaton and if I get the chance I would be up to reading some more of her books (or listening). Poor Tilly is called the 'beast' because she is always made up horribly and is a little plump. She is left penniless when her father died and she is now resigned to being ...

The Deception (1997)

Despite Harry Dever's almost-rape of 2nd eldest sister, Rachel nurses him after riding accident nearby, and hopes their betrothal will ease her family pressure to regain his inheritance, Mannerling estate. When Rachel doubts her wedding, Abigail devises a daring plan but she would have to give up...

Refining Felicity (1988)

I must admit I fell in love with this book and read it really really fast. It was a very light read, although at first it was a little hard to grow into the scenery of the story, but then I connected with the characters and all fell into place. The book tells the story of two spinster sisters, Ef...

Lady Lucy's Lover (Regency Royal, #8) (1992)

"Why don't you take a lover, my dear? It would serve that feckless husband of yours right.""But I don't want a lover. I am in love with my husband."Poor deluded Lucy. She had married a gambler, a womanizer, and a drunkard. And she refused to admit that his frequent overnight absences were of sign...

Lady Margery's Intrigue (1980)

Discovered this on the Kindle when I thought I'd cleared my MC Beaton backlog so just motored straight in. It's a better than some of hers romance (no mystery subplot in this one) which works out quite nicely and quite creatively. I suspect from the ending that it may be the jumping off point for...

The Folly (1997)

The fourth book in the "Daughters of Mannerling" series is unusual in that author M C Beaton injects a supernatural element into the plot. Although essentially her usual fare of girl meets handsome rich bachelor, this novel feels darker, more sinister in tone than her other romances. Plot:The Bev...

The Original Miss Honeyford (1985)

MISS HONEYFORD WAS SOUR ON ROMANCEMiss Honaria Honeyford was sent to London to save the family fortune by hunting a wealthy husband--and being a loving if not entirely dutiful daughter, she obeyed. But if she was reluctantly willing to surrender her hand, this beautiful young lady who could ride,...

Those Endearing Young Charms (1986)

After ten long years, the Earl of Devenham had returned to wed Mary Anstey, only to find that their feelings for each other had cooled off considerably. Nevertheless, they both put on bright faces for the benefit of family and friends. But Mary's younger sister Emily saw through their masquerade....

Perfecting Fiona (1990)

"Every spinster of fifty, however sensible, has the soul of a seventeen-year-old virgin" p 80. "Perhaps sometimes, to our children, we shall seem a most unsuited couple, but marriage is like life -- exhilarating, dreadful, and often unfair .. But we shall know through thick and thin that we love...

Death of a Travelling Man (1996)

Marion Chesney herself is probably even more interesting than this book! She is known primarily for the more than 100 historical romance novels she has published under her own name and under several pseudonyms: Helen Crampton, Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, and Charlotte Ward. However, this boo...

Death of a Hussy (1991)

My love affair with M.C. Beaton - only figuratively speaking, that goes without saying - is most likely over. I've been reading her two big series side by side. Well, now I've decided to ditch the Agatha Raisin series. I've been as prompt in the past. I've almost always abandoned a well liked ser...

Death of a Macho Man (1997)

"... Now 'one of the warmest and quirkiest mystery series around' pits Constable Macbeth against a belligerent newcomer to Lochdubh, a bully flaiming to be a professional wrestler, who soon finds himself KO'd into the next world ..."Everybody in Lochdubh knew about the pro who dubbed himself the ...

Death of a Dustman (2002)

Death of a Dustman is the sixteenth book in the Hamish Macbeth cozy mystery series by M.C. Beaton.In Death of a Dustman (a dustman, by the way, is the British equivalent to a garbage man or trash collector here in the U.S.), an abusive jerk husband and dustman by the name of Fergus Macleod is fou...

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist (2006)

Agatha Raisin è un personaggio molto intrigante. Più giovane di Miss Marple (evidente l’omaggio di M.C. Beaton ad Agatha Christie), ma comunque di mezza età, l’investigatrice si porta dietro tutte le contraddizioni dei suoi cinquant’anni: il volersi mantenere in forma e non farsi sconfiggere dal ...

Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage (1997)

It appears at long last Agatha Raisin's dreams are about to come true. She is set to marry her neighbour James Lacey and has visions of them living happily ever after. However unknown to her, in London her old friend Roy has uncovered Agatha's ex husband Jimmy and he is about to spoil Agatha's ...

Death of a Glutton (1995)

We like to salt in one of these Beaton light mysteries, about Constable Hamish Macbeth and the goings-on in his Scottish Highlands village of Lochdubh, as a bit of respite from our “heavier” menu of thrillers. “Glutton”, eighth in this lengthy series, is quite typical of the set – a death occurs...

Death of a Gentle Lady (2008)

Gentle by name, gentle by nature. Everyone in the sleepy Scottish town of Lochdubh adores elderly Mrs. Gentle - everyone but Hamish Macbeth, that is. Hamish thinks the gentle lady is quite sly and vicious, and the citizens of Lochdubh think he is overly cranky. Perhaps it's time for him to get ma...

Annabelle (2013)

This is my second novel by M. C. Beaton and I found it to be entertaining, but lacking a bit of something.Annabelle has been told by her mother that she must go and stay with her godmother Emmaline and make herself a good match. Everything rides on Annabelle finding a rich husband so she can make...

Sally (1982)

George Bessamy shook out his napkin, picked up his knife and fork, and then put them down again. The children had been taken off to their rooms by one of the two housemaids. One of them was wailing out into the still evening air—but then, one of them always did. “My dear,” he said to his wife, wh...

The Marquis Takes a Bride (1980)

said Mr. Peregrine Deighton. The Marquis of Charrington eyed him with mild surprise. He had returned home in the small hours of the morning to be told by a sleepy butler that Mr. Deighton had been waiting for him in the drawing room since midnight. “Who’s been provoking you, Perry?” said the Marq...

The Westerby Inheritance (1982)

The Bentleys had sent a carriage and outriders to escort their guests. The Marquess, an elegant figure in his antique finery, received the first shock of the evening. For it was not the old Westerby coachman, Pomfret, up on the box, but a pasty-faced young fellow, who informed his lordship rather...

Pretty Polly (1988)

And now that she did have the opportunity, she found she was strangely reluctant to say anything. Verity was wearing the burgundy silk gown. She knew it became her better than anything she had ever worn before. She had made burgundy silk roses to ornament her hair. If she told Charlotte about the...

Susie (1981)

A brief thaw in February had melted the snow. Then the wind had turned, hurling icy gales in from the sea; dry, frozen gales that whistled and sang through the hard, dry grass. Like a sleeping princess, Susie remained immured in the strong walls of the keep, escaping occasionally from Felicity’s ...

Hamish Macbeth 02 (1987) - Death of a Cad

Detective Chief Inspector Blair was not a Highlander. He had been brought up in Glasgow, that city which produces some of the brightest brains in the world, along with some of the biggest chips on the shoulder. Blair, as Hamish often remarked, had a chip on his shoulder so big, it was a wonder hi...

Ginny

Riding up to the front entrance, he was surprised to see his friend, Peter Paster, sitting at the wheel of a brand-new Wolseley, complete with antidazzle lamps, cursing fluently. What was the point, Peter started raging, in all these great scientific breakthroughs if one had to be at the mercy of...

Hamish MacBeth 06 (1991) - Death of a Snob

After lecturing the unrepentant fisherman on his disgraceful behaviour, pushing Jane into the pillbox, Hamish asked him about that phone call from Diarmuid, requesting him to pick Jessie up at Oban.     “Oh, aye, he phoned in the middle o’ the evening in a rare state,” said An...

Lady Lucy's Lover (1984)

I am in love with my husband,” said Lady Lucy, turning around from her escritoire and looking in amazement at her friend, Mrs. Ann Hartford. “I find the suggestion outrageous,” added Lucy, Marchioness of Standish, “coming as it does from a respectable matron like yourself!” Mrs. Hartford fanned h...

Deception (Daughters of Mannerling 3)

See the couples advance, - O, Love’s but a dance! A whisper, a glance, - ‘Shall we twirl down the middle?’ O, Love’s but a dance, Where Time plays the fiddle! HENRY AUSTIN DOBSON Lord Burfield would have not been in the least surprised had he learned that he was the talk of every family that was ...

Lucy (1980)

But Mon Repos was a great towering Gothic house perched on the edge of a barren cliff and set about with spires and turrets and gargoyles. Elinor Glynn would have loved it. A fine, powdery snow was blowing in from the sea as Lucy and MacGregor alighted. To heighten the Gothic effect, flambeaux fl...

Henrietta (1979)

Henrietta looked mournfully down at her swollen ankles, the result of dancing all night and then accepting an engagement to ride in the Row first thing in the morning. Her return to Town from the Abbey had been marked with outstanding social success. That arbiter of fashion, Mr. George Brummell, ...

The Savage Marquess (1988)

Rockingham’s back!” The Earl of Clifton sighed noisily and rustled his newspaper defensively. He had brought his wife to London to prepare for their daughter, Ismene’s coming-out. He had wrenched himself away from his beloved country home for the few months of the Season and felt he had done enou...

Polly

The year was dead. The sparrows seemed to mourn as they hunched their little bodies on the warmth of sooty windowsills, and the starlings serenaded the dark sky with their long, descending metallic notes. All too soon the working day dawned for Polly. She had told her mother that she never wanted...

Maggie (1984)

Not that she was Maggie Macleod any more. She was Miss Margaret Dunglass, a relative who had been sent to London to ‘do’ the Season. The earl sat in Mrs. Murray’s elegant drawing-room and thought some dark thoughts about Maggie. She and Mrs. Murray had not yet met, although Mrs. Murray never seem...

There Goes The Bride

Her former employee, young Toni Gilmour, had set up her own detective agency, financed by another of Agatha’s ex-detectives, Harry Beam. Agatha worked around the clock, taking on every case for her own detective agency she could in order to prove that the mature could beat the young hands-down. T...

Molly

They could not in fact do anything else, since their new corsets had them strapped into a rigid position. Both were dressed in blonde lace tea gowns, Molly’s threaded with scarlet ribbon and Mary’s with blue. Both wore large picture hats embellished with fruit and roses. Their glossy hair had bee...

Hamish Macbeth 20 (2004) - Death of a Poison Pen

—Geoffrey Chaucer Hamish felt himself reluctant the next day to call at the school and demand to see Archie Brand. He did not like Mr. Arkle and felt sure the head teacher would find some obstacle to put in his way. But to his relief, Mr. Arkle was out somewhere and the meek secretary, Fred...

Hamish Macbeth 13 (1997) - Death of a Dentist

Colours seen by candle-light Will not look the same by day.   —Robert Browning Hamish drove out towards Braikie with Mrs. Wellington following in her Fiat. He hoped he was doing the right thing. If Kylie really had something important to tell him, she might not want to say anything in ...

Hamish Macbeth 12 (1996) - Death of a Macho Man

—Thomas de Quincey Hamish decided to leave confronting Annie until he could think about it and decide how to go about it. He could hardly say to her something like, “A woman with underwear like yours would not be shocked by Randy’s suggestion.” He found he was looking forw...

Hamish Macbeth 18 (2002) - Death of a Celebrity

—Alfred, Lord Tennyson No one from police headquarters phoned Hamish to tell him of Felicity’s murder. He was cruising out of Lochdubh the next morning to check that Ian Chisholm was all right and had experienced no more trouble when he heard it on his police radio. At first he simply...

The Adventuress: HFTS5

—Thomas Moore   “And how was your drive in the Park with the fair princess?” asked Fitz the following evening as both gentlemen with their bicornes and canes tucked under their arms made their way to the opera. “I did not have an opportunity to take Miss Goodenough driving. Her drawing room was p...

Hamish Macbeth 09 (1993) - Death of a Travelling Man

—Robert Tannahill Hamish took Towser with him, frightened that a lovelorn Willie would neglect the dog. He put the dog’s blanket and water bowl in the back of the Land Rover, along with a helping of cold pasta he had found in the kitchen. As he once more took the long road to Strathba...

The Highland Countess (1981)

She had nearly broken her marriage vows and all because of some callow, philandering, English buck who had led her on. No doubt in the clear light of dawn he had been thoroughly shocked at her wanton behavior. She could only, bitterly, hope he was shocked at his own. God was issuing just punishme...

Poppy (1982)

But Penelope—pronounced Penny-lope by her family—was not in the least sorry for herself. At the age of seventeen she showed signs of having inherited all her dead mother’s stoicism, chirpy cheerfulness, and optimism. She had also inherited her mother’s blond beauty, which, although dimmed by dirt...

My Dear Duchess (1979)

Sayers,” said Mrs. Byles-Bondish. “Apart from a singular outburst of hysterics over Frederica’s wedding which, by the way, was a resounding social success, you no longer seem to care a rap for her.” Mrs. Sayers sulkily jabbed her needle into a tired piece of petit point and did not deign to answe...