M.C. Beaton/Marion Chesney/Jennie Tremaine is one of my very favorite writers. She writes with great humor, a touch of romance and alway a thought provoking murder or two. I received this book yesterday, started it this morning and finished this afternoon. It did not disappoint. What a wonderful romp in The Highlands with Hamish & Company. As usual the characters came alive and had you guessing who-done-it on a roller coaster ride of intuition, deceptiveness and luck. Hamish sees and feels what no one else is aware of! Enjoy, I certainly did.

Beaton never fails to please. In this her latest adventure for Constable Hamish Macbeth, overseer of the lazy Highlands village that seems to attract more murders than St. Mary Mead, Beaton again sets a charming scene and fills it with intrigue. The characters who pass through the village--newcomers who seem to bring the bulk of the murder business--always bring their special idiosyncrasies and often an entourage of others to add to the challenge before Macbeth. The gentle lady in this book fits the bill. Hamish's heart is always involved and on the line. Two old loves are surprised to hear of Hamish's engagement to a lovely newcomer. Will Hamish at last find true love? Thank you, Ms. Beaton for another exciting visit to the village of Lochdubh. Make a pot of tea (or pour a dram) and sit yourself down to a delightful read.

It is always a pleasure to return to Lochdubh and the adventures of Hamish Macbeth, although that charming Scottish village does seem to have an inordinate number of murders. There are also any number of castles in the vicinity.

The characters are always interesting, and I do like the tours of the countryside. Ms. Beaton writes extremely well as Beaton or as Marion Chesney. However, the flaw in this book is with the plot. It seems to be a rehash of previous plots. A large and disparate family has gathered at the old manor house or castle to be informed or tested with respect to a will. The wealthy owner of the place is murdered, with all present having a good motive for the crime. I'll even go along with that, but I was disappointed here that Hamish, the local constable, solves the murder by some form of intuition. All his guesses prove correct. If there is a logical process to his thinking, the reader is not let in on it.

Too bad. The atmosphere, characters and writing are let down by the plot. As a result, this novel does not measure up to many of the previous books in the Hamish Macbeth series.

Perhaps the best part of Beaton's Hamish Macbeth's series is its ability to weave contemporary British concerns (CCTV, Turkey's EU membership) with the the traditional English manor house mystery where the detective sums it all up in the second last chapter, pacing in front of the fire place to the entire family.

This book brings the best of Macbeth: Daviot, Blair, Jimmy Anderson, the Currie sisters as well as the eternal love triangle with Priscilla and Elspeth.

My only hesitation was that the plot could have been a little tighter in places. In particular, it peeved me that a charachter refered to Hamish by his real name when Hamish is supposed to be undercover with an assumed identity.

But thats a small quibble. This is as good as a cozy gets. Two thumbs up.

I love most everyone of M.C. Beaton's books. I enjoy both Agatha
Raisin and Hamish MacBeth equally but this one with Hamish I did not
enjoy as much. It starts out very interesting with a lady that is
actually not very gentle at all. But there are numerous side bars
happening that it was hard to keep up at times. For me, it just wasnt
as cohesive as her other books.

The mystery in this book was as decent and solid as any in the series, but I found it overshadowed by Hamish's bizarre decisions when it came to women. Granted, he's never been particularly successful, but at this point it's been drawn out so far it's becoming painful. In this case a part of it was necessary to the plot, but it still had me cringing to read it.

I think this is the part of Hamish's personality that I have difficulty pinning down, despite having read most of the books in the series. Perhaps watching the BBC television series further muddled the waters, because the character there was slightly different than the man I envisioned through reading the books. His attitude towards women and relationships seems slightly off (not in any bad way, but in a 'sometimes old fashioned' and 'sometimes suddenly very modern' way) and it throws the character out of balance. In truth, I'd prefer the series much more if the love life aspect was dropped more by the wayside. There have been some books where it was merely an aside mentioned, and I wish more were that way. Because the series has gone on for so long, and we've gotten to know some of the characters so well, it's in danger of slipping more into a soap opera than a set of neat, tidy little mysteries.

Compared to some of the other books in the series, this one was a little lacking. However, compared to a lot of other mystery series, it was still fairly decent. I'd say dedicated fans of the series should definitely read it, but newcomers really should start at the beginning to really understand the dynamics of the relationships.

AUDIOBOOK NOTE: The audiobooks in the series have all been spectacularly done, and this is no exception. The accents and voices are top-notch, the reading style is smooth and easy to listen to. Highly recommended as an audiobook.

When an author creates a character that's so appealing, with all the human emotions and foibles and the ability to bumble into solutions to murders and crimes, it is mandatory that the series continue on and on. Such a protagonist is Hamish Macbeth, the constable in the sleepy village of Lochdubh, Scotland. This novel is the 23rd, and it is still as fresh and entertaining as the first.

In Gentle Lady, Hamish encounters a recent resident to "his" town who is much adored by the people for her sedate manner and promises of donations, for example, for a new church roof. Hamish, in performing his perceived duties, pays her a welcome visit and apparently antagonizes her for some reason he can't fathom. As a result, she undertakes a strong effort to get his one-man police station closed.

In an effort to stay in his beloved village, Hamish blunders his way into a foolish situation. Then two murders take place, giving him the opportunity once again to prove himself.

A delight to read.

Since reading the first Hamish McBeth mystery I have not missed one. And this is one of the best. Hamish in the Highlands, searching for the bad guy, trying to find love...and of course always bothered by the porcine Blair. Please keep writting these MC Beaton!

Great mystery, great characters. Set in a small village in Scotland. The narrator's voice acting and accent along with the author's wonderfully descriptive writing will have you believing you are indeed visiting the highlands.

M.C. Beaton wites an enjoyable little book. I do a lot of reading, I call Ms Beatons books brain candy. A short little read that takes you to Scotland or England depending on the series. Just the thing between long reads.