Literature

In an unnamed country, on the first day of the New Year, people stop dying. There is great celebration and people dance in the streets. They have achieved the great goal of humanity: eternal life. Soon, though, the residents begin to suffer. Undertakers face bankruptcy, the church is forced to reinvent its doctrine, and local 'maphia' smuggle those on the brink of death over the border where they can expire naturally. Death does return eventually, but with a new, courteous approach - delivering violet warning letters to her victims. But what can death do when a letter is unexpectedly returned?

She couldn't paint to save her life - so someone's given her a lesson by taking it!Most newcomers don't stay long in remote Lochdubh - usually boredom, dampness and nosy locals drive them out. But it looks as if artist Effie Garrard has come to stay. When Hamish Macbeth calls on her he's amazed to find the woman in residence after a particularly harsh winter.

Unfortunately, Effie is also quite delusional, having convinced herself that fellow local artist Jock Fleming is in love with her and that they are engaged. But after a lover's scrap with Jock, Effie is found dead, poisoned by hemlock. Suicide or murder? It's up to Hamish to find out whether the dreamer's death is the result of something much more serious than a broken heart .

. . Praise for M.C.

Beaton 'The detective novels of M. C. Beaton, a master of outrageous black comedy, have reached cult status' Anne Robinson, The Times'The books are a delight: clever, intricate, sardonic and amazingly true to the real Highlands' Kerry Greenwood'It's always a special treat to return to Lochdubh' New York Times

No one in Lochdubh expects Dorothy to stay for long... She is, after all, entirely unsuitable. She's an uptown girl, used to a fancy lifestyle in the big city of Glasgow. She'll never fit in. And how is that work-shy rogue Hamish Macbeth supposed to get anything done when his new assistant is such a distraction? The village needs a police sergeant who can get on with his job, not one who's constantly swooning over his pretty young constable. Yet PC Dorothy McIver quickly shows how determined she is to win over the locals, and she certainly seems to bring out the best in Macbeth. Then comes a brutal murder and the pair find themselves plunged into a tangled web of conspiracy that acquires a sinister strand when the chilling shadow of Glasgow's underworld creeps to the Highlands and the peaceful village of Lochdubh. Through it all, the bond between Hamish and Dorothy grows ever stronger. Has Hamish Macbeth finally found the love of his life - and can he track down the murderer before any hope he has for a blissful future is destroyed?'This Hamish Macbeth novel maintains Beaton's distinctive voice and includes the usual village eccentrics, loads of Scottish lore, and the light humor that Beaton fans have loved through the years. . . A definite purchase for all mystery collections' Starred Review, Library Journal'Unmissable!' Peterborough Telegraph 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

The unconventional Hamish Macbeth finds that his own impetuousness places him at the center of a murder investigation. Death accompanies a tattooed stranger to a tiny Highland town... Everyone in Lochdubh knows about the Macho Man - a mean bully claiming to be a professional wrestler and part-time explorer.

His insults at the pub have caused brawls, while his furtive sneaking around arouses suspicion he is romancing some of the local wives. And when he challenges Hamish Macbeth to a public bout, it triggers an epidemic of betting. Everyone expects Hamish to take a pounding, but no one anticipates a murder instead.

And amid all the excitement it's up to level-headed Hamish to track down the heartless killer of the brutal Macho Man . . .

Praise for M C Beaton:'The books are a delight: clever, intricate, sardonic and amazingly true to the real Highlands' Kerry Greenwood'It's always a special treat to return to Lochdubh' New York Times

Truth is stranger than fiction... Patricia Martyn-Broyd, now in her seventies, has retired to the Highlands. She hasn't written a word in years and her books are out of print.

But now a television company is about to film her last detective story, featuring the aristocratic Scottish detective Lady Harriet Vare. Even though the snobbish Miss Martyn-Broyd doesn't care to mix with the locals, she can't help but share her excitement with local policeman Hamish Macbeth. Imagine her horror when Miss Martyn-Broyd discovers that the screenwriter is known for his violent and scurrilous scripts and that Lady Harriet Vare is to be portrayed as a pot-smoking hippy by the scene-stealing trollop Penelope Gates.

But a contract is a contract, as Ms Martyn-Broyd quickly learns. And when she is accused of murdering both the scriptwriter and the leading lady, she turns to her one friend in Lochdubh, Hamish Macbeth, to help her. Praise for M.C.

Beaton:'The books are a delight: clever, intricate, sardonic and amazingly true to the real Highlands' Kerry Greenwood'It's always a special treat to return to Lochdubh' New York Times

A missing person report is not usually something that Hamish Macbeth sees as cause for undue distress. Should a child or a vulnerable person vanish, it's an urgent matter that needs to be treated seriously, but in Macbeth's experience, most other people who go missing tend to turn up again before long. So when Kate Hibbert disappears after having last been seen struggling along the road with a heavy suitcase, he is convinced she has gone travelling and reluctantly goes through the motions of investigating. Interviewing those who were closest to her, Macbeth is perplexed by their apparent lack of concern but sees no reason to suspect foul play. When Hibbert does eventually resurface, however, a storm of lies, intrigue and scandal threatens Macbeth's tranquil village of Lochdubh. Torn between loyalty to his local community and his responsibilities as a police officer, he begins threading his way through a maze of deceit, quickly finding himself on the trail of a ruthless, treacherous murderer. If he catches the killer, peace can return to the village. If he fails, he will lose everything - his job, his home and the life he so loves in Lochdubh. Praise of Death of a Green-Eyed Monster:'This Hamish Macbeth novel maintains Beaton's distinctive voice and includes the usual village eccentrics, loads of Scottish lore, and the light humor that Beaton fans have loved through the years. . . A definite purchase for all mystery collections' Starred Review, Library Journal'Unmissable!' Peterborough TelegraphPraise 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"A tale of international intrigue mixed with local Scottish flavor, "Death of a Spy" is a fast-paced read, and will thrill all Hamish fans. Once again, Rod Green, writing as M.C. Beaton, creates a masterful and fun spy tale, which incorporates all of Beaton's beloved Scottish characters...The Hamish MacBeth mysteries are like peanuts. When you read one, you cannot stop. After finishing "Death of a Spy," readers will itch for the next Hamish MacBeth installment." New York Journal of Books'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

It's springtime in the Highlands but storms are brewing for Hamish Macbeth. His life is going to pot. He has - horrors! - been promoted, his new boss is a dunce, and a sinister self-proclaimed gypsy and his girlfriend have parked their rusty eyesore of a van in the middle of the village.

Hamish smells trouble and as usual he's right. The doctor's drugs have gone missing. Money vanishes.

And neighbours suddenly become unneighbourly. Nobody wants to talk either, so canny Hamish faces the delicate task of worming the facts out of the villagers. In the process he uncovers a story so bizarre that neither he nor the locals may ever be able to forget it...

Sergeant Hamish Macbeth - Scotland's most quick-witted but unambitious policeman - returns for the latest mystery in M.C. Beaton's New York Times bestselling series. Nobody loves an honest man, or that was what police sergeant Hamish Macbeth tried to tell newcomer Paul English.

Paul attended church in Lochdubh. He told the minister, Mr. Wellington, that his sermons were boring.

He told tweedy Mrs. Wellington that she was too fat. Angela Brody was told her detective stories were pap for the masses and it was time she wrote literature instead.

He accused Hamish of having dyed his fiery red hair. He told Jessie Currie - who repeated all the last words of her twin sister - that she needed psychiatric help. 'I speak as I find,' he bragged.

Voices saying, 'I could kill that man,' could be heard from Lochdubh to Cnothan. And someone did. Now Hamish is faced with a bewildering array of suspects.

And he's lost the services of his clumsy policeman, Charlie, who has resigned from the force after throwing Chief Inspector Blair into the loch. Can Hamish find the killer on his own?Praise for M. C.

Beaton'The much-loved Hamish Macbeth series . . .

a beguiling blend of wry humour and sharp observations of rural life' The Good Book Guide 'It's always a special treat to return to Lochdubh' New York Times 'First rate . . .

deft social comedy and wonderfully realised atmosphere' Booklist'M C Beaton's Hamish Macbeth books are a delight: clever, intricate and sardonic' Kerry Greenwood

A dead witness. A forgotten crime. Hamish Macbeth never had it so hard as in this newest Highlands mystery!Morag Merrilea is working at the Shopmark Fashions factory during her summer holidays to earn some extra cash.

But when the art student complains to Hamish about the theft of her sketchbook in the pub, he doesn't take her too seriously. After all, she had been drinking and can't quite remember what happened... and then turns out to be snippy when Hamish questions her further.

But then her body is discovered - and Hamish is forced to investigate a crime where the only witness has been murdered . . .

'The detective novels of M. C. Beaton, a master of outrageous black comedy, have reached cult status' Anne Robinson, The Times 'The much-loved Hamish Macbeth series .

. . beguiling blend of wry humour and sharp observations about rural life' Good Book Guide