Death of a Valentine

November 9, 2009
In bestseller Beaton’s enjoyable 25th Hamish Macbeth mystery (after 2008’s Death of a Witch
), a Valentine’s Day parcel explodes in the face of the Scottish Highlands’ Lammas festival queen, Annie Fleming, as soon as she tries to open it, killing her instantly. Hamish Macbeth, newly promoted to sergeant, would rather investigate with only his trusty pets in tow, but is instead forced to tote along his new constable, the less than professional Josie McSween. Considered “prim and proper and a right innocent,” Annie turns out to have been leading a less than virtuous double life, with no shortage of suspects in her murder. A much sought after bachelor, Hamish desperately tries to break the case, while Josie, with dreams in her eyes, strives to crack Hamish’s heart. Will Josie succeed in getting Hamish to say “I do” at the altar? For all the book’s farcical moments, Beaton takes care as usual to provide a satisfying police procedural.

March 29, 2010
The news has spread quickly that the charming, much sought after police sergeant Hamish Macbeth is to marry his constable, Josie McSween, in the Scottish village of Lochdubh—but their latest case, the one that brought them together in the first place, is unraveling so quickly and dangerously that their lives—not to mention their engagement—are soon in jeopardy. Haughty, clipped, with shades of radio drama, the hokey narration by Graeme Malcolm is a disappointment, but considering the quality of the writing, it shouldn't be much of a surprise. Malcolm has little to work with in this lackluster thriller, which offers an abundance of mystery genre clichés that go from charming and nostalgic to downright annoying in a hurry. A Grand Central hardcover (Reviews, Nov. 9).