Charm, humor, and the hilarious political incorrectness of Death of a Glutton make this entry in the long-running Hamish Macbeth series great fun. Hamish’s dog, Towser, and the possibility of Hamish and Priscilla reigniting the flame after their first break-up mark this as an older entry, but all the characters in the quirky Highland village of Lochdubh are in place for a delightful romp full of black humor and social satire, and of course, murder.

The bane of Hamish’s existence, Blair, is on vacation in Spain in this entry, as a slew of of people looking for love descend on the Tommel Castle Hotel while the colonel is away. This leaves Priscilla to play hostess to the would-be couples. Each person has entrusted Maria at Checkmate with finding them a suitable companion. It quickly begins to go awry, however, when the couples she’s matched have other ideas, including Jennie Trask, who is looking for the man of her dreams. A musical chairs atmosphere ensues as from one moment to the next, the partners might change!

Further complications come calling in the gluttonous form of Petra, a rich and vain woman who has a financial interest in Checkmate but refuses to be bought out. Beaton delivers some incredibly hilarious and wildly politically incorrect moments from the reactions of the lovelorn to this incredibly boring woman of tremendous girth whose table manners are as gauche as her appetite is enormous. What’s worse, is that she’s very rich, and looking for love herself — and not shy about horning in on a budding romance. As if that weren’t enough to anger some of the female members, she’s brought along her strikingly sexy niece, Crystal.

Well, you can already see what’s going to happen, but who done it, isn’t quite so easy to figure out. Jenny’s got eyes for Hamish, there’s a cook with a police record prone to violence, and a member of the Checkmate group named Deborah wants to play Sherlock Holmes. If that weren’t enough to put Hamish in a foul mood, Blair returns early from Spain and takes over the investigation. But don’t worry, the lanky, unambitious redheaded constable we love has a plan to catch a killer. It might, however, cost him a TV set, and earn him a promotion he’d do just about anything to avoid.

The tone and pattern of this wonderful series had already been set by Beaton when she wrote Death of a Glutton and one of the truly enjoyable aspects of this series is that no matter where you’re at chronologically, readers can pick up one set during any point and feel right at home in Lochdubh. This is an earlier one, charming and at times very funny. Beaton focuses more on Petra’s vain, highhanded manner, and her ability to rile up others, than anything else, so while politically incorrect, it is in no way mean spirited, as some might have you believe. Another good read in a series that has much to offer both mystery lovers, and those who enjoy a good laugh. ( )

Maria Worth has brought four couples from the Checkmate Singles Club to Tommel Castle, in the Scottish Highlands, for a romantic week of matchmaking. She had paired the couple and was looking forward to success. Especially since her business partner, Peta Gore, didn’t know of the event. Peta had put up money for the business and in return used the matchmaking events as her personal hunting ground for a mate. The problem with that was Peta was a vulgar, slob of a woman.

Peta somehow finds out and show up, putting a damper on the whole week. When Peta is found dead with an apple stuck in her mouth (a la a roast pig), the atmosphere gets worse. That is the point where Hamish steps in to find out who, why and when the murder occurred.

Another light read from the pen of M.C. Beaton. Fun and light and a quick read. ( )

My guilty pleasure. Hamish Macbeth is a great character. Sutherland is a great setting. The writing is accessible. The plots are improbable but amusing. Sometimes, the grammar is careless or clunky but always with pace and intrigue.
Sadly, the author is no longer with us but she has left a substantial legacy. there are a lot of books in this series and then there is the Agatha Raisin series too.
My biggest reservation, as someone living in the North-west of Scotland, is the patronising way she characterises the local population. Then again, she is just as disparaging about everyone from policemen and lawyers to hoteliers and farmers.
In my reading life, these books fill a similar need to the wonderful Alexander McCall Smith’s Mma Ramotswe (No.1 Ladies Detective Agency) series. The difference is the quality of writing which is far superior in all McCall Smith’s many books. ( )

Macbeth and the Greedy Woman
Review of the Blackstone Audio Inc. audiobook edition (2013*) of the St. Martin's Press hardcover original (1993)
*audiobook edition narrated by Shaun Grindell, there seems to be an alternative audiobook narrated by David Monteith.

After discovering M.C. Beaton's Hamish Macbeth cozy mystery series due to the Estonia cameo in "Death of Yesterday", I started to seek out the earlier books by finding several at Toronto's Sleuth of Baker Street. I enjoyed those and found them to be an especially delightful diversion during this continuing pandemic. My next plan was to go back and read the series in order. I then discovered the rather terrific bonus that most of the books are available for free on Audible Plus, a service that I had previously been underwhelmed by (some early attempts with longer books had audio difficulties, with book narrations freezing in midstream). Beaton's shorter books (usually 4 to 5 hours on audio) seem to be perfect for this medium.

Death of a Glutton, also titled Death of a Greedy Woman in some markets, is the eighth of the series and continues the audiobook editions with the voice of Shaun Grindell in an ongoing excellent performance. Macbeth has to sort out the culprit from among the suspects in an online dating service, when the co-owner is murdered on an outing in the Highlands. ( )

This series, despite this dip in form, still holds the promise of riches to come. I do get the impression however, that just like Pyramid schemes weren't invented in Egypt, these accents of the Scottish characters sound dreadfully not on the nose.

The Glutton in question was not offensive enough, and only a madman/woman could have taken measures against her alive status. But this manageable book was a treat. Sweetened with honey, sweet nothings, and greed.

M.C. Beaton has good plotting capabilities. But any writer can do that. What sets her apart is the colour she brings to her main and minor characters. I'm sure from now on until the last 5 or so books, that she will 'deliver', God rest her soul. ( )