Death of a Gossip & Death of a Cad

The First Two Hamish Macbeth Mysteries

By: M. C. Beaton

Narrated by: Antony Ferguson

Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's Summary

Death of a Gossip

When society widow and gossip columnist Lady Jane Winters joined the fishing class, she wasted no time in ruffling the feathers - or was it the fins? - of those around her. Among the victims of her sharp tongue and unladylike manner was Lochdubh Constable Hamish Macbeth. Yet not even Hamish thought someone would permanently silence Lady Jane's shrills - until her strangled body is fished out of the river. Now with the help of the lovely Priscilla Halburton-Smythe, Hamish must angle through the choppy waters of the tattler's life to find the murderer. But with a school of suspects who aren't ready to talk and dead women telling no tales, Hamish may be in over his head, for he knows that secrets are dangerous, knowledge is power, and killers usually do strike again.

Death of a Cad

When Priscilla Halburton-Smythe brings her London playwright fiancé home to Lochdubh, everybody in town is delighted…except for love-smitten Constable Hamish Macbeth. Yet his affairs of the heart will have to wait. Vile, boorish Captain Bartlett, one of the guests at Priscilla's engagement party, has just been found murdered - shot while on a grouse hunt. Now with many titled party guests as the prime suspects, each with a reason for snuffing out the despicable captain, Hamish must smooth ruffled feathers as he investigates the case. When the hidden culprit strikes again, Hamish will find himself trying to save Priscilla from a miserable marriage - and catch a killer before he flies the coop.

©2013 M. C. Beaton (P)2014 AudioGO

Hamish Macbeth is the reason!

These are fun books but really pretty silly. I have read a lot of them, mainly in print. The setting and the personality of the main character are what makes these books so readable.

Great for a light read. The later books in the series seem to be much more brutal - just murders left and right. These earlier books have a bit more character development and not as much brutality.

What a character!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

A person could possibly not like Hamish Macbeth, but then, what the heck would they be reading books for anyway? It's not their thing. If you love character and personality, these books are loaded with it all around, and starting from the beginning of the series is a very good idea.

Hamish MacBeth - the charming Scotsman

Would you consider the audio edition of Death of a Gossip & Death of a Cad to be better than the print version?

I have not read the print version yet...but I love hearing the voice of Hamish. Now I will hear this when I read the print version of the Hamish books.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I loved it. Double delight. Ten hours went by way too fast. Very likeable character....great storytelling.

Have you listened to any of Antony Ferguson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No...but I would love to hear more.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

MacBeth has murdered sleep. lol

Any additional comments?

The characters were easily recognizable....loved Hamish....can't wait to read/hear the rest of the line. I have read all of the Agatha Raisin...now I am working on Hamish. Well done MC Beaton!

Death of a Gossip & Death of a Cad

Death of a Gossip & Death of a Cad were both very good stories. I am very sorry that I have been passing this series up. I will be reading the rest of these.

Wonderful cozy mystery series!

I just love the Agatha Raisin series, and wasn't sure how I would like a Scottish male lead. But M. C. Beaton has hit it out of the park again. I really love this series too!

Fun enough for what it is

These are cozy mysteries, so great literature you are not going to see.

For what they are, they were fun enough. Hamish is a charming enough character. Beyond that they pretty much just ticked off the standard tropes for a cozy. The victim(s) are bad people. There the requisite silly romance. You have the superior officer "villain" (a very tired trope, that one). The plots are a bit improbable (again, oddly, a common thing in cozies), etc.

If you want some mindless, fluff, reading these will certainly fit the bill. My real "issues" (such as they are) is that there are better cozies out there with more engaging characters and better plotting...and better value. These are short books. If I do read more of the series, I will get them from my second hand book store. A full credit for a 4 hour book of "just average" isn't worth it .

I didn't hate them...I might read more...but at the end of the day they are just run of the mill average mysteries.

Fun!

It was a fun book. Always good entertainment! Good narration! MC Beaton does deliver! Check it out.

Hamish is a delight

What did you love best about Death of a Gossip & Death of a Cad?

Two words: Hamish Macbeth. He is so very original. A lowly town bobby who always solves the crime, but fears doing so will get him promoted out of his peaceful, lazy, poaching life.Thank God for the awful Inspector Blair who swoops in, insults Hamish, and steals the credit.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Easily Hamish. His outlook on life is so simple and he is so clueless about women that you can't help but love him.

What about Antony Ferguson’s performance did you like?

His delivery of the various accents and characters. Easily flowing from Hamish's Scottish drawl to a greedy American, to a stuffy British laird.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Hamish reluctantly saves the day!

it's offal…..

truly terrible and cliched, almost a parody of a mystery.

1. though the murder doesn't happen until well into it, thanks to the title(s), there's not much suspense as to who is going to get bumped
2. each character has to loudly proclaim, within earshot of the other characters, "why…..I'll, I'll …..KILL her!
3. implausibility is ok, but this goes beyond implausibility into a realm of absurdity.
4. profanity doesn't faze me, but I found so many women being called "bitch" kinda abrasive

On the plus side, the narrator does an excellent job, at least to my american ears.

use your credit on an agatha christie instead!

the first Hamish.

the stories are great but I miss the voice of Hsosh I've grown used to.