From ghoulies and ghosties.
And long-leggedy beasties. And things that go bump in the
night, Good Lord, deliver us! -- Anonymous
Death of a Ghost opens with Sergeant Hamish Macbeth
feeling trapped by his current love interest Christine Dalray.
Christine knows too much about Hamish, his village, and his
police station, which is why she’s still there. Hamish
wants to be rid of her. Constable Charlie is still living
at Tommel Castle Hotel, which causes a stir, once again. Charlie
tells Hamish to ask the fairies for help in getting rid of
Christine. CI Blair orders Hamish to marry her, but Hamish
realizes what he really needs is a new case. Lucky for him,
Charlie has one but it’s minus a body. Rumor has it
there’s a ghost at the castle in Hanover Ebrington.
Hamish and Charlie make the case a priority because the new
owner is a retired police superintendent from Glasgow. As
it turns out, a night of Ghost hunting leads to a body and
a real case. Hamish’s latest case has him driving to
and fro, working all leads. He ends up following a particular
group of people in the hopes a murderer will reveal himself.
But when Police Scotland suddenly declares the case solved,
it leaves Hamish scratching his head. During the case, Hamish
meets up with Priscilla and Elspeth, and it’s always
interesting to see how Hamish handles it. Also, Hamish and
a new officer get on the wrong side of Blair, which stirs
up some premeditated strife. The outcome leaves Hamish shaken.
Beaton’s writing style is modest and straightforward;
she has a simple way of setting up scenes and sharing characters
thoughts. Sometimes it can be quite funny, especially when
it’s the audio version narrated by Graeme Malcome. Readers
can expect all the eclectic characters Beaton is known for,
as well as a complex mystery with a secondary thread involving
Hamish and Blair.
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