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The third book in the much-loved Hamish Macbeth series from the author of the bestselling Agatha Raisin seriesThe most hated man in the most dour town in Scotland is sleeping with the fishes, or—more accurately—has been dumped into a tank filled with crustaceans. All that remains of the murdered victim are his bones. But once the lobsters have been shipped off to Britain's best restaurants, the whole affair quickly lands on the plate of Constable Hamish Macbeth.
Exiled to the dreary show more outpost of Cnothan, Macbeth sorely misses his beloved Lochdubh, but before he can head back home he has to contend with a detective chief inspector who wants the murder hushed up, a dark-haired lassie who is out to seduce him, and a killer who has made mincemeat of his last victim—and will no doubt strike again.
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While on temporary duty in Cnothan, Hamish Macbeth has to investigate the murder of the most hated man in the town, but nobody seems to be interested in finding out what actually happened. Really good installment in the series and I really enjoy the murder method as it veers into "Midsomer" territory, where so many people have been murdered that more and more ludicrous ways are invented to off the characters. Very enjoyable, as long as you accept that Hamish is as feeble as he is. The audio reader doesn't murder the Scottish dialect as badly as previous ones have not, but it's still a little cringey.
Police Constable Hamish Macbeth has been seconded from his home village to Lochdubh to fill in for a vacationing Sergeant in the dour village of Cnothan. He is to be there for three whole months, a prospect that dismays him: the people there are unfriendly and closed-mouthed, and he misses Priscilla Halburton-Smythe terribly. At least he has his dog Towser with him, and it turns out that the artist in the cottage next to his is a pretty young divorcee who finds him attractive! But matters become much more complicated when a skeleton is found on the top of a hill, a skeleton that was flesh and blood and alive - and thoroughly hated - very recently…. The third Hamish Macbeth story takes him out of his comfort zone and into a village show more very much determined to avoid the 20th Century, or the 19th for that matter. I’m not too sure I believe the way the murdered person was skeletonized, but other than that, the story jells quite nicely. And I’m pleased to see that Hamish once again bests his nasty superior, Detective Inspector Blair! There is a wee bit of homophobia in the tale, but the reader must remember that this was written in the 1980s, a very different time. With that caveat, recommended. show less
Macbeth vs. the Outsider
Review of the Blackstone Audio Inc. audiobook edition (2013) of the St. Martin's Press hardcover original (1988)
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 free on Audible Plus, a service that I had previously been underwhelmed by (some early attempts with longer books had audio difficulties, with book show more narrations freezing in midstream). Beaton's shorter books (usually 4 to 5 hours on audio) seem to be perfect for this medium.
Death of an Outsider is the third of the series and has change of narrators for the audiobook editions in the voice of Shaun Grindell. Macbeth is temporarily assigned to the village of Cnothan while that local bobby is on vacation. The outsider of the title is an attractive Englishman who is tempting the village wives and who then suddenly disappears under suspicious circumstances. Hamish thinks it is a murder but no one else believes him. Outsider continues the reliability of the series and the new narrator adds an extra amount of Scottish brogue to the performance. show less
Review of the Blackstone Audio Inc. audiobook edition (2013) of the St. Martin's Press hardcover original (1988)
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 free on Audible Plus, a service that I had previously been underwhelmed by (some early attempts with longer books had audio difficulties, with book show more narrations freezing in midstream). Beaton's shorter books (usually 4 to 5 hours on audio) seem to be perfect for this medium.
Death of an Outsider is the third of the series and has change of narrators for the audiobook editions in the voice of Shaun Grindell. Macbeth is temporarily assigned to the village of Cnothan while that local bobby is on vacation. The outsider of the title is an attractive Englishman who is tempting the village wives and who then suddenly disappears under suspicious circumstances. Hamish thinks it is a murder but no one else believes him. Outsider continues the reliability of the series and the new narrator adds an extra amount of Scottish brogue to the performance. show less
Death Of An Outsider (1988) (H. Macbeth #3) by M.C. Beaton. Hamish Macbeth is the charming hero of these tales. He just wants to be lazy, run some sheep on his land and be the only copper in the small Scots town of Lochdubh. But when he is sent to the nearby town of Cnothan to fill in for the local who is on vacation, he hopes things will stay quiet. It is a small, self-contained village that doesn’t care for outsiders at all. You know, people who might have moved to the area thirty years ago are still looked at with suspicion.
A fine example is William Mainwaring who inherited a croft (a small farm and house), moved up from England with his wife, and charmed the townspeople as best he could. But he soon turned into a know-it-all and show more a bully, trying his best to intimidate everyone around him, including his wife. The town as a whole wouldn’t mind seeing him dead.
Through a series of events, a skeleton is discovered a short while after Mainwaring goes missing. The bones have strange scratch marks on them that acid would not cause. So there is a double mystery. Who killed him and how was he done in.
The second answer is one I have never heard of before, and in its way is pretty amusing. Read the book if for no other reason than this.
As usual with a Hamish Macbeth novel, or any of the M.C. Beaton books I’ve read, there are sly insights into the nature of people. Humor is used through out, Hamish is keen on using his gift of gab for making the least amount of work for himself, and there is a very nice story set up. I did not quite like the final resolution to the mystery as it entails Hamish learning things which the reader can not. And, as this was written back in 1988, there are some terms used that were offensive then and are very offensive now, but Hamish uses even those slights to his advantage.
Overall this is a fun read and a great way to pass a cloudy weekend. show less
A fine example is William Mainwaring who inherited a croft (a small farm and house), moved up from England with his wife, and charmed the townspeople as best he could. But he soon turned into a know-it-all and show more a bully, trying his best to intimidate everyone around him, including his wife. The town as a whole wouldn’t mind seeing him dead.
Through a series of events, a skeleton is discovered a short while after Mainwaring goes missing. The bones have strange scratch marks on them that acid would not cause. So there is a double mystery. Who killed him and how was he done in.
The second answer is one I have never heard of before, and in its way is pretty amusing. Read the book if for no other reason than this.
As usual with a Hamish Macbeth novel, or any of the M.C. Beaton books I’ve read, there are sly insights into the nature of people. Humor is used through out, Hamish is keen on using his gift of gab for making the least amount of work for himself, and there is a very nice story set up. I did not quite like the final resolution to the mystery as it entails Hamish learning things which the reader can not. And, as this was written back in 1988, there are some terms used that were offensive then and are very offensive now, but Hamish uses even those slights to his advantage.
Overall this is a fun read and a great way to pass a cloudy weekend. show less
Nothing ever seems to go right for Hamish MacBeth. He's sent away from his usual post at Lochdubh to Cnothen while the local constable is away on an extended vacation. MacBeth arrives with his faithful dog Towser to discover the little village really doesn't like outsiders. Then there's William Mainwaring....an Englishman who seems to enjoy angering everyone he comes across with his snide know-it-all comments. MacBeth can't be his usual lazy, slow-going self with all the strange goings on....witches jumping out scaring people, disappearing locals and, of course, the dead body eaten by lobsters at a local fishery. With a sigh and resignation to responsibility, MacBeth is on the case to find out who turned a local character into fish show more food.
I enjoyed this book. There is some good character development for Hamish. He does more in this book than just pine for his dream woman, Priscilla Halburton-Smythe. He branches out a bit. Maybe being away from Lochdubh for a bit is good for him? Drama and murder follow him though....and the murder is definitely....distinctive. Tipping a body into a vat with lobsters is an interesting way to get rid of evidence. Eww. :)
Another great book in this series. Always a good mystery....and a lot of chuckles at the quirky village characters and Hamish's antics. The character reminds me of a Scottish version of Columbo. He seems to be bumbling....but he's actually very, very clever.
I listened to the audio book (Blackstone Publishing) version of this story. Narrated by Shaun Grindell, the audio is just under 5 hours long. Grindell reads at a nice pace and gives a great performance. Very enjoyable listening experience.
Death of an Outsider is the third book in the Hamish MacBeth series. There are 33 books in the series, so I have a lot of reading to do! Moving on to book 4 -- Death of a Perfect Wife. What trouble will Hamish get himself into next?? :) show less
I enjoyed this book. There is some good character development for Hamish. He does more in this book than just pine for his dream woman, Priscilla Halburton-Smythe. He branches out a bit. Maybe being away from Lochdubh for a bit is good for him? Drama and murder follow him though....and the murder is definitely....distinctive. Tipping a body into a vat with lobsters is an interesting way to get rid of evidence. Eww. :)
Another great book in this series. Always a good mystery....and a lot of chuckles at the quirky village characters and Hamish's antics. The character reminds me of a Scottish version of Columbo. He seems to be bumbling....but he's actually very, very clever.
I listened to the audio book (Blackstone Publishing) version of this story. Narrated by Shaun Grindell, the audio is just under 5 hours long. Grindell reads at a nice pace and gives a great performance. Very enjoyable listening experience.
Death of an Outsider is the third book in the Hamish MacBeth series. There are 33 books in the series, so I have a lot of reading to do! Moving on to book 4 -- Death of a Perfect Wife. What trouble will Hamish get himself into next?? :) show less
Oh Hamish. What have you gotten yourself into this time?
We find ourselves exiled with Hamish to Cnothan to cover the local Constable's three month vacation. We step away from our regular band of locals to a more hostile crowd. But gangly Hamish, with his red hair and easy smile, wins them over in the end. Or at least most of them. The crime in this one wasn't one you could look back and solve. Lots of clues were missing, and even when it was explained you didn't know it was coming. But Hamish is fun and it was nice to get to see him in a new environment. I'm hoping we've seen the last of Blair--he's incredibly two-dimensional. And in the end our boy returns home to the life he knows best. A quick read and an average mystery, but still show more three stars. Hey, what can I say, Hamish has grown on me. show less
We find ourselves exiled with Hamish to Cnothan to cover the local Constable's three month vacation. We step away from our regular band of locals to a more hostile crowd. But gangly Hamish, with his red hair and easy smile, wins them over in the end. Or at least most of them. The crime in this one wasn't one you could look back and solve. Lots of clues were missing, and even when it was explained you didn't know it was coming. But Hamish is fun and it was nice to get to see him in a new environment. I'm hoping we've seen the last of Blair--he's incredibly two-dimensional. And in the end our boy returns home to the life he knows best. A quick read and an average mystery, but still show more three stars. Hey, what can I say, Hamish has grown on me. show less
This is my first book I've read by this author and while I enjoyed reading it, I'm not sure this series is for me. I found the detective, Constable Hamish, to be a bit of a bumbler, however his knowledge of the his community and people is well done. I'm not sure how I feel about the mystery, the bit about the lobster was really not right.
I'm glad I read it, but this is probably not an author I'll seek out.
I'm glad I read it, but this is probably not an author I'll seek out.
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M. C. Beaton's real name is Marion Chesney. She was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1936. She has written over a hundred books under her own name and other pseudonyms: Ann Fairfax, Helen Crampton, Jennie Tremaine, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester. She started her writing career while working as a fiction buyer for a bookstore in Glasgow. Working at show more one time or another as a theater critic, newspaper reporter, and editor, she used her British background to write a series of regency romances set in England and Scotland. Some of her regency romances include The Folly, Colonel Sandhurst to the Rescue, and Regency Gold. In 1986, she was awarded the Romantic Times Award for Outstanding Regency Series Writer. She has also written two mystery series under the pseudonym M. C. Beaton: The Hamish Macbeth Series, which became the inspiration for a television show in England, and The Agatha Raisin Series, about a retired advertising executive. Her title His and Hers made The New York Times Best Seller List for 2012. Marion Chesney passed away on December 31, 2019 at the age of 83. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Work Relationships
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Death of an Outsider
- Original title
- Death of an Outsider
- Original publication date
- 1988
- People/Characters
- Hamish Macbeth; William Mainwaring; Sandy Carmichael; Jamie Ross; Ian Gibb; Diarmuid Sinclair (show all 10); Harry Mackay; Jenny Lovelace; Jimmy Anderson; Inspector Blair
- Important places
- Cnothan, Highlands, Scotland, UK (fictional)
- Epigraph
- (From Death of an Outsider p 1)
See, the happy moron,
He doesn't give a damn,
I wish I were a moron,
My God! perhaps I am!
-Anonymous
(From Death of an Outsider p 19)
There's one parish church for all the people,
whatsoever may be their ranks in life or their degrees,
Except for one damp, small, dark, freezing cold,
little Methodis... (show all)t chapel of ease,
And close by the churchyard there's a stonemason's
yard, that when the time os seasonable.
Will furnish with afflictions sore and marble urns
and cherubim's very low and reasonable.
-Thomas Wood
(From Death of an Outsiderp43)
How beastly the bourgeois is
especially the male of the species-
-D.H. Lawrence
(From Death of an Outsiderp 63)
Ah! Who has seen the mailed lobster rise.
-John Hookham F... (show all)rere
(From Death of an Outsiderp 83)
What makes life dreary is the want of motive.
&nb... (show all)sp; -George Eliot
(From Death of an Outsiderp 103)
Jenny kissed me when we met,
Jumping from the chair she sat in;
Time, you their, who love to get
Sweets into your list, put that in:
Say I'm weary, say I'm sad,
Say I'm growing old, but add,
Jenny kissed me.
-Hames Henry Leigh Hunt
(From Death of an Outsiderp 130)
While Titan was grinding rose madder
His model was posed on a ladder,
Her position to Titan
Suggested coition
So he dashed up the ladder and had her.
... (show all); -Anonymos
(From Death of an Outsiderp 155)
Loaf, as I have loafed aforetime,
Through the streets with tranquil mind,
And a long-backed fancy-mongrel
Trailing casually behind.
... (show all); -C.S. Calverley
(From Death of an Outsiderp 173)
Truth will come to light; murder connote be hid long.
-William Shalespeare - Dedication
- FOR THE LAIRG VOLUNTEER FIRE
BRIGADE . . .GOD BLESS 'EM!
Sub-Officer John Corbett
Leading Fireman Archie Fraser
Leading Fireman Willie ... (show all)McKay
Fireman William Ross
Fireman Michael Corbett
Fireman Duncan Matheson - First words
- Constable Hamish Macbeth sat in the small country bus that was bearing him away from Lochdubh -- away from the west coast of Sutherland, away from his police-station home.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Dinner at the Lochdubh on me," said Priscilla firmly. "They do a very good vegetarian salad."
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- Reviews
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- Rating
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