Death of a Glutton (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 8)
by M.C. Beaton
Our Price: $34.50
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $9.40 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: M.C. BeatonEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1995-05-01
ISBN: 0804112126
Number of pages: 176
Publisher: Fawcett
Book Reviews of Death of a Glutton (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 8)
Book Review: More Fun If You Find the Suspects Humorous
Summary: 3 Stars
Death of a Glutton is the eighth Hamish Macbeth mystery. It's the beautiful days of summer in Lochdubh, days that are soon to be replaced with cold and rain. Hamish is looking forward to enjoying these tranquil days while they last. But that hope is soon frustrated.
The Tommel Castle Hotel (formerly the home of Colonel and Mrs. Hallburton-Smythe and their daughter Priscilla before the Colonel lost his capital) is booming. But when a fishing party cancels at the last minute, the Colonel finds he may have to lower his social standards to fill the hotel. This fear is turned into a reality when Maria Worth books the hotel for Checkmate Singles Club, which matches up matrimonial prospects from among the well-to-do. Maria has invited eight people who want to marry well and thinks she has just the prospect for each one. Immediately, each one takes a dislike to the person Maria has in mind for them, but things seem to be proceeding anyway when they strike up conversations with other singles in the group.
Those plans are put seriously awry, however, when her not-so-silent partner, Peta Gore, shows up uninvited with her voluptuous, but self-centered, young niece, Crystal. The men flock to Crystal until they find she's dull. That enrages the women. Peta turns out to be a world-class overeater with the worst possible manners. Colonel Hallburton-Smythe takes his wife and heads out, leaving this troublesome party to Priscilla and Mr. Johnson to tend.
The story builds around Peta's eating. There's a memorable picnic involving a wee trip in the ocean that has humorous consequences. The chef becomes so enraged by Peta's behavior that he takes a bet he can feed her a most unappetizing source of protein and she'll be delighted.
Hamish thinks that all he has to do is to save the hotel's reputation. Things take a different turn when Peta first turns up missing, leaving behind a curious note, and is later found dead . . . with an apple crammed down her throat.
Who did it? And why? Hamish makes a bigger hash out of the investigation than usual . . . but does eventually put his finger on the guilty party.
Hoping for central heating in his wee police station, he ends with up two unexpected surprises instead.
The main appeal of this story comes in the outrageous burlesque of Peta's eating methods. That part is nicely developed. The other characters, by comparison, are pretty uninteresting and not especially attractive either. But their cardboard outlines do help fill out the story line. The mystery isn't very mysterious. The clues are everywhere.
My impression is that M.C. Beaton intended each of these characters to be pretty funny to the readers. I think she missed in that attempt. Instead, I found them all-too-pathetically familiar. The humor needed to be exaggerated more to work.
One of the other good aspects of the book comes in the humorous ways that Hamish and Priscilla mangle their relationship whenever it starts to warm up a bit. Priscilla finds herself becoming more than a little jealous of one of Hamish's admirers which helps set up the fun.
The villagers and Towser take back seat in this book which makes the story seem less authentic somehow.
Watch what you eat!
Summary of Death of a Glutton (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 8)
There's not a cloud in Constable Hamish Macbeth's sky....Just plenty of warm sunshine and not quite enough of beautiful Priscilla Halburton-Smythe.
But as eight hopeful members of the Checkmate Singles Club converge on Tommel Castle Hotel for a week of serious matchmaking, the clouds roll in. The four couples, carefully matched by dating director Maria Worth, immediately dislike each other. The arrival of Maria's gross, greedy partner, Peta, kills the last vestige of romance.
And as love goes out the window, murder comes in the door. Peta soon slurps up her last meal, and Hamish is left with a baffling puzzle: who shared the fateful outing that left Peta dead with a big red apple in her mouth? Surely not one of those singles....
British Detectives Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Hamish, M. C. Beaton
Death of a Gentle Lady (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 24)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2008-02-11; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.99
Price in other shops:
Death of a Dreamer (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 22)by M. C. Beaton
BBC Audiobooks America; Published: 2006-03-12; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.99
Price in other shops:
Death of a Nag (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 11)by M. C. Beaton
Mysterious Press; Published: 1996-06-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $39.95
Death of a Glutton (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 8)by M.C. Beaton
Fawcett; Published: 1995-05-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $34.50
Death of a Travelling Man (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 9)by M.C. Beaton
Fawcett; Published: 1996-06-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $45.00
Death of a Dustman (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 17)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2002-01-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.49
Price in other shops:
Death of a Celebrity (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 18)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2003-01-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.48
Price in other shops:
A Highland Christmas (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 16)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2002-11-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.58
Price in other shops:
Death of an Addict (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 15)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2001-03-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.32
Price in other shops:
Death of a Poison Pen (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 20)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2005-01-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.48
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Death of a Maid (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 23)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2008-01-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.86
Price in other shops:
Death of a Perfect Wife (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 4)by M. C. Beaton
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2006-07-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.79
Price in other shops:
Death of a Macho Man (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 12)by M. C. Beaton
Mysterious Press; Published: 1997-08-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.91
Price in other shops:
Death of a Snob (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 6)by M.C. Beaton
Fawcett; Published: 1992-05-23; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.40
Price in other shops:
Death of a Hussy (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 5)by M.C. Beaton
Fawcett; Published: 1991-09-23; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.75
Price in other shops:
Death of a Charming Man (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 10)by M. C. Beaton
Mysterious Press; Published: 1995-07-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.99
Price in other shops:
Death of a Prankster (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 7)by M.C. Beaton
Fawcett; Published: 1993-05-29; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.50
Price in other shops:
Death of a Gossip (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 1)by M. C. Beaton
Warner Books; Published: 1999-02-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $45.94
Death of a Nag (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 11)by M. C. Beaton
Mysterious Pr; Published: 1995-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $18.95
Death of a Travelling Man (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries, No. 9)by M.C. Beaton
Fawcett; Published: 1996-06-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $45.00