Monday, November 29, 2010

Death of a Chimney Sweep by M C Beaton

Hamish is still Hamish.  A bit slow and bumbling, not able to decide between his two girlfriends, and with his same weird pets.  I'm glad, I wouldn't want him to change.

Grand Central Publishing sent me an ARC of this book for review (thank you).  It is due to be published at the end of February, 2011, in hardcover.  This is the 27th book in this series, so if you haven't met Hamish, you can find some earlier editions to keep you busy until February.

Nobody really minded when the Colonial was found dead in his chimney, but Hamish can't believe the chimney sweep killed him.  He was too laid back, too good tempered to do such a thing.  And when they find Pete's body out on the moors, it seems he was probably right about that.

The Colonial was relatively new to the community, but he liked to bully his wife and dabbled in money games.  The most likely suspects have solid alibis.  Hamish knows it must have been one of them, but how?

There are a lot of similar elements in this book.  Elspeth and Patricia are still around, his muddling superior is still there, and Hamish still sneaks away to do his own sleuthing.  They are all like old friends to me and make the read more enjoyable.

It's an intriguing plot and there are little subplots to add to the overall flavor of the book.  The author does tend to play "God" a bit in the ending, but it does make you feel better to know none of the bad folks win.

Grab a cup of tea or coffee, sit by the fire, and read a cozy mystery that is light but good.   I wonder what Hamish will run across next?

Happy reading!

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