Death of a Dustman [Mass Market Paperback]

 

 

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This is the seventeenth installment in the Hamish Macbeth series of cozy mysteries. In this book, our beloved Highlander is busy going about his business in the village of Lochdubh in northern Scotland, when a council woman decides Lochdubh should go green and recycle. She appoints the local dustman (garbage collector) as Lochdubh's Environment Officer in charge of Lochdubh's new recycling center.

The dustman, however, is a nasty drunk, who beats and bullies his wife and kids. So, it is no surprise to anyone that with his new found power, he becomes a total despot, bullying all whom he comes across and indulging in a dangerous little sideline. Consequently, it is of little surprise to anyone when his dead body is found in a villager's rubbish bin. Though no one is sorry to see the dustman gone, few are willing to talk, leaving Hamish Macbeth at a temporary loss as to who committed the murder until violence strikes again. With no end of suspects in sight, he certainly has his work cut out for him.

In this book, village life, replete with quirky characters, takes center stage, giving the book that cozy feel. The book is also laced with sly humor throughout that is engaging, keeping the mood of the book light and highly enjoyable. As with all cozy mysteries, it is not so much the mystery that is of import but the characters that revolve around the mystery. While the mysteries are intriguing, they are the framework around which the characters evolve. In the endearing character of Hamish Macbeth, the author has created a sure fire winner, who is bound to win many fans. This is a most enjoyable and utterly addictive cozy mystery series.

Due to his remarkable work in Death of an Addict, Hamish once again finds himself promoted to sergeant. Having been totally driven crazy by Willie Lamont's cleaning when Hamish was a sergeant before, he had hoped that this promotion wouldn't mean having another police constable assigned to live and work with him. No such luck!

Clarry Graham, the new constable, is equally obsessed . . . but with cooking. So Hamish eats better than ever in this book.

Lochdubh finds itself under attack due to the publicity-seeking lust of Mrs. Freda Fleming, a recent widow, who wants a place to "clean up" so she can appear on the telly. Although she lives in Strathbane (which could use a good clean up), Freda decides that she's more likely to have a visible success in a smaller place. An inspection by Freda finds trash overflowing after a church fete. No problem! Freda will create an army of one, Fergus Macleod, the local dustman (UK speak for trash collector), to create the new "green" Lochdubh.

Fergus is an angry man. He started off as an accountant, but his weakness for preying on others caused him to descend into drink and wife-beating. With his raise in pay, wider authority, and military-like new uniform, he's ready to settle old scores with those who don't respect a mere dustman.

Before the tensions can rise too far, someone disposes of Fergus. While he disappears (to be later found in the Currie sisters' trash bin), Clarry decides to become the defender of Martha Macleod and her children from the brutal Fergus. Naturally, that means Detective Chief Inspector Blair will want to finger Clarry for the murder. But Blair has a surprise awaiting him.

After Fergus is found dead, the neighbors help Martha clean out his things. In the process, they accidentally find a lot of filthy papers that Fergus appears to have dug out of the trash. On reading those papers, Hamish realizes that Fergus may also have been blackmailing the villagers (a theme that was used before in Death of a Maid).

Lochdubh is in an uproar for another reason: the Lochdubh Hotel is reopening and the locals are getting great job offers. How will the Tommel Castle Hotel survive? Priscilla Halburton-Smythe, Hamish's former "unofficial" fiancée, is back to deal with the threat and playing her usual role of brilliant Watson.

Before long, the number of suspects is growing faster than Hamish can check them all out. When one of the suspects makes a run for it, Hamish takes action . . . with plot-shaking consequences.

As usual, Hamish finds himself chastened more for doing his duty than appreciated. There's also upsetting news about DI Chater. Fortunately for Hamish, he has his new dog, Lugs (his Christmas present in A Highland Christmas), to comfort him.

This story doesn't have the easy charm of A Highland Christmas or the character-developing strength of Death of an Addict or an intriguing plot like Death of a Scriptwriter, but in its own soap-opera-like way, Death of a Dustman cleans up. Enjoy!

This is a great installment in the Hamish Macbeth series. This series continues to delight and surprise and I always can't wait to read the next one. In this one a rather unsavoury dustman (garbage men are still called dustmen in Britain), is found dead in one of his refuse bins. No one in Lochdubh is really sorry because this man was not well-liked by anyone in the village. But Hamish has to set out to find the murderer, especially after another body is found. Once he begins investigating he finds there are more suspects than he knows what to do with, but he continues in his very unorthodox way to try to put the pieces together. There is a scene in the book with a helicopter and a hammer thrower that is absolutely hilarious. Ms. Beaton is a master of black comedy, and her Hamish is the most likeable sleuth out there. He's so real that he leaps off the page. I love this series!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Charms, Secrets and Nasty Grudges
Isn't it fun to imagine that somewhere across the pond, lurks a lady who can churn out books one after another, in the same basic formula, but each a uniquely clever and original... Read more

Published on April 15 2002 by Mamalinde

5.0 out of 5 stars another in the delightful series
M.C. Beaton's mysteries center in a small village in the Scottish Highlands, with chief character Officer Hamish MacBeth, surrounded by other recurring eccentric characters. Read more

Published on Mar 19 2002 by Karen Sampson Hudson

4.0 out of 5 stars Hamish must find the murderer of the most hated man in town
Fergus the dustman or garbage man is the most hated man in town. He drinks, he beats his wife, and since he was promoted to enviromental supervisor and given a new uniform, he's... Read more

Published on Feb 27 2002 by Moe811

5.0 out of 5 stars DEATH OF A DUSTMAN WILL GATHER NO DUST!!!
You won't be able to put the book down is the reason it will gather no dust. I really enjoyed this one. Read more

Published on Jan 11 2002 by Mac Blair

2.0 out of 5 stars Cookie Cutter Plot and Set
This reader is probably in the minority here, but Death of Dustman in this reader's opinion is one of Ms. Beaton's much poorer efforts. Read more

Published on Aug 21 2001

4.0 out of 5 stars Seventeenth Variation on a Highland Theme
Fergus Macleod, the dustman (garbage collector)in Police Sergeant Hamish Macbeth's village of Lockdubh, is a drunk and a wife-beater. Read more

Published on Aug 12 2001 by charles falk

5.0 out of 5 stars Highlander Hamish
What I would give to live in a place like Lochdubh where the local bobby actually cares for his fellow villagers! Read more

Published on July 27 2001 by J. Cunningham

5.0 out of 5 stars Death of a Dustman
M.C. Beaton has done it again with another delightful book in the series about Hamish Macbeth, a constable in Lochdubh, a village in the Northern Highlands of Scotland. Read more

Published on April 10 2001 by Patricia Ibbotson

4.0 out of 5 stars Predictable, predictable, predictable!
Indeed, "predictable" is the word (or words!) for any of the Hamish Macbeth series by M.C. Beaton, and "Death of a Dustman" is no exception. Read more

Published on Mar 15 2001 by Billy J. Hobbs

5.0 out of 5 stars Have three hours to kill...this is your book!
Having just read a heart-thumping page-turning thriller, I felt the need to read something that would bring my blood pressure back to its normal rate. Read more

Published on Mar 13 2001 by D. Kaplan

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