DEATH OF A GHOST

A wily Highland police sergeant solves a case the higher-ups want covered up.

Extracting himself from yet another unsuccessful romance (Death of a Nurse, 2016), Sgt. Hamish Macbeth realizes that he prefers to hang out in his beloved Lochdubh with his clumsy constable, Charlie Carter. Charlie’s living in an illegal basement flat in the Tommel Castle Hotel while Hamish, who has the run of his small police house with his beloved dogs, is heartbroken because he had to release his wild cat in a sanctuary. Retired Chief Superintendent Hanover “Handy” Ebrington calls on the police to investigate a haunting at the castle he owns in the dark and lonely village of Drim. Although no ghosts are found, Hamish does discover a body that disappears and reappears in the nearby loch. The dead man is professor John Gordon, much disliked for his insistence that there is no God. The professor had been seen in Inverness lunching in a decidedly down-market cafe with Olivia Sinclair, the wife of a wealthy man and the object of local minister Peter Haggis’ desire. When Hamish discovers both a hotbed of unrequited passions and a smuggling ring, he and Charlie are hard-pressed to unravel the tangled skein, especially as his ambitious superior does everything he can to get Hamish in trouble with Superintendent Daviot, who’s all for the quiet life. When Police Scotland declares the case solved, Hamish is certain they’re wrong and risks his career proving it.

Fans of the handsome Highlander will delight in his continuing penchant for the wrong women and his utter lack of ambition despite his superior detecting skills, which this complex case puts on handsome display.