Review + Giveaway - Death of a Chimney Sweep by M.C. Beaton

A Hamish Macbeth Mystery

TITLE:    Title  Death of a Chimney Sweep
AUTHOR:    M. C. Beaton
INFO:    Paperback, Fiction, 247 pages
PUBLISHED:   Grand Central Publishing, 2011
ISBN#:   978-0-446-54739-0
SOURCE:   Received from Hachette Books for Blog Tour and Review

FROM GOODREADS:   In the south of Scotland, residents get their chimneys vacuum-cleaned. But in the isolated villages in the very north of Scotland, the villagers rely on the services of the itinerant sweep, Pete Ray, and his old-fashioned brushes. Pete is always able to find work in the Scottish highlands, until one day when Police Constable Hamish Macbeth notices blood dripping onto the floor of a villager's fireplace, and a dead body stuffed inside the chimney. The entire town of Lochdubh is certain Pete is the culprit, but Hamish doesn't believe that the affable chimney sweep is capable of committing murder. Then Pete's body is found on the Scottish moors, and the mystery deepens. Once again, it's up to Hamish to discover who's responsible for the dirty deed—and this time, the murderer may be closer than he realizes.

MY TAKE:    While this is the latest installment of the "Hamish Macbeth Mystery" series, it is quite enjoyable as a stand alone read.  It is the first of one of these mysteries that I've read.  I found it to be a fast, fun story that was hard to put down.

Hamish Macbeth is not your average detective.  He's quite a bit laid back and a whole lot peculiar.  Of course the fact that he's nuts about his cat and dog endeared him to me immediately.  He doesn't get a lot of respect from some of his colleagues, but he does tend to have great instincts when it comes to murders.  His love life leaves a lot to be desired as he seems to have more than his fair share of misunderstandings and bad timing.

I enjoyed the twists and turns in this mystery.  I would start feeling pretty confident that I had unmasked the murderer and I would then immediately be proven wrong.  There were several characters that were especially misleading, just adding to the fun. 

Recommended to Hamish Macbeth fans as well as anyone who enjoys a fun mystery.  I'm looking forward to reading more of this series and Hamish's further adventures.

Out of 5 JEWELS, I give it:

As part of this great book tour, the author and publisher are generously offering THREE of you lucky readers a chance to win your own copy of Death of a Chimney Sweep! 

• You must be 13 years old to enter
• Shipping addresses in the US or Canada only, NO PO Boxes
• Entries close 3/11/11
• Winners will have 48 hours to respond
• Leave a comment on this post WITH your email address
• Only one copy of this title per household
• Good Luck!

If you don't want to wait to see if you're a winner, Death of a Chimney Sweep is available TODAY!  Happy Release Day!  You can find it at the online stores below:

WHERE TO BUY IT:    Amazon, The Book Depository, Powell's Books, IndieBound

 
~~~~~ Disclaimer:  All opinions expressed on this blog are 100% my own.  I do not receive monetary compensation for my reviews but do utilize affiliate links.  I may receive books in  order to facilitate a review, but this does not guarantee a good review - only a completely honest one.  Each review post denotes how I obtained the book.