Bed, breakfast and… butchery? It’s not exactly what Ally McKinley had in mind when she decamped from Edinburgh to run a guesthouse in the picturesque village of Locharran in the Scottish Highlands, but she soon discovers that murder and the solving thereof offer a great way of getting to know the locals. Of course, given that recently deceased American tourist Wilbur Carrington had riled everyone up by claiming to be the rightful Earl of Locharran, one of those locals could well be the murderer.
As a result, after Ally finds Wilbur stabbed to death with a skean dhu, body dumped in the courtyard of the Auld Malthouse B&B that she has just opened, there proves to be a plethora of potential killers. The crime has Detective Inspector Bob Rigby flummoxed from the outset – what else could be expected from an English incomer though – so Ally decides to don her metaphorical deerstalker and do a spot of investigating.
Dee MacDonald’s Murder in the Scottish Highlands is the first cosy mystery in a proposed series featuring Ally McKinley and makes for a great introduction to the nascent amateur sleuth. After celebrating her 68th birthday, having been recently widowed and newly retired from her job as a television researcher, Ally decides to move to Locharran in search of a new adventure in life, and she certainly finds herself embroiled in one.
When it becomes clear that the local police are far from accustomed to dealing with murder and Ally happens to remember the likely location of some key documents concerning Wilbur’s claim to the earldom – which she cannily takes copies of before turning them over – she realises that the only way her guestroom is going to cease being a crime scene is if she solves the murder herself.
Her no-nonsense approach to crime solving is convincing and refreshing, as is the fact that she’s not treated as a two-dimensional bumbling or cutesy elderly person. Whether it’s due to the average age in Locharran being higher than the norm or to everyone in the village already being all mixed up in everyone else’s business, Ally’s enquiries are neither dismissed nor condescended to. For an outsider, she fits in well and manages to convince people to talk to her.
She does annoy the police somewhat, largely due to drawing their attention to key evidence and prompting them to actually do some detective work, but she’s always taken seriously. In treating Ally as an amateur investigator who also happens to be a pensioner – rather than as a kooky senior whose curtain-twitching happens to embroil her in crime – MacDonald has created a well-rounded and believable character who more than holds her own when in pursuit of a killer.
Plus, all good amateur detectives should have a special skill that aids them in their investigations – and situates them in an advantageous position compared to the police – and MacDonald has made a wise choice in making Ally a retired television researcher. This background informs her methodical approach to the case and how she is able to track down and interpret key information, and it also equips her to compile an enviable murder board, which she hides from prying eyes behind a painting.
As for those who populate the murder board, the villagers of Locharran are the perfect mix of oddballs, busybodies and suspicious characters. In particular, sisters Queenie and Bessie, who run the gossip hub that is the local shop, are delightfully eccentric, both welcoming Ally to the village and being overtly suspicious of her motives. When Hamish Sinclair, the current Earl of Locharran, takes a interest in her, the conversations around Ally being a potential femme fatale are hilarious. And despite being the most likely suspect, Hamish himself is a very funny and engaging character.
To widen the suspect pool further, MacDonald brings in a couple of outsiders – Wilbur’s fiancée, Mamie Van Nuyen, and his brother, Tyler Carrington. While Tyler is more quiet and conciliatory than his brother, Mamie is just as eccentric as some of the locals, albeit a touch more flamboyant, and they’re both determined to stay at the B&B until Wilbur’s murderer is brought to justice. The detective trio they form with Ally works really well, even if they do spend more time drinking wine than interviewing suspects.
The scene-setting in Murder in the Scottish Highlands is just as rich as the characterisation. MacDonald clearly establishes the features and personality of the Auld Malthouse – including its rumoured ghost, Wailing Willie – and the wider village of Locharran. Both of them quickly develop into realistic and characterful places, and they form a deceptively bucolic background to the murder. Ally’s exploration of the churches and countryside of the surrounding Highlands also splendidly evokes the landscape and atmosphere of the place.
With its intrepid amateur sleuth, eclectic supporting cast, vivid setting and intriguing central puzzle, Murder in the Scottish Highlands is a great start to the Ally McKinley cosy mystery series. The plot races along as Ally throws herself into the role of detective and makes impressive strides towards uncovering all manner of secrets and unmasking the murderer, and she encounters plenty of suspects, clues and red herrings along the way. Plus, the descriptions are so good that no measly murder could spoil the atmosphere of the Highlands.
For more sleuthing seniors, try The Dog Sitter Detective by Antony Johnston and Death Comes to Marlow by Robert Thorogood.
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CFL Rating: 5 Stars
