Death of a Witch is the latest in a series of murder mysteries, by M.C. Beaton, set in and around the fictitious Scottish town of Lochdubh in the highlands. This one is a little bloodier than most of the others, in that it involves a somewhat higher body count before Constable Macbeth finally nails the culprit.

The first and most pivotal victim is an exotic lady who calls herself Catriona Beldame. She moves into the village and begins making a nice living from selling the local men a supposedly magic potion that will dramatically enhance their sex lives. The actual effect of the potion on the men and, more notably, their wives, is a very, very far cry from what you see on the Viagra commercials. In any case, many in the village think her to be a witch, and no one was particularly aggrieved to learn of her murder. This, by the way, is typical of the Hamish Macbeth mysteries: the primary victim is seldom anybody you would want for a next-door neighbor.

Since this is a mystery, I am not going to provide any more spoilers than are on the book’s cover. Suffice it to say, it is not at all as diabolical as many mysteries you may have read, yet it holds your attention throughout. This is even more likely to be the case if you are already familiar with the Hamish Macbeth series of mysteries.

M.C. Beaton is one of the pseudonyms that author Marion McChesney has used over the course of her prolific writing career. She uses that name in all the Macbeth mysteries, as well as those involving another character named Agatha Raisin. I read a few of those, and, for some reason, they failed to hold my attention or interest the way the Macbeth novels have done. Both detectives are fraught with personal issues galore, but, what works for me in one instance, does not in the other.

The author was born in Glasgow, and it is interesting to note that the bane of Constable Macbeth’s existence throughout the series is Chief Detective Inspector Blair, who is always initially noted as hailing from that town. Blair may well be the most inept cop the reader will ever encounter, and he is an alcoholic to boot. The main recurring theme throughout the series is Blair’s hatred of the constable, coupled with his many failed attempts to belittle Macbeth, if not get him fired, or worse. It is sort of a Wiley Coyote vs. the Roadrunner thing, only funny.

Other characters you meet throughout the series are the gossipy Currie sisters and Detective Jimmy Anderson, Blair’s assistant, who is almost as fond of the bottle as his boss, but who is also Macbeth’s chief mole in the political intrigue of the regional police force. There is Patel the grocer, a Hindu with a thick Scottish accent, Archie MacLean, an often ridiculous fisherman, who, nonetheless, saves the protagonist’s life in one of the mysteries, and Angela Brodie, the doctor’s wife, who, generally proves to be a big help to Macbeth, despite her sometimes gruff manner.

But, most of all, there are the two intriguing women, Elspeth Grant and Priscilla Halburton-Smythe, who frequently assist the constable in solving the alarmingly large number of murders for such a small village. They both harbor romantic feelings for Macbeth, and he harbors the same feelings for one or the other (or both) of them, but throughout the series, whenever one of the characters is ready to make a commitment, the other is not. So Constable Macbeth remains single. All three of the characters in this triangle are people the reader cannot help but like, so that, while we may wish Hamish would find happily-ever-after with one of them, we hate to see the other’s heart be broken.

Other women come into the stories to further confuse Hamish’s romantic life, but their effect generally lasts only for a novel or two. Perhaps the most serious contender for his heart is an initially unlikely character named Olivia “Concrete Knickers” Chater. The story of Macbeth’s inability to close the deal with her is quite unfortunate, but you will have to come upon it as you plow through the series, as I strongly recommend that you do.

There are too many more recurring characters for me to mention in what I hope is a relatively short review, but they all have their moments and are all superbly drawn.

That is not to say that these novels are without imperfection. The author sometimes loses track of continuing details, from book to book, and she has an annoying way of commenting on the thickening of Macbeth’s Scottish accent whenever he gets aggravated, at the start of every novel. On the other hand, she captures the Scottish dialogue and accent splendidly, without making it incomprehensible to the outside reader. Try reading a lot of Robert Burns’ poetry or Robert Louis Stephenson’s Kidnapped to get an idea of what I mean.

Also, her descriptions of the countryside are a joy to behold, almost to the point where it would be worth reading a book set in that locale where nobody gets bumped off. Actually, there is one, called A Highland Christmas, which is charming. All the others involve unscheduled death and, in fact, have titles that begin with: Death of…

I actually do hope you will get around to reading Death of a Witch someday, but not now. Instead, please start with the first Hamish Macbeth mystery, Death of a Gossip, written in 1985. Then work your way through the entire series. There are too many common threads throughout the series to leave any of the books out.

Personally, I find these books an addiction. Here is how absorbing they are to me. One day, I picked up a mystery at my local library at 2:30 in the afternoon. After I got home, I washed and ironed several shirts and pants, wrote an article online, watched the evening news and had supper. In between all that, I had the whole thing read by the time I tuned in to Letterman’s monologue—and I am, by no stretch of the imagination a speed reader.