Review: Catriona McPherson's Scot on the Rocks

Catriona McPherson’s latest Last Ditch mystery is hard to put down. If you haven't read one of her books about a Scottish ex-pat, Lexy Campbell, trying to make a go of life in California, this one is a great place to start. The prose sparkle and her humor shines through on every page. Don't let the laughter lull you into thinking this is a fluff read. There is depth to the quirky characters at the Last Ditch Motel and enough twists and turns in the plot to please the most avid mystery fan. 

In Scot on the Rocks, one of Cuento's beloved statues, Mama Cuento is stolen. All that's left is a bronze toe and a sinister note.  Lexy and her crew decide to "help" the police find the missing statue. They are pulled into finding Bran, Lexy's ex-husband's missing wife, Brandee. When Bran shows Lexy and crew a similar kidnapping note he received with an acrylic nail enclosed, it’s anybody’s guess as to what is going on, what’s connected, and what’s not. 

This is the third book of the series. Lexy is a relationship counselor in Cuento, California. Todd, the anesthetist who lives at the motel with his pediatrician husband Roger, and germophobic Kathi, who is married to the motel’s live-in manager Noleen, have inserted themselves into Lexy’s counseling business, creating Trinity Services. 

In fact, her pals have inserted themselves into any business that comes Lexy’s way. Her friends have twin passions, finding Lexy the perfect man, and solving mysteries. She wishes they would give up on the perfect manhunt, but that is another story. 

The Last Ditch Motel is a large diverse family. It doesn't take long for the entire family to get involved in this wild and wooly chase for answers, although the standing members of Trinity Services, Lexy and Todd and Kathi take the most dangerous risks and find themselves on a road trip to Patriarchyville. There are lots of surprises in this tale of who or what went where and why. 

Catriona McPherson knows how to tell a great story, and in this series, readers also can depend on McPherson to make them laugh. She is also a master of creating a magnificent cast of characters. Readers will be entertained and surprised at every turn of the road.

Catriona McPherson Author Profile

Catriona McPherson

On her website, Catriona McPherson says she was born in Edinburgh, in south-east Scotland and lived there, in Ayshire, in Dumfrinshire ,and in Galloway before moving to California in 2010. She, her husband, and their two cats currently live on in a farmhouse near Davis, California, where she spends her non-writing time gardening, swimming, roaming the hills, and occasionally escaping to San Fransisco.

Catriona is the author of the Dandy Gilver mystery series, which is set in 1920's Scotland. She has also written one stand-alone mystery, As She Left It. This year, she tried her hand at writing short fiction: a ghost story titled "One Scareful Owner." That's right, her one and only short story to date was written for Strangely Funny. After reading her first story, I am hoping to see others. Her writing is crisp, and her humor infectious. 

I first met Catriona in the pages of Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains. We were going to be on a panel together at Bouchercon and were asked to read each other's work before the convention. This was my first, but certainly not my last Dandy Gilver mystery. Dandy kept me coming back for more. The panel made me a fan of the author instead of the character. Catriona introduced herself as the only one on the panel without a funny accent, and kept the audience smiling throughout the discussion. Later, she joined our table at the hotel bar and cracked my spouse up when she looked at the raw broccoli I was munching on and exclaimed, "Don't eat that, that's garnish! Here, have some of my chips!"  So much for healthy eating. I took a handful of her fries and enjoyed an hour of chatting with my new friend. 

Check out her story, "One Scareful Owner," and those of the other Strangely Funny writers that make up Strangely Funny. It is a purchase you won't regret.

 

Speaking at FHNS Meeting April 6

The photograph above is one I took of the Coastal Region Library, in Crystal River, Florida.  Our Florida Chapter of the Historical Novel Society will be held there on Saturday, April 6. The group has invited me to speak about, "Bringing the Past into Your Fiction."

Friends who have ever got me started talking about the history of Kentucky are probably groaning about now. I can spend hours talking about the history behind my Nessa Donnelly stories. Just so you know, I will only use one example from my own work. This talk is about the wide range of historical fiction and how different authors approach bringing the history they love into the their work. I'm going to get to talk about books by some of my favorite historical authors: Beverle Graves Myers, Catriona McPherson, Suzanne Adair, and many others.

If you like historical fiction, which I am sure this audience does, this should be a great opportunity to discover new favorite authors and revisit with some old friends. Members of the group who write their own historical novels should also enjoy seeing how a number of other writers make the past come alive on the printed page.

I'm looking forward to Saturday. If you are in the area, drop in and say hi. Meetings are free and open to the public.

Book Review: Dandy Gliver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains by Catriona McPherson

I was introduced to Catriona McPherson’s novels last month when preparing for Bouchercon. Molly Weston, owner of Meritorious Mysteries, and moderator of the panel I was on, suggested that each panelist read one of the works by the others. Consider this your disclaimer. Now that I have met Catriona in person, I am delighted to number her among my friends. That said, let’s talk about her book.

McPherson’s Dandy Gilver series falls into the “cozy” mystery category on book store shelves. Judging by Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains, the book is not an entirely comfortable fit in the cozy category.

The series is set in the 1920’s and mirrors the style of mystery’s golden age. Dandy is McPherson’s genteel lady sleuth. I have not read the other books in the series, but in this book her amateur detective goes under cover as a ladies’ maid to assist an acquaintance who fears her husband is planning to murder her. The plot becomes more complicated when the husband is murdered and Dandy must confront the possibility that her client, Mrs. Balfour, has brought her into the household as her alibi for the crime.

The book is a well plotted and well written puzzle mystery handled with a humorous hand. However, there are deeper layers to the story. Below stairs, Dandy is drawn into the world of the serving classes. She must watch the political upheaval of general strike that made her own class fear a European revolution similar to the one that had just occurred in Russia. Though the book does not bash us over the head with politics, the political climate of the time is too important to allow us to take the subject lightly. McPherson does an excellent job of balancing the details of a socially tense time with tongue in cheek humor and irrepressible wit.

What I found most interesting in this book was the fact that the more Dandy learns about the working class, the more she must examine her own values. I doubt that Mrs. Gilver will emerge from her encounter with the serving class unchanged. I look forward to seeing what sort of character growth shows up in the next book.