-
Creators
-
Series
-
Publisher
-
Release date
August 26, 2004 -
Formats
-
OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781449888763
- File size: 232730 KB
- Duration: 08:04:51
-
-
Languages
- English
-
Reviews
-
Publisher's Weekly
Starred review from August 2, 2004
Murder and moral obligation mingle in this whimsical new series from the author of the smash hit The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency
. McCall Smith's new heroine is Scottish-American philosopher Isabel Dalhousie, a single woman of independent means who edits the esteemed Review of Applied Ethics
and presides over the titular club. When Isabel witnesses fund manager Mark Fraser fall from a balcony after a performance at an Edinburgh concert hall, she feels obliged to investigate the gentleman's demise. "I was the last person that young man saw," Dalhousie tells her beloved niece, Cat. "The last person. And don't you think that the last person you see on this earth owes you something?" Given her affinity for applied ethics, questions of conscience are a daily concern for Isabel, and the more she thinks about Fraser's fall, the less accidental it seems. Among those who might have pushed him: his shifty roommate, his colleague's scheming spouse and a disgruntled broker with a craving for cash. Fans of Botswanan heroine Precious Ramotswe are sure to embrace Scotsman McCall Smith's plucky new protagonist, who leads a cast of delightfully quirky characters that includes Toby, a dapper bachelor with a dubious understanding of fidelity, and Grace, Dalhousie's morally upright housekeeper, who sizes up society's reprobates in two syllables or less. Scotland's climate may be misty and cool, but McCall Smith's charming prose warms every page of this winning series debut. Agent, Robin Strauss. (Sept. 28)
Forecast:
Fans will quickly be reassured that McCall Smith's latest possesses all the gentle humor and keen insights into human nature that characterized his Mma Ramotswe novels, and they will buy, buy, buy accordingly
. -
AudioFile Magazine
When Isabel Dalhousie sees a man fall from a balcony after a concert, she feels obliged to find out why he plummeted--was he pushed, did he jump, did he simply fall? As she says, "I was the last person that young man saw--don't you think that the last person you see on this earth owes you something?" Davina Porter creates a wonderful range of Scottish accents and delivers a fine-tuned narration in her native English voice for this first in Alexander McCall Smith's new series about Isabel Dalhousie, Scottish philosopher and sleuth. Porter's narrative skills are particularly important, as this book emphasizes description and gives its characters more philosophical reflection to perform than active sleuthing. Porter's varying tone and pacing keep the listener involved, and her interpretation of well-born but broad-minded Isabel is adroit. One finds that although Isabel ponders (one might even say dithers) somewhat excessively, one anticipates meeting her again. A.C.S. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine
-
Loading
Why is availability limited?
×Availability can change throughout the month based on the library's budget. You can still place a hold on the title, and your hold will be automatically filled as soon as the title is available again.
The Kindle Book format for this title is not supported on:
×Read-along ebook
×The OverDrive Read format of this ebook has professional narration that plays while you read in your browser. Learn more here.