Amateur sleuth Isabel Dalhousie is a philosopher who also uses her training to solve unusual mysteries. Isabel is Editor of the Review of Applied Ethics - which addresses such questions as 'Truth telling in sexual relationships' - and she also hosts The Sunday Philosophy Club at her house in Edinburgh.

Behind the city's Georgian facades its moral compasses are spinning with greed, dishonesty and murderous intent. Instinct tells Isabel that the young man who tumbled to his death in front of her eyes at a concert in the Usher Hall didn't fall. He was pushed....

With Isabel Dalhousie Alexander McCall Smith introduces a new and pneumatic female sleuth to tackle murder, mayhem - and the mysteries of life. As her hero WH Auden maintained, classic detective fiction stems from a desire for an uncorrupted Eden which the detective, as an agent of God, can return to us. But then Isabel, being a philosopher, has a thing or two to say about God as well.


I had this copy given but have already read it. In fact it was the first book I'd read this author but I can't say I was overly impressed.

The storyline is quite simplistic, Isabel sees a man fall to his death while at a concert & decides to investigate further when the verdict is accidental death - she thinks otherwise.

The style of this reminded me very much of Hazel Holt's Sheila Mallory series...right down to the end which I felt was a bit of a cop out!
And while I appreciate that Isabel is a philosopher I found some of the philosophising unnecessary (& hard going!) & found myself skimming those bits!

On the whole I'm wasn't sorry I read it but can't see what all the fuss is about with this author - though to be fair I don't mind "the Ladies Detective" series.

Released as part of the NOVEMBER "THE" CHALLENGE (#30)


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