Product Description

"A case that Hamish Macbeth fans will relish." Booklist.

A Hamish Macbeth Mystery by the author of "Death of a Snob."

When it comes to murder, Constable Hamish Macbeth can't see the joke. Rich, old practical joker Andrew Trent summons his kin to remote Arrat House in the dead of winter for a deathbed farewell. But when they arrive, the old coot is in perfect health, cackling at his joke and ready to torment them with others.

But it turns out the joke's on Trent. As the saying goes, he who laughs last, kills first! And when Trent is murdered, Constable Macbeth must step in and solve the crime before the punchline of the next killing joke knocks him right into an early grave!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #64681 in Books
• Published on: 1993-05-29
• Released on: 1993-05-29
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 176 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780804111027
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Scottish constable Hamish Macbeth, following Death of a Gossip in his seventh case, once again nails a murderer despite the crude bullying and dim detecting of his nemesis and superior, Chief Detective Inspector Blair. Wealthy local Andrew Trent, notorious for practical jokes that have far exceeded short-sheeted beds and whoopee cushions, has summoned his would-be heirs to his northern mansion with the false announcement that he has only a short time left to live. Braving the Highlands winter are his adopted son and his TV-star fiancee, two spinster daughters, his brother (with his brittle wife) and his scientist stepson (with his punk, pink-haired girlfriend and colleague). After Andrew is murdered in a prank that backfires, Macbeth wends his way through a tangle of family squabbles and secrets. Another murder and an attempt on a third victim follow in this readable tale that doesn't, however, bear close scrutiny. Illogic abounds and the final confession is precipitated by a wild coincidence.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
A feeble new adventure for Scottish constable Hamish MacBeth of Lochdubh village (Death of a Snob, etc.). Smart, sweet, and totally unambitious Hamish is confronted with the murder of millionaire Andrew Trent--a cruel, near-certifiable practical-joker whose family had gathered in response to the message that he was dying. Just one more joke, of course--but someone had had enough, and the old man was found stabbed to death in what looked like the execution of still another prank. His adopted son Charles; spinster daughters Angela and Betty; brother Jeffrey; Jeffrey's grasping wife Jan; her mother-fixated son Paul; and a couple of unrelated tag-alongs, as well as the Spanish houseman and cook--all are subjected to the lashing interrogations of Hamish's despised superior, Inspector Blair, who gets nowhere. It takes a second murder--plus a bright idea from Hamish's friend Priscilla--to sort it all out. A clumsily contrived puzzle, full of unreal characters, artificial dialogue, and a surprisingly harmless Hamish. Beaton coasting. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From the Inside Flap
"A case that Hamish Macbeth fans will relish." Booklist.
A Hamish Macbeth Mystery by the author of "Death of a Snob."
When it comes to murder, Constable Hamish Macbeth can't see the joke. Rich, old practical joker Andrew Trent summons his kin to remote Arrat House in the dead of winter for a deathbed farewell. But when they arrive, the old coot is in perfect health, cackling at his joke and ready to torment them with others.
But it turns out the joke's on Trent. As the saying goes, he who laughs last, kills first! And when Trent is murdered, Constable Macbeth must step in and solve the crime before the punchline of the next killing joke knocks him right into an early grave!

Customer Reviews

Death of a Prankster
"Death of a Prankster" is the seventh Hamish Macbeth mystery by M. C. Beaton. Andrew Trent, a rich old man, who is a terrible practical joker has called his family to his home telling everyone he is dying. It is a practical joke, but comes to pass as he is murdered. When Hamish Macbeth is told that Mr. Trent has been murdered at his home, he hesitates thinking it is just another practical joke. But Andrew Trent has been murdered. Hamish Macbeth investigates finding several people in his family that wanted him dead. Was he killed for hate, or was he killed for money? This novel is good, but some of the local Scottish flavor that is in the other books is absent in this one, but if you are reading through the series, as I am, it is worth your time.

An average book by an extraordinary author.
This book has a good plot, but the plot is over shadowed by the amount of descriptive detail that hovers around a hippie with pink hair.A good book, but not the greatest. I recommend Death of A Gossip or Death of A Snob.

A Decent, Serviceable Mystery
In Death of a Prankster, a mean-spirited millionaire claims he's at death's door. Assorted family members and hangers-on rush over to stay at his mansion, hoping to be rewarded in his will. Our millionaire is, of course, a prankster, and universally loathed. He wasn't dying when his guests arrive, but within days he is murdered.

Suspects include the millionaire's daughters, his biological son, his biological son's wife and her son, his adopted son, a gameskeeper, and the sons' girlfriends.

This book is neither wonderful nor terrible. It held my attention and is very thin, so it would make a good quick read when you need to quickly pick a book for a fairly short airplane ride or something of the sort.

I guessed most of the surprises, but the story was reasonably well-told, and a couple of the characters were especially well-drawn. But Death of a Prankster is certainly nothing special, and has no particularly original or distinctive elements. Lots of books use a "house party" plot. Of those, I'd rate contributions by Ngaio Marsh, Agatha Christie, Carolyn Hart, and James Anderson better than Death of a Prankster, and Walter Satterthwait's Escapade considerably worse.