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Isabel Dalhousie #7
The Charming Quirks of Others
ISABEL DALHOUSIE - Book 7
Nothing captures the charm of Edinburgh like the bestselling Isabel Dalhousie series of novels featuring the insatiably curious philosopher and woman detective. Whether investigating a case or a problem of philosophy, the indefatigable Isabel Dalhousie, one of fiction's most richly developed amateur detectives, is always ready to pursue the answers to all of life's questions, large and small.
Isabel has been asked for her help in a rather tricky situation: A successor is being sought for the headmaster at a local boys' school. The board has three final candidates but has received an anonymous letter alleging that one of them has a very serious skeleton in the closet. Could Isabel discreetly look into it? And so she does. What she discovers about all the candidates is surprising, but what she discovers about herself and about Jamie, the father of her young son, turns out to be equally revealing.
Isabel's investigation will have her exploring issues of ambition, as well as of charity, forgiveness, and humility, as she moves nearer and nearer to some of the most hidden precincts of the heart.
Here is Isabel Dalhousie at her beguiling best: intelligent, insightful, and with a unique understanding of the quirks of human nature.
Nothing captures the charm of Edinburgh like the bestselling Isabel Dalhousie series of novels featuring the insatiably curious philosopher and woman detective. Whether investigating a case or a problem of philosophy, the indefatigable Isabel Dalhousie, one of fiction's most richly developed amateur detectives, is always ready to pursue the answers to all of life's questions, large and small.
Isabel has been asked for her help in a rather tricky situation: A successor is being sought for the headmaster at a local boys' school. The board has three final candidates but has received an anonymous letter alleging that one of them has a very serious skeleton in the closet. Could Isabel discreetly look into it? And so she does. What she discovers about all the candidates is surprising, but what she discovers about herself and about Jamie, the father of her young son, turns out to be equally revealing.
Isabel's investigation will have her exploring issues of ambition, as well as of charity, forgiveness, and humility, as she moves nearer and nearer to some of the most hidden precincts of the heart.
Here is Isabel Dalhousie at her beguiling best: intelligent, insightful, and with a unique understanding of the quirks of human nature.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
273 people are currently reading
2215 people want to read
About the author
Alexander McCall Smith
664 books12.7k followersAlexander McCall Smith is the author of the international phenomenon The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, the Isabel Dalhousie Series, the Portuguese Irregular Verbs series, and the 44 Scotland Street series. He is professor emeritus of medical law at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and has served on many national and international bodies concerned with bioethics. He was born in what is now known as Zimbabwe and he was a law professor at the University of Botswana. He lives in Scotland. Visit him online at www.alexandermccallsmith.com, on Facebook, and on Twitter.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 704 reviews
August 3, 2011
I'm growing to hate Isabel Dalhousie. If I knew her in real life I would avoid her at all costs. But I keep reading these books and I can't say why. The main plots limp along at soap opera pacing and every book is basically the same:
Isabel insecure in relationship, spends lots of time fretting and thinking about how kind and beautiful Jamie is.
Isabel worries about her niece's latest boyfriend and grills Jamie about his feelings for Cat.
Isabel spends lots of time thinking about how terribly busy she is, although her job seems part-time at best. Luckily she's incredibly wealthy.
Lettuce and Dove put Isabel in some sort of impossible moral quandry which usually magically works itself out.
Isabel solves a boring mystery for someone through the use of "intuition" and an amazing number of ridiculous coincidences (especially egregious in this one).
Isabel spends lots and lots of time philosophizing in her head while not listening to the people speaking to her.
Isabel offends her housekeeper in some way.
Isabel spends even more time philosophizing about the joys of motherhood and how much she loves her generic son.
Isabel helps out in the delicatessen--basically nothing happens.
Argh, apparently 7 books was the breaking point for my tolerance. I don't mind a low-key mystery, but this was just so dull. I see book 8 comes out this December and heaven help me, I'll probably find it at the library and read it, kicking myself the whole time.
Isabel insecure in relationship, spends lots of time fretting and thinking about how kind and beautiful Jamie is.
Isabel worries about her niece's latest boyfriend and grills Jamie about his feelings for Cat.
Isabel spends lots of time thinking about how terribly busy she is, although her job seems part-time at best. Luckily she's incredibly wealthy.
Lettuce and Dove put Isabel in some sort of impossible moral quandry which usually magically works itself out.
Isabel solves a boring mystery for someone through the use of "intuition" and an amazing number of ridiculous coincidences (especially egregious in this one).
Isabel spends lots and lots of time philosophizing in her head while not listening to the people speaking to her.
Isabel offends her housekeeper in some way.
Isabel spends even more time philosophizing about the joys of motherhood and how much she loves her generic son.
Isabel helps out in the delicatessen--basically nothing happens.
Argh, apparently 7 books was the breaking point for my tolerance. I don't mind a low-key mystery, but this was just so dull. I see book 8 comes out this December and heaven help me, I'll probably find it at the library and read it, kicking myself the whole time.
November 19, 2020
This series was highly recommended to me. While I found it to be well written, I am not sure if I should have read some of the earlier books first. Also, admittedly I probably need to read more of the series to get used to the style.
A local school in Edinburg is evaluating candidates to fill the headmaster position. The school board receives an anonymous letter mentioning that one of the candidates has a very troublesome past. Isabel Dalhousie has been asked to check into the background of the three shortlisted candidates. There is a minor sub-track involving her partner Jamie (is he seeing someone else besides her?), with whom Isabel is to get married shortly.
As Isabel checks into the three candidates, she finds quite a bit about incidents in their past that they may want to hide – there are many lessons to be learned from them as well. There are also several possibilities she speculates on along the way to complete the picture. Other than the background of the candidates, there is also the question of who wrote the letter and why. And here, the story does have a nice revelation at the end.
The plot clearly is not very engaging, the pace is slow, and the investigation process is ordinary. The writing is good though and hopefully I will enjoy a few of the other books in the series more.
A local school in Edinburg is evaluating candidates to fill the headmaster position. The school board receives an anonymous letter mentioning that one of the candidates has a very troublesome past. Isabel Dalhousie has been asked to check into the background of the three shortlisted candidates. There is a minor sub-track involving her partner Jamie (is he seeing someone else besides her?), with whom Isabel is to get married shortly.
As Isabel checks into the three candidates, she finds quite a bit about incidents in their past that they may want to hide – there are many lessons to be learned from them as well. There are also several possibilities she speculates on along the way to complete the picture. Other than the background of the candidates, there is also the question of who wrote the letter and why. And here, the story does have a nice revelation at the end.
The plot clearly is not very engaging, the pace is slow, and the investigation process is ordinary. The writing is good though and hopefully I will enjoy a few of the other books in the series more.
May 9, 2011
I vacillate in my opinion of the Isabel Dalhousie character between finding her rather sweet and charming and finding her insufferaable and irritating. This entry in the series has to be placed in the latter category.
The story here is that a school is looking for a new headmaster and has narrowed its list of candidates down to three, but an anonymous letter has been received indicating something scandalous in the background of one of three. Unfortunately, the letter doesn't say which one. Isabel is asked to investigate "discreetly" and let the school's board know who the scandal-ridden candidate is.
This just seems unbelievable on the face of it. Why would the school asked a philosopher to investigate? Why not ask a professional investigator? Surely there are some in Scotland. But Isabel accepts the assignment with few questions and little hesitation and the rest of the book finds her bumbling her way through an "investigation."
The thing is, Isabel doesn't really investigate. She takes one offhand stray "clue" and jumps to immediate conclusions about a person. This seems highly unprofessional and incompetent for either a philosopher or a detective.
Not only that but it seems that Isabel is so obsessed with her relationship with her much younger lover, the father of her son, and so insecure in that relationship that she spends all of her time thinking about it. When does she ever find the time to edit her philosophy review or to investigate candidates for headmaster or for that matter to be a mother to her son? The answer seems to be that she really doesn't. I can't see that she spends much time doing anything except thinking about Jamie and what a gentle, beautiful YOUNG man he is and how lucky she is that he loves her. But does he really love her, Isabel wonders, or is he having an affair with that fellow musician who is dying and for whom he feels sorry and therefore must make love to? After all, she is dying and she is attracted to Jamie and he is so gentle and kind that he just can't reject her...
This is all just a bit of a mishmash really. The story wanders all over the place with very little to hold it all together. By the end, I was ready to reach through the pages, grab Isabel by the shoulders, give her a good shake, and say, "For heavens' sake, woman, quit philosophizing and just get on with it!"
The story here is that a school is looking for a new headmaster and has narrowed its list of candidates down to three, but an anonymous letter has been received indicating something scandalous in the background of one of three. Unfortunately, the letter doesn't say which one. Isabel is asked to investigate "discreetly" and let the school's board know who the scandal-ridden candidate is.
This just seems unbelievable on the face of it. Why would the school asked a philosopher to investigate? Why not ask a professional investigator? Surely there are some in Scotland. But Isabel accepts the assignment with few questions and little hesitation and the rest of the book finds her bumbling her way through an "investigation."
The thing is, Isabel doesn't really investigate. She takes one offhand stray "clue" and jumps to immediate conclusions about a person. This seems highly unprofessional and incompetent for either a philosopher or a detective.
Not only that but it seems that Isabel is so obsessed with her relationship with her much younger lover, the father of her son, and so insecure in that relationship that she spends all of her time thinking about it. When does she ever find the time to edit her philosophy review or to investigate candidates for headmaster or for that matter to be a mother to her son? The answer seems to be that she really doesn't. I can't see that she spends much time doing anything except thinking about Jamie and what a gentle, beautiful YOUNG man he is and how lucky she is that he loves her. But does he really love her, Isabel wonders, or is he having an affair with that fellow musician who is dying and for whom he feels sorry and therefore must make love to? After all, she is dying and she is attracted to Jamie and he is so gentle and kind that he just can't reject her...
This is all just a bit of a mishmash really. The story wanders all over the place with very little to hold it all together. By the end, I was ready to reach through the pages, grab Isabel by the shoulders, give her a good shake, and say, "For heavens' sake, woman, quit philosophizing and just get on with it!"
January 14, 2011
I admit it--I'm an Alexander McCall-Smith addict! I've read everything he's written thus far, and eagerly await each new volume. His wisdom about human nature is acute--this volume has a couple of wonderful quotes about love: "We do not need to look for reasons for love. It is simply there; it comes upon us without invitation, without reason sometimes; it surprises us when we are least expecting it, when we think that our hearts are closed or that we are not ready, or we imagine that it will never happen to us because it has not happened before. But if I were to ask myself why I love you, or perhaps try to find what is the main cause of my being in love with you, perhaps it is because you are generous of spirit. It is not because you are beautiful; not because I see perfection in your features, in your smile, in your litheness—all of which I do, of course I do, and have done since the moment I first met you. It is because you are generous in spirit; and may I be like that; may I become like you—which realistic wish, to become the other, is such a true and revealing symptom of love, its most obvious clue, its unmistakable calling card." Also "…loving anything with all your heart always brings understanding, in time." Both quotes are from the main character, Isabel Dalhousie.
July 4, 2018
I enjoy this series, but it's not total love like I feel for his The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. I like this series at 3-4am when I wake up sometimes and don't fall right back to sleep. It won't keep you on the edge of your seat, but the characters and conversation are interesting enough to keep your mind busy until the sandman comes back.
Definitely will continue with the series, and I would like to finish all of his other series as well. But right now, it's nice to know I have so many of his books unread. I always know when I pick up one of his books that I'll get something intelligent and civil with some humor and right now, in the US, those things are on the wishlist.
Definitely will continue with the series, and I would like to finish all of his other series as well. But right now, it's nice to know I have so many of his books unread. I always know when I pick up one of his books that I'll get something intelligent and civil with some humor and right now, in the US, those things are on the wishlist.
October 15, 2020
I just love Isabel Dalhousie and her philosophical meanderings, despite the flaws of the series, which become more obvious with each book. When will Jamie (Isabel's beloved) and Cat (Isabel's niece and Jamie's former girlfriend) be more than two dimensional. Cat hasn't been allowed to grow, despite her increasing experience of men, who are mostly unsuitable. Perhaps too much about complete love and total immersion in each other, but I guess that I need to understand if that exists.
This book laments, even more than the others, the regrettable importance of beauty to sexual attraction, while readily acknowledging that Jamie is a young Scots Greek god, Cat is lovely, and even the slightly older Isabel is a very lovely woman. I am pleased to put myself in the same aesthetic category of rampant male sexuality as the author, Alexander McCall Smith, who could only be described as kind, intelligent, funny and charming, even while wearing his kilt with his sporran showing.
This book laments, even more than the others, the regrettable importance of beauty to sexual attraction, while readily acknowledging that Jamie is a young Scots Greek god, Cat is lovely, and even the slightly older Isabel is a very lovely woman. I am pleased to put myself in the same aesthetic category of rampant male sexuality as the author, Alexander McCall Smith, who could only be described as kind, intelligent, funny and charming, even while wearing his kilt with his sporran showing.
September 9, 2010
Although Alexander McCall Smith sometimes puts his main characters in peril they don't, in the end, suffer: leaving the reader feeling happy and content and that all in right in the world! Alexander McCall Smith's writes kindly and humane books which are an antidote to all the crime fiction I read!
As this is the 7th book in the Isabel Dalhousie series, I could barely keep my interest in Isabel as all the moral dilemmas that a middle-class lady in Edinburgh can plausibly encounter has been exhausted.
I feel like the series is starting to slowly run out of steam. It's a charming novel but it suffers badly from an absence of momentum. The plot is even slighter than usual.
McCall Smith's Edinburgh is a small town where everyone is connected and even taxi drivers are philosophers! People have no major failings, just "charming quirks". It's the kind of book that leaves you feeling a little lighter in
spirit, musing about topics such as the relative merits of Mozart vs the
dinosaurs.
As this is the 7th book in the Isabel Dalhousie series, I could barely keep my interest in Isabel as all the moral dilemmas that a middle-class lady in Edinburgh can plausibly encounter has been exhausted.
I feel like the series is starting to slowly run out of steam. It's a charming novel but it suffers badly from an absence of momentum. The plot is even slighter than usual.
McCall Smith's Edinburgh is a small town where everyone is connected and even taxi drivers are philosophers! People have no major failings, just "charming quirks". It's the kind of book that leaves you feeling a little lighter in
spirit, musing about topics such as the relative merits of Mozart vs the
dinosaurs.
August 6, 2016
This is such a sweet series that I feel guilty for not liking it better. If I were the heroine, Isabel Dalhousie, I would now spend several pages on the nature of guilt, why everybody is guilty, why I should or should not feel guilty...It's gotten so I find Isabel one of the most irritating characters in current fiction, so maybe I'll just give up on her. In this book, she's asked to find out which of three candidates for a job has something questionable in his past. She spends most of her time, however, thinking about her relationship with her much younger fiance. While she purports to be a philosopher, she tends to act on instinct without thinking things through; while she thinks a lot about Scotland and her family, she reminds me of one of those ethereal air flowers which lives without roots.
June 10, 2020
Well, I had to jump ahead in series missing 3 books but I don't feel bereft about that. Here I find that Isabel is with physically "beautiful" Jamie (as she describes him and thinks of him) and their son Charlie and the housekeeper Grace is still very much evident and helping care for the child as Isabel works, now the owner of the philosophical publication she spends time working on. I am ready to bid these Edinburgh residents a fond farewell as I find mental laboring over moral dilemmas tiresome. I know I would only read ahead to be there for the marriage which has not happened yet. But I just don't care.
This Isabel character is a mix of the emotionally infantile and the mature philosopher - Not cohesive or believable for me. She utters "I hate you" to her love in a childish reaction to not knowing he went to a movie with another musician (a female who means to entice Jamie). Yet...we are to receive profound philosophical reasoning from her. Done. [But I do love Ulf Varg series for its humour!]
Library Loan
This Isabel character is a mix of the emotionally infantile and the mature philosopher - Not cohesive or believable for me. She utters "I hate you" to her love in a childish reaction to not knowing he went to a movie with another musician (a female who means to entice Jamie). Yet...we are to receive profound philosophical reasoning from her. Done. [But I do love Ulf Varg series for its humour!]
Library Loan
July 9, 2015
Isabel is starting to bug me, so I might take a break from these. I just want her to develop a spine! Have a real feeling for once, please, that you don't immediately repress!
June 29, 2019
I love the Isabel series, so getting a new installment is a treat. This one does not disappoint; although the problem Isabel is called to solve is a bit thin, her interpersonal relationships are as vibrant as ever.
November 27, 2010
The first one of this series I can truly say I just didn't like. The end almost redeemed the book, but Isabel is just not her level-headed self, and jumps to outrageous conclusions based on hunches. Very unsatisfactory.
January 21, 2023
Goodness, this one was so preachy and all over the place. Isabel was so inconsistent as a character, telling Jamie, ‘I hate you’ without as much as making a single inquiry into exactly what happened, and then later on in the novel preaching to him about not hating anyone. There were good bits, the Edinburgh life, the love for Scotland, the Raeburn painting, the musings on Walter Scott, but that scene with Prue is so terrible I suffered second hand embarrassment from it.
Will I continue to read the series? I probably will. It’s irritating but also comforting in parts and I just haven’t found an alternative so far that has a similar otherworldliness and obsession with right and wrong, but done in a less earnest manner. Basically something like Barbara Pym. Which reminds me, high time I read some of the Barbara Pym novels I haven’t.
Will I continue to read the series? I probably will. It’s irritating but also comforting in parts and I just haven’t found an alternative so far that has a similar otherworldliness and obsession with right and wrong, but done in a less earnest manner. Basically something like Barbara Pym. Which reminds me, high time I read some of the Barbara Pym novels I haven’t.
September 19, 2017
well, my original review was not saved... so I'll try again.
I've enjoyed previous titles in this series, but this one didn't hit the right chord with me. I found Isabel to be cantankerous and dismissive throughout the book, a characteristic I don't remember in her previous. There was also a smugness that wasn't very attractive in a character who prides herself on philosophic intellectual inquiry. I wonder if McCall Smith is intentionally taking his character in this direction or if I've read something differently over the course of time. I don't think I'll be pursuing any off the additional titles in this series. I've given Isabel Dalhousie, and her seeming endless matrimonial engagement enough of my mental and emotional space.
I've enjoyed previous titles in this series, but this one didn't hit the right chord with me. I found Isabel to be cantankerous and dismissive throughout the book, a characteristic I don't remember in her previous. There was also a smugness that wasn't very attractive in a character who prides herself on philosophic intellectual inquiry. I wonder if McCall Smith is intentionally taking his character in this direction or if I've read something differently over the course of time. I don't think I'll be pursuing any off the additional titles in this series. I've given Isabel Dalhousie, and her seeming endless matrimonial engagement enough of my mental and emotional space.
June 16, 2011
Another lovely installment in a series which deals not with big, flashy crimes, but with more intimate, low-key mysteries of life. Much of the action is quiet, and there is lots of talking and thinking, and that's just fine by me. As always, I am impressed by the author's clear affection of the people and the place in which the story is set (Edinburgh in this case, Botswana in the case of his other well-known series), as well as his obviously deep respect and admiration for women.
I feel better about myself and the world after reading this, the way others have described feeling after meditation.
I feel better about myself and the world after reading this, the way others have described feeling after meditation.
July 13, 2023
This Isabel Dalhousie novel was still charming and thoughtful, just not as gripping as some of the others. Isabel is asked to vet three candidates for the headship of a nearby boarding school, feeling obliged she takes it on and finds the affair complicated by one of them being her neice Cat's new boyfriend. Juggling life with baby Charlie, partner Jamie, plans for weddings, work for the Review of Applied Ethics and the machinations of her nemesis Christopher Dove, this is a low key reflection on the subject of family, and of the place of gossip in a small community which Edinburgh, despite it's status as a city, is beneath the surface. Deftly written.
November 30, 2020
"There are so many grudges we can hole against the past and for the love and approval that we did not get from it. But if we forgive, then the past can lost its power to hurt."
The seventh installment of Isabel Dalhousie is still entertaining, if less charming that what I've previously read.
My top 3 books in this series:
The Sunday Philosophy Club (#1)
Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (#2)
The Lost Art of Gratitude (#6)
The seventh installment of Isabel Dalhousie is still entertaining, if less charming that what I've previously read.
My top 3 books in this series:
The Sunday Philosophy Club (#1)
Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (#2)
The Lost Art of Gratitude (#6)
April 29, 2023
Always puts me in a good mood to read a new book in this delightful series set in beautiful Edinburgh!
March 9, 2015
This author can be relied on to provide a good read, and this is no exception. I think I just skipped over most of the books in this series (the Isabel Dalhousie novels), but it doesn't really matter, I'd still enjoy all the ones I haven't read, even if I have jumped to the most recent book. While I have read his novels in the Number One Ladies' Detective Agency series as soon as I could get my hands on them, I have been saving the Isabel Dalhousie series for a rainy day. That is, when the sad day comes that this author stops writing, I want to have some of his books still ahead of me to read, and not have already run through them all. Luckily, there a still a handful I have not read, so I'm not going to rush out and read them right away. The Isabel Dalhousie books are set in contemporary Edinburgh, Scotland, and she's the editor of the Journal of Applied Ethics, and finds herself called to help people with various problems. Pretty much the opposite of hard-boiled detective stories, which may be why I like them. Hard-boiled can be great, when done well, but not every story has to feature bloody mayhem from end-to-end, thank heavens.
January 9, 2011
Isabel's thought after a brief hug from her son Charlie, "That was the lot of the mother of sons; one embraced and held them, but even in their tenderness they were struggling to get away, and would."
OK, that sentence isn't particularly relevant to the book. It's just one of the many Isabel Dalhousie thoughts that I found myself going back and reading again. As the mother of sons I found it poignant, especially those last two words "and would".
I don't really read these books for the mystery, but for the insights into human nature. Isabel is brilliant, kind, curious, caring, highly moral, but not without her flaws. In this book she confronts once again some insecurities about her relationship with her young fiance, Jaime. At times she feels more like a jealous teenager than an adult philosopher. But she does not lose sight of the commitments she takes on to answer some knotty questions. Questions involving three applicants for a teaching position - are there skeletons in the closet?
OK, that sentence isn't particularly relevant to the book. It's just one of the many Isabel Dalhousie thoughts that I found myself going back and reading again. As the mother of sons I found it poignant, especially those last two words "and would".
I don't really read these books for the mystery, but for the insights into human nature. Isabel is brilliant, kind, curious, caring, highly moral, but not without her flaws. In this book she confronts once again some insecurities about her relationship with her young fiance, Jaime. At times she feels more like a jealous teenager than an adult philosopher. But she does not lose sight of the commitments she takes on to answer some knotty questions. Questions involving three applicants for a teaching position - are there skeletons in the closet?
October 27, 2010
I was somewhat disappointed by the latest Dalhousie novel. It wasn't as engaging as usual and the storyline is wearing thin. Not the Jamie/Isabel storyline, but the actual mystery she is asked to solve. I am hoping the next novel will be more lively and embedded in a solid story.
I agree with one of the other reviewers that her persisting anguish and insecurity with regard to Jamie's reasons for being attracted to her is starting to become slightly annoying, though understandable. It makes her stand out as an over self-conscious woman rather than the wise and savvy woman of the world she was at the start of the series. Maybe the author could give her back her mojo?
I agree with one of the other reviewers that her persisting anguish and insecurity with regard to Jamie's reasons for being attracted to her is starting to become slightly annoying, though understandable. It makes her stand out as an over self-conscious woman rather than the wise and savvy woman of the world she was at the start of the series. Maybe the author could give her back her mojo?
May 30, 2014
Oh, Mr. Smith, I'm so disappointed. I enjoy The Ladies Number One Detective Agency series because of the strength and integrity of Smith's main character, Precious Ramotswe. The heroine in this series, however, is becoming more cloying and needy in each installment. Get over it, Isabel Dalhousie! Jamie loves you even though you're older. That plot point is getting old. Although Isabel's philosophical conundrums are thought provoking, they, along with the cozy glimpse into Scottish life, are hardly enough to drive a plot forward. That being said, I'm sure I'll read the next one. "In for a penny, in for a pound", as they say.
April 1, 2015
3.99 stars. A lovely use of my leisure time. I enjoy spending time in Isabel's head. And I am sure I would enjoy visiting Scotland. But as described here, lordy, these Scots are a tongue-tied bunch. Makes me realize I am happy to be an oversharing American. Once I laughed out loud which is not an experience I expect to have while reading these books. Unfortunately I can't remember what prompted the laughter.
December 6, 2018
Винаги може да се разчита на Александър Макол Смит да те разведри с неговите приятни и малко наивни истории за живота на Изабел Далхаузи. Толкова е хубав този свят, в който дори шокиращите и заплетени мистерии намират съвсем обикновено обяснение и животът продължава своя спокоен и приятен ход.
March 10, 2015
The Charming Quirks of Others, by Alexander McCall Smith, is the seventh in his Isabel Dalhousie series, and once again finds Isabel ruminating about a variety of ethical and philosophical dilemmas. This time, she has been asked to look into the backgrounds of three men who are short-listed as possible replacements for a headmaster at a private boys' school, after the head of the board of directors of the school receives an anonymous letter suggesting that there are unsavory secrets hidden in one unidentified candidate's past. Isabel has also received a rather imperious letter from one of her nemeses, Professor Lettuce, who intends to write a review of a new book written by her other nemesis, Christopher Dove, for publication in her quarterly journal, the Review of Applied Ethics, with neither a request from Isabel nor a by-your-leave touch of humility from Lettuce; and she has learned that another woman, a young woman who is pathetically dying without ever having experienced physical love, has been importuning Jamie to correct that situation before it's too late, even as Jamie is suggesting to Isabel that they finally get around to getting married, almost two years after their child Charlie was born....As always, the dilemmas are both gentle and thought-provoking, and as always, with some help from Jamie Isabel resolves them to at least her own satisfaction. What struck me most about this entry in the ongoing series is how much the sense of place, of Edinburgh, permeates the narrative - just as Donna Leon's Venice, or Andrea Camilleri's Sicily are in many ways the heart and soul of those series, so McCall Smith's Edinburgh is passionately evoked, the kind of writing that can only come from the author's deep understanding of and love for a particular place. Wonderful.
April 4, 2019
I was obsessed with the Isabel Dalhousie series this time three years ago, and recently found myself wanting their (somewhat predictable) charms again. I would class these books as ‘comfort reading’ for several reasons: the genteel Edinburgh setting, the ethically minded protagonist, and finally, the description of a world in which music, poetry and art are the stuff of daily ‘higher’ life. Although each book features at least one ‘mystery’ for Isabel to unravel, not to mention a few personal quandaries, human nature in McCall Smith’s books is flawed, but never evil or base. I like and sympathise with Isabel - who lives a privileged life, but is well aware of that fact. Even amidst her comforts and privileges, she is self-aware enough to realise that it can be extraordinarily difficult to always act ‘rightly’ - even if one’s ‘business’ is ethics and philosophy. Still, Isabel tries; and for the most part, succeeds admirably.
Isabel and her younger musician partner Jamie are on the verge of marriage in this book, and Isabel is suddenly shaken by doubt about whether or not she can truly trust Jamie - and the idea of love and commitment for one person. She is also made uncomfortably aware of the fact that she might love Jamie, at least partly, for his beauty. (She would like to think it is only for his goodness.) A rather lacklustre subplot (which draws on Isabel’s sleuthing and human nature probing skills) is ostensibly about a job search for the Head of a private boys’ school, but also turns out to be more to do with jealousy and possessiveness.
I still enjoyed the premise and spirit of this series , and yet I felt like this particular instalment was a bit perfunctory in execution.
Isabel and her younger musician partner Jamie are on the verge of marriage in this book, and Isabel is suddenly shaken by doubt about whether or not she can truly trust Jamie - and the idea of love and commitment for one person. She is also made uncomfortably aware of the fact that she might love Jamie, at least partly, for his beauty. (She would like to think it is only for his goodness.) A rather lacklustre subplot (which draws on Isabel’s sleuthing and human nature probing skills) is ostensibly about a job search for the Head of a private boys’ school, but also turns out to be more to do with jealousy and possessiveness.
I still enjoyed the premise and spirit of this series , and yet I felt like this particular instalment was a bit perfunctory in execution.
February 3, 2014
I'm sorry - I realize there is a huge following of this series but I am finding Ms. Dalhousie more boring and hypocritical. There's actually a point in this book where she's talking to another woman at a party and the woman ends the conversation and walks way and Isabel observes that "She thinks I'm boring." Yeah - she's not the only one. I also find her wishy washy jealousy and insecurity with Jamie scream worthy. She's definitely not a confident woman and she isn't that smart really. I have no problem with Jamie's 'feminine' side (my husband is very sensitive) but he comes across sometimes as a real weenie. And, I don't think Isabel realizes it, but Cat probably finds her completely insufferable and that's the real reason their relationship isn't that great. I hate to just drop this series but I'm seriously considering it.
Oh, and not to spoil anything but there's not real mysteries here. The premise is that a woman and her husband ask Isabel to 'research' 3 applicants for a job - all we find out is that the man who's going to leave is a philanderer and the 3 applicants all have issues. I think a good internet search would've probably accomplished the same thing and in a lot less time.
Oh, and not to spoil anything but there's not real mysteries here. The premise is that a woman and her husband ask Isabel to 'research' 3 applicants for a job - all we find out is that the man who's going to leave is a philanderer and the 3 applicants all have issues. I think a good internet search would've probably accomplished the same thing and in a lot less time.
June 6, 2011
I find Alexander McCall Smith's novels entertaining and quick reads, yet somewhat condescending, sometimes annoying and not very satisfying. I will rank AMS high on the storytelling ability scale and perhaps that's what draws me back to his series.
This seventh book in the Isabel Dalhousie/Sunday Philosophy Club series finds more tension than usual between Jamie and Isabel and the (remote) possibility that their relationship might be in trouble. Isabel manages to sleuth out the primary cause of their problems, makes contact with a distant relative, and deals with a minor mystery of an anonymous letter. As usual, Isabel deals with how much to get involved and the moral and ethical dilemmas of everyday life.
Thanks to my sister for suggesting an audio interview with Alexander McCall Smith at this link.
This seventh book in the Isabel Dalhousie/Sunday Philosophy Club series finds more tension than usual between Jamie and Isabel and the (remote) possibility that their relationship might be in trouble. Isabel manages to sleuth out the primary cause of their problems, makes contact with a distant relative, and deals with a minor mystery of an anonymous letter. As usual, Isabel deals with how much to get involved and the moral and ethical dilemmas of everyday life.
Thanks to my sister for suggesting an audio interview with Alexander McCall Smith at this link.
January 12, 2012
As always, Alexander McCall Smith offers his readers a pleasing confection. This book, the seventh in his Isabel Dalhousie series, is shelved in the mystery section of my public library, even though calling these books mysteries is a real stretch. What's most enjoyable about this series are the frequent internal monologues wherein Isabel meditates on whatever is going on around her or in her own mind. Inevitably she criticizes herself and her own thoughts, even though we know that she is pretty comfortable being who she is. When she hears something worrisome, she panics instantly, but of course, she does not want her distress to show. She can be petty, but she then reminds herself that pettiness is not a characteristic she wishes to display to other. And she can be kind, and then reminds herself that with all her advantages kindness is the least she can return to other. Reading these books is definitely a pleasure--guilt is unnecessary. Enjoy.
December 1, 2010
This series is rather ho-hum. The author's message is similar to that of his more popular series, the Ladies' Detective Agency, in that he shows us we're all human and does it in a gentle way. However, this series is plodding where that one is light-hearted, uplifting, and fun to read. My biggest complaint might be that the main character is a philosopher, someone who ordinarily is logical in his or her thought patterns, but Isabel Dalhousie instead repeatedly jumps to wild conclusions on the barest of evidence. It seems improbable to me. I'd give this book 2.5 stars. I'm not sure why, but every time I finish a book in this series I say that's the last one, and yet I still borrow the next one from my library. I guess there must be something there for me, but I wish the author would allow this character and her relationships to grow and mature.
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