2.5 ⭐️

This had some enjoyable elements, but unfortunately, it wasn't quite the book for me.

What I liked:
I enjoyed the charming, cosy Scottish town setting — I love the atmosphere and the sense of community that these kinds of mysteries typically bring.

What I didn't like:
The writing style wasn't my personal preference, and the pacing felt slower than l'd have liked, making it harder to stay fully invested in the plot. Also, a few threads felt unresolved by the end of the book. That said, as this is the first in a series, I'm sure those elements will be resolved in later books.

Overall, I don't think I was the intended audience for this book, though I can see it appealing to those who enjoy a gentler, more laid-back cosy mystery.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Murder In The Scottish Highlands, An Ally McKinley mystery by D McDonnell, Allison McKinley a pensioner went to the West Highlands in Scotland for vacation and loved it so much she moved there and after renovating her cottage she started renting out rooms to make her money go even further but when one of her first guest Wilbur, the American on a mission is murdered, Ally is astonished and doesn’t know what to do. At first however she truly believes investigating inspector constable Rigby does but when no progress is made on the case and there is another murder Ally takes it upon herself to solve the crimes. Just to give a quick overview because there’s lots to the book Allie is gifted a dog by one of the lead suspects Wilbur‘s brother and fiancé both come to stay in Ally‘s guest rooms, despite her age she has Queenie at the one and only grocery store thinking she is man crazy, because she starts dating the most eligible bachelor in town. Aly is making new friends but her investigation also causes her to lose her loyal employee. Can Allie solve the crime save her reputation get her friends/employee back and continue to be happy in the Highlands? You have to read the book to find out I laughed out loud while reading this book more than once. I do want to say however to Miss McDonald if someone who is American would use their birthday the date would come after the month and not vice versa but that’s neither here nor there not a negative nor positive just an observation from a big fan. This is a great start to a funny cozy mystery that I definitely want to continue reading. #NetGalley, #DMcDonald, #AMurderInTheScottishHighlands

It's autumn already and quite the perfect timing for a cosy mystery. I love mysteries in general but cannot claim to have read more than a few 'cosy' mysteries. This one is set in the beautiful and pristine Scottish Highlands - the land of whiskey. While these lands are in my travel wish list, this cosy book set a perfect parlance of life in the apparently quiet but gossipy villages.
A few days after Ally McKinley retired and set up a B&B in an old malthouse in the village of Locharran, her first guest, an American, was found murdered with a skean dhu. Events spiralled like the biggest ripple in the quietest pond and more murders happened. Ally, determined to save her B&B and genuinely concerned to solve the mystery, joined hands with a few allies.
I liked the characters and the backdrop, perfectly set and moulded by the author. It is the plot and the writing style that did not entirely agree with my psyche. The plot is, well, basic and the writing is a little archaic to my taste. It was alright as a one time read.

I am clearly in the minority here, but I never felt drawn into this story enough to care about any of the characters. So much explaining (how many times do we need to hear that Ally was formerly a TV researcher?). At times the verbiage bothered me (that a character would "freak out," for example, did not seem fitting here), and at other times I was bothered by patriarchal ideals I guess, such as saying a character might look attractive "if introduced to some makeup," which struck me as a strange way for a female author to describe a female character, albeit through the perspective of the FMC.
Just not for me, and I probably would have DNFd except that I received an early copy from NetGalley and thought I should try harder to finish by the deadline.

Ally, recently retired, now runs a new B&B in a small village in Scotland far from the bustle of Edinburgh where she worked as a tv researcher. When one of her residents is murdered in her own yard, and the local police seem baffled, Ally decides to take things into her own hands. Wilbur Carrington, an obnoxious American who believes he is the right Earl of the local area, had grand plans for the estate which would mean most of the villagers who were dependent on the estate for both their living and their housing, and the Earl himself, had plenty of reasons to want him dead. Plus when his less than grieving brother and a suspicious fiancée show up, Ally is nearly drowning in all the possible suspects.

This is the first in a new cozy series so there is time spent on the introduction of characters and the background of how Ally came to be in this location but the murder happens in the first chapter which moves things along nicely. I enjoyed the characters who weren't bland: from the lecherous laird to the overbearing postmistress, her cranky housekeeper, the warm and competent main character and an adorable dog holds promise for a good ongoing series.

The mystery was satisfying with plenty of suspects, red herrings and a satisfactory end. I would definitely read more of this series. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Love a main character that is female and not 25. Women don’t disappear after we grow up :) Ally is a smart woman and I enjoyed getting to know her in this first book. The mystery was well thought out and started in the first chapter, which is always nice! The local gossip and Queenie and her sister are such a fun part of a small town mystery. Can’t wait to get more acquainted with these characters as the series grows, as I enjoyed this enough to want to read the next in the series whenever it release.

I really enjoyed this book, a very easy read. I cared about the characters and the plot was interesting - I read the book within 24 hours. I physically read the book, but I think it would be good as an audiobook. I think busy people (such as mums with young children) would like this book as it’s easy to read, follow the plot even when distracted. I want to read the sequel now.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the free ARC ebook.

I really enjoyed reading this one. I spent a lot of time in Scotland over the summer and got this book purely for the setting. I thought it was well written and a fun cozy mystery. I'm really looking forward to this series and where it will go from here!

A solid start to a new cozy mystery series. I loooove the setting and the mystery was satisfying. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

I opted to request this ARC solely for the Highland vibes - I love a Scottish cozy. While I didn't find the plot or character development to be top notch, this was a quick and easy read that had the wild and perilous turns towards the end that I've come to expect from this genre.

**3.5-stars rounded up **

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Murder in the Scottish Highlands is the 1st-book in the all-new Ally McKinley Mystery series.

This series is set in the, you guessed it, Scottish Highlands, and follows recently retired, Ally McKinley, who fell in love with the small village of Locharran while on holiday. Shortly thereafter, she purchased the dilapidated old malthouse to transform it into a B&B. After an extensive renovation, the B&B has now opened and Ally is slowly adjusting to life in Locharran. It's quite a change of pace for her in comparison to bustling-Edinburgh. Her new life is up-ended though when her first paying customer, an American tourist, Wilbur Carrington, is found dead with a dagger in his back in the Malthouse courtyard.

Murder is not good for business. Ally needs to get this mystery cleared up and quickly if she has any hope of actually making the Malthouse B&B a success. The local police seem baffled, so Ally decides to take matters into her own hands. As a retired television researcher, Ally is used to digging deep to get answers. She doesn't plan to stop until she figures out the truth behind Carrington's murder.

This was so cute. IMO, a great start to a new Cozy Mystery series. I loved how quickly MacDonald kicked it off, delivering us a body in the 1st-Chapter, which was great as it left so much time for solving the mystery. I also really enjoyed Ally as a main character. She's smart and resourceful. Additionally, I found her reasons for being there and her motivations behind the B&B understandable.

The setting, as well, was really fun. I felt like MacDonald succeeded in bringing all the small village vibes. Even the landscapes were described beautifully. I had no issues picturing where we were and I was loving every minute of it. It was occasionally wonky in places, but overall, it kept me smiling and engaged throughout. I feel like, as with many Cozy Mystery series, I will enjoy each consecutive book more and more as I become attached to this quirky cast of characters. There's a lot of room for this series to grow. I'm looking forward to it!

Thank you to the publisher, Bookouture, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I love getting in on a Cozy Mystery series early, and I def plan to stick with this one!

3.5 (rounded down to 3)

This was a fun murder mystery with a beautiful setting, I liked how or main character was a newcomer to the village so any information we were directly told by characters felt like it was more casual and not just an information block. My rating is as such as I preferred the first ~70% to the final 30 but it was still overall a good time and I still have positive opinions of the book, this is an author I’ll look to read more from in future.

It kind of felt predictable and over the top which wasnt really my cup of tea. I feel like if this had been a movie in the style of "See how they run" I would have enjoyed it but on paper it was just a tad odd.

5 stars
This was such a cute, cozy first novel with this protagonist Ally McKinley, a semi-retired woman from the big city who moves to Locharran, a tiny village in the Scottish Highlands, to open a bed and breakfast (a.k.a. guesthouse) in an old, converted Scottish malthouse. A malthouse that is apparently haunted, by the way, though that is not even the main plot of the story! When one of her first paying guests is discovered stabbed to death outside in the garden one morning, Ally is inevitably sucked in to the investigation due to her curious nature and the fact that the murder is affecting her small business. Who killed her American guest? Does it have anything to do with the Earl of Locharran, who's a bit of a lothario but ultimately seems harmless? And how come so many of the locals seem to have their own motives for wanting the visitor dead?

Ally is a thoroughly easy character to like - smart, sensible, yet slightly confused/amused by the way rumours seem to run rampant in such a tiny village, especially speculation about her love life (or lack thereof). And all the other village characters are also fleshed out quite well; I get the feeling that certain people, places and things that get introduced in this novel will be important in future stories. Maybe even one where perhaps the local ghost legend is the focal point? Ultimately, I really enjoyed this cozy mystery, so much so that I can't wait until the next Ally McKinley story comes out!

Thank you to NetGalley, author Dee MacDonald, and Bookouture publishing for providing me with a digital ARC to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Ally McKinley, newly retired and widowed, decides to follow her heart and buy a rundown Malthouse in a highland village. She needs an income source and wants to meet people, so she turns it into a bed and breakfast. Everything is going to plan until there is a tragic death on her property, and when the police investigation seems to stall, she decides to investigate. I like the setting for this story: a small community with villagers with firm opinions and a tendency to gossip. There is a realistic mix of likeable and less likeable characters, both villagers and tourists, and the list of suspects is large. Friendship and even the chance of romance feature in Ally's new life as she tries to get to the root cause of the death. I like the charismatic characters, the clever mystery and the climactic conclusion.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

“ For recently retired Ally McKinley, the tiny village of Locharran is the perfect place to open the guesthouse of her dreams in a lovingly restored old Scottish malthouse. Before long she is making friends with the locals, including Hamish Sinclair, the earl who owns the nearby castle. But things take an unexpected turn when her first paying guest, American tourist Wilbur Carrington, is found sprawled across her cobblestoned courtyard with a dagger in his back…”

This is a finely told story, setting us in a community with quirky and likeable characters.
The central murder is of an American who has designs on this community and we are drawn into a clever mystery.

(Rounded down from 3.5 stars) Murder in the Scottish Highlands is a good start to a new cozy mystery series set in (obviously) the Scottish Highlands. It features a 60-something widow, Ally, who decides on a new chapter in her life and moves from Edinburgh after having had an old “malthouse” renovated into a small Bed & Breakfast in a small village.

The mystery is a good one - who killed the American who was staying in her guesthouse? He had been blabbing about him doing research that showed he’s the real Earl and that he had plans to turn the entire Earl’s estate into a sort of theme park, which would mean locals losing their jobs for the current Earl as well as turning out the Earl’s long-term tenants. So there are a lot of people who might want this guy dead!

Ally’s background is in doing research for a TV station in Edinburgh and she decides (of course) to get involved because she doesn’t think the local detective is doing enough to solve the case.

I enjoyed all the side characters and the Highland atmosphere (it’s a place I’d dearly love to visit one day). The amount and speed of the local gossip was pretty amazing to this city girl.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read a review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Ally McKinley recently retired has bought an old malt house in the village of Locharran.
She loves the setting and renovates the malt house so she can open a small guest house .
She is steadily making friends with the locals when one of her guests is found dead with a knife in his back , he is an American called Wilbur Carrington .
Apparently researching his background and his ancestry and annoying the locals it seems he is not short of enemies ,he is claiming that he is the Earl of Locharran.
After proving his title he has plans for the local area which could include people losing their employment therefore he manages to ruffle more than a few feathers.
Ally begins to look in to Wilbur's murder and in turn learns more about the locals and also about Wilbur’s family .
A perfect cosy mystery .
An enjoyable read !
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture.

I am a sucker for the Scottish Highlands as a setting in a book, throw in a mystery and I am all in. This is a delicious cozy mystery that introduces us to Ally who has recently retired to run her B&B and what happens but a dead body. This book is full of humor, and is fun & entertaining to boot. I highly recommend this cozy mystery.

EXCERPT: Ally tapped gently. Then, getting no answer, knocked more loudly. 'You OK, Mr Carrington?'
No response. She opened the door.
The room was empty. The bed had not been slept in, the curtains had not been closed and the complimentary tea tray had not been touched.
Bewildered, Ally was making her way back towards the door when she heard a loud scream from somewhere below, outside at the back of the building, where the old malthouse outbuildings - now her laundry room and shed - surrounded a cobblestoned courtyard. Leaning out of the window, which overlooked the courtyard, Ally spotted Morag in her familiar purple anorak, her handover her mouth, staring in horror at the prone figure spreadeagled at her feet. Straight away Ally recognised his distinctive greying-red hair, and the newly acquired Barbour and tartan scarf. What drew her eye most especially, however, was the horn-handled dagger protruding from the centre of his back.
Mr Carrington's back.
Wilbur S. Carrington as he liked to sign his name.

ABOUT 'MURDER IN THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS': For recently retired Ally McKinley, the tiny village of Locharran is the perfect place to open the guesthouse of her dreams in a lovingly restored old Scottish malthouse. Before long she is making friends with the locals, including Hamish Sinclair, the earl who owns the nearby castle. But things take an unexpected turn when her first paying guest, American tourist Wilbur Carrington, is found sprawled across her cobblestoned courtyard with a dagger in his back…

With the police baffled, Ally’s instincts get the better of her, and she can’t resist launching her own investigation. In no time at all she and her Labrador puppy Flora are on the case, making enquiries over tea and excellent shortbread. She finds that Wilbur, a keen amateur genealogist, was convinced that he was the rightful Earl of Locharran… Even worse, he had plans that would put many people out of their jobs and even their homes.

But which of the locals resorted to murder? The hotel owner furiously trying to save his business? Locharran Castle’s fiercely loyal housekeeper who’d do anything for the earl? Or the earl himself, whose entire way of life was threatened by what Wilbur knew?

Looking for clues, Ally finds a faded photograph in a hidden drawer in Wilbur’s room. Could this be the key to solving the mystery? But when one of her suspects dies in a suspicious accident, Ally realises that things are getting a wee bit too close for comfort… Can she uncover the truth, or will a killer get off scot-free?

MY THOUGHTS: Murder in the Scottish Highlands is the first in a new series by Dee MacDonald featuring the newly retired Ally McKinley. Her children think her quite mad - moving to the middle of nowhere and starting a business at her age! Even Ally occasionally wonders at her sanity in coming to a remote place where everyone seems to know everyone else's business and the locals swing like a pendulum from welcoming to downright hostile in the blink of an eye.

As this is the first in a series, there is a lot of getting to know the characters; and characters they are. There's a kind but lecherous laird, the acid-tongued Queenie and her downtrodden sister Bessie who run the general store, a lovely black labrador pup named Flora, and a handsome vet, amongst others.

This is not a town which greets strangers with open arms. Quite the opposite. So when a brash American arrives at the B&B upsetting the locals with his ridiculous claims, is it any wonder he winds up dead?

I enjoyed this cosy-mystery with its vast pool of suspects. There are many humorous, but not silly, moments and the plot flows well. I like Ally's character and that she doesn't over-rate her own abilities and put herself into dangerous situations. This is a well thought out and constructed novel.

I enjoyed this author's Kate Palmer series, and the Ally McKinley series shows promise of being every bit as good. I'll definitely be reading the next book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.2

#MurderintheScottishHighlands #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: Dee MacDonald grew up on an isolated farm in the Scottish Highlands. An only child, she’d often get fed up with reading and listening to a crackling radio, so her mother encouraged her to draw and to write ‘wee stories’, which she’d sew together into little books.

As an adult, her working life took her all over the globe as an air stewardess, into the world of TV, where she worked in Market Research and Sales, and then into hospitality, running B&Bs for over ten years.

After first finding her love of writing as a little girl, Dee became a published author of cosy crime and women’s fiction in her seventies. She lives by the sea in Cornwall with her husband, and has one son and two grandsons.

DISCLSORE: Thank you to Bookouture via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of Murder in the Scottish Highlands by Dee MacDonald for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.