Customer Reviews

Death of a Scriptwriter

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Having very much enjoyed reading the "Death of a ______" series by M. C. Beaton, and having viewed the Hamish Macbeth BBC TV series, I thought I might venture into the review area and offer my opinions.
I understand that the BBC series of Hamish Macbeth uses similar person and place names and as the book, but frankly, the similarity ends there. The TV series characters are so different than those in the book that I didn't really enjoy any of the episodes I watched, which included all of season one, and some of season 2. I love the intelligent, sensitive, personable, and caring Hamish represented so well in the books. Macbeth in the TV series seems more like a petty criminal, who is selfish, unprincipled, bumbling, short tempered, and irresponsible. I found nothing in him to like, and couldn't bring myself to finish watching the series although the DVDs for all three seasons were available to me.
I have sometimes wondered whether the 14th book in the series, titled "Death of a Scriptwriter" might have been the authors way of expressing her disapproval about the way the TV series [miss-] portrayed her beloved characters. I will not say much about that book's story line, but the book did discuss the way TV scripts often end up taking literature and turning it into popular tripe. I can not help but wonder if it is purely coincidence that the series ran from 1995-1997, and this book came out in 1998.
I have loved the books, and have especially enjoyed listening to the series in audio book format. There have been two primary narrators in the audio series, Davina Porter in earlier books, and Graeme Malcolm in the later set. Both readers were excellent, bringing strong talent and individual strengths and insights to their narrations. I have especially enjoyed hearing the feminine and masculine perspectives given by Davina and Graeme respectively as they read the separate books. Of course the insights were written into the book by the author, Marion Chesney (M. C. Beaton), but I think I can better understand how Priscilla Halliburton Smythe feels about her situation hearing Davina read, and I have likewise always felt that Graeme seems to capture Hamish particularly well, giving life and voice to the lovable Highland Constable.
I can heartily recommend the series to the reader, or listener, but be forewarned-- You will not be able to enjoy the BBC TV series of the same name after reading the books, because it has none of the charm and wholesome appeal that so much fill the pages of every book.
--Mike Beier