Holy Terror in the Hebrides (Dorothy Martin Mysteries, No. 3) [Mass Market Paperback]

Jeanne M. Dams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 9, 1998

Vacation can be murder...

A peaceful vacation on the charming Scottish island of Iona sounds idyllic to sometime sleuth Dorothy Martin. But Dorothy soon finds that while Iona is charming, her vacation won't be peaceful. Thrown in with a bickering American church tour, she tries to keep her distance. But she can't stay away from murder.

Everybody believes the unpleasant American's fatal fall from a cliff is accidental. Everybody, that is, except Dorothy. The only witness, she saw a small clue the police dismiss, one that makes her believe the death was not an accident. With the police closing the case, Dorothy feels bound to investigate. But it's a choice she may regret...

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Series (Trouble in the Town Hall, LJ 10/1/96) sleuth Dorothy Martin, an American who retired to England, confronts murder once again. While touring a Scottish island, she investigates the "accidental" death of a young American in Fingal's Cave. A delightful continuation.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Sixtyish Dorothy Martin, a widowed American now living in the English village of Sheresbury (Trouble in the Town Hall, 1996, etc.), happily accepts an invitation from friends Tom and Lynn Anderson to spend two weeks on the tiny island of Iona in Scotland. When Tom's illness delays the couple's departure, though, Dorothy makes the journey alone. Discovering that she's left the key to their cottage at home, Dorothy checks into a small hotel run by Hester and Andrew Campbell. A group from Illinois is also staying there--the winners of a contest to find the most community- dedicated members of various Chicago churches, with Rabbi Jake Goldstein subbing for a Quaker winner stricken with appendicitis. Iona is a stop on their tour, and no one seems happy about it--or with one another: Sister Teresa, a feminist nun in mufti; elegant Unitarian Grace Desmond; Hattie Mae Brown, a Baptist choir leader; Lutheran organist Chris Olafson; unctuous, unpopular youth leader Bob Williams; and short-fused garden-designer Janet Douglas, a Presbyterian. A sight-seeing excursion to Fingal's Cave makes a slow-moving Dorothy, arriving after others have left, the only witness when Bob Williams falls to his death from a rocky height. She becomes obsessed with the idea that the fall was murder, not accident, and spends the rest of her stay trying to prove it. Some interesting characters, a graphic description of a humongous storm, and a picture of the island's craggy isolation are well done. But Dorothy's relentless and self-absorbed maunderings, along with a nearly nonexistent plot, bring the third in this series closer to chatty travel guide than mystery. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: HarperTorch (December 9, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061013463
• ISBN-13: 978-0061013461
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #788,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brush off your tartans, and roll your RRRs ...., November 28, 2000

By 

Mamalinde "mamalinde" (Dallas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Holy Terror in the Hebrides (Dorothy Martin Mysteries, No. 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

Dorothy Martin, an American widow with arthritic knees and a penchant for hats, travels with the reader into this cozy mystery set on a dramatic island off the coast of Scotland. Bright flowers, glorious hiking, historic landmarks, mislaid keys, heavenly meals, a canny cat, travel to the dark and mysterious island of Staffa, even a cure for seasickness, factor into a fun and clever whodunit. When one of the members of an acrimonious church group is lost and presumed drowned in Fingal's cave, Dorothy senses more than knows that it is murder. Back at the beautiful island, she puzzles out the numerous motives, as a major storm blows an ill wind across the island. Better batten down the hatches, this one is exciting.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A charming English cozy, June 19, 2000

By 

Sheila L. Beaumont (South Pasadena, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Holy Terror in the Hebrides (Dorothy Martin Mysteries, No. 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is the third in Jeanne M. Dams' delightful English cozy series featuring Dorothy Martin, a retired American schoolteacher living in Sherebury, England. In this adventure, our heroine, en route to a vacation on the Scottish island of Iona, finds herself on a bus with an ill-assorted, bickering American church tour group headed for the same idyllic destination. Dorothy's holiday turns out to be anything but peaceful: An obnoxious American is killed in a fall from a cliff in Fingal's Cave, and Dorothy suspects murder. As if that weren't enough, the island is hit by an extremely violent storm. This is a wonderful series, with a charming sleuth and many likable characters. I recommend beginning with the first novel, "The Body in the Transept," and reading the books in order, so you can become acquainted with Dorothy and her friends.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Nonexistent plot., October 23, 1999

By 

Sharon Wylie (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Holy Terror in the Hebrides (Dorothy Martin Mysteries, No. 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

I really enjoy the Dorothy Martin character; she's wonderfully self-confident and true to herself at all times. But this book is just barely a mystery--I felt really let down at the end. Great characters and interesting setting can't make up for a weak (to be generous) plot.