M. C. Beaton

Death of a Kingfisher (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries) M. C. Beaton Unabridged edition

When Scotland is hit by recession, police constable Hamish Macbeth notices that the Highland people are forced to come up with inventive ways to lure tourists to their sleepy towns. The quaint village of Braikie doesnt have much to offer, other than a place of rare beauty called Buchans Wood, which was bequeathed to the town. The savvy local tourist director renames the woods The Fairy Glen, and has brochures printed with a beautiful photograph of a kingfisher rising from a pond on the cover. It isnt long before coach tours begin to arrive. But just as the towns luck starts to turn, a kingfisher is found hanging from a branch in the woods with a noose around its neck. As a wave of vandalism threatens to ruin Braikie forever, the town turns to Hamish Macbeth. And when violence strikes again, the lawmans investigation quickly turns from animal cruelty to murder.