**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.

A delightful murder mystery and an excellent start to a new series. Set in the village of Locharran, Ally McKinley is recently retired and embarking on a new life running her own B&B in a restored Scottish malt house - complete with its own ghost. She quickly makes new friends amongst this close knit community and she’s settling into her new life when her first guest, American Wilbur Carrington, is found murdered in her courtyard.

The story has good pace with some interesting twists and turns as Ally investigates Wilbur’s murder and also his claim that he was the rightful Earl of Locharran. The characters are well developed and there is a nice balance of humour.

A real page turner and eagerly looking forward to Ally’s next adventure.

I love being in on the first installment of a new cozy mytery series and this one was engaging and fun to read. I also love a protagonist who is, shall we say, a “woman of a certain age” who is intelligent, strong, and interesting. Ally McKinley is starting a new life with a bed and breakfast in the Highlands when one of her guests ends up murdered!

I enjoyed this novel and definitely look forward to more in the series!

Thanks for letting me be part of the tour and for my copy.

I enjoy cosy mysteries a lot, and was very excited that this new series is set in the Highlands, one of my favourite places. I liked the main character and her backstory, as well as the characters from the village. The murder plot was fine, although some parts didn't make too much sense for me. In any case, I definitely want to read the second book but this first one is promising for the rest of the series.

Thank you to the publisher who provided me with an e-copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

"Murder in the Scottish Highlands" by Dee MacDonald is a captivating start to the Ally McKinley Mystery series. The story follows Ally McKinley, who leaves Edinburgh for the charming hamlet of Locharran. There, she transforms the Auld Malthouse into a delightful B&B. When an American guest is tragically found dead, Ally is determined to uncover the perpetrator, especially as a second death rocks the peaceful village. With her endearing puppy, Flora, the charming vet, Ross, and the town gossips, Queenie and Bessie, the book weaves an engaging tale. I highly recommend this series and eagerly await Ally's next adventure. Special thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the digital ARC.

BLOG TOUR REVIEW



Review for 'Murder In The Scottish Highlands' by Dee MacDonald
What an absolutely brilliant start to what promises to be yet another addictive series by the extremely talented Dee MacDonald!!

Well, I must admit, after absolutely loving and being addicted to Kate, Woody, Angie, Fergus and Barnie in Dee's absolutely brilliant 'Kate Palmer' series that although I was excited to read this book which is the first in her 'Ally McKinley' series I was also a bit concerned and dubious whether it was going to be as good as her Kate Palmer series or whether I would click with the characters as much as I did with Kate, Woody, Angie, Fergus and Barnie. Well, I am extremely pleased to say that I had absolutely nothing to worry about!! Although I do, daftly enough, feel like I am cheating on Kate and the gang in a way I absolute LOVE Ally just as much as I do Kate. As I have come to expect with Dee her absolutely brilliant, evocative and emotive descriptions really brings the new setting of Locharran in the Scottish Highlands and all the surroundings and characters to life ensuring the reader is really absorbed into the storyline seeing and feeling everything that Ally is seeing and feeling and trying to solve the mystery with her. In this brilliant book we are introduced to our main protagonist Ally McKinley. Ally who is a recently retired researcher visits her friend in Locharran and falls in love. When she notices a building for sale she decides to buy it and renovates it into a gorgeous bed and breakfast called 'The Malthouse'. One morning she realises one of her guests is missing and when she goes looking for him she hears her cleaning lady called Morag screaming. When Ally investigates she discovers the reason that Morag is screaming is because she has discovered the body of the guest and he has been murdered!! When she lacks faith Rigby, the police officer, assigned to the case she is determined to discover the truth and find the killer herself along with the help of her Labrador puppy Flora and several locals. Will Ally be able to find the killer before they strike again? Is she putting herself in danger trying to find them? Grab your copy of this absolutely amazing cosy mystery today to find out for yourselves!! I can promise that you will not regret it!! The storyline takes us on a fun cosy mystery in stunning locations filled with clues, mystery, motives, suspects, red herrings, danger, an adorable puppy and much more!!! This book really is another addictive beauty by the very talented Dee!! One of the things I absolutely adore about Dee's books is that each and every time she creates stunning areas which come to life thanks to her fantastic evocative writing skills. This book is an absolutely fantastic introduction to a brilliant new series and I cannot wait to get stuck into the next book in this series which is called 'Murder At The Loch' and is available to preorder now ready for the publication date of 3rd March 2025.

Clear your schedules as once you've picked this up you won't be able to put it down!! I absolutely devoured it in one sitting as it was 100% addictive!!



These amazing characters are all realistic, strong and an eclectic bunch to say the least. It was really fun learning all of their different characteristics, personalities and backgrounds. I really enjoyed meeting and getting to know all the new characters in this book especially Ally who I really liked and was completely invested in from the beginning. I also liked several of the other characters including the local shop owners Queenie and Bessie who are sisters and massive gossips, Hamish the Earl, Ally's cleaning lady Morag, Ross the vet and many of the other villagers. Dee portrays life in a small community absolutely perfectly!! I live in a small village myself and everybody knows your business sometimes before you even know it yourself, very much like Queenie and Bessie do!!! However, I must admit that my favourite character just HAD TO BE Ally's new puppy Flora!! I am a massive animal lover and even own my own cat rescue called Golden oldies Cat Rescue And Hospice which you can find on social media. therefore, any animals in books are a huge bonus for me and Flora is just absolutely adorable so she has to win best character paws down!! I am definitely looking forward to meeting her again in the next book along with all of the other characters in the hamlet of Locharran . Again, Dee's brilliant descriptions bring each of them all to life and I cannot wait to discover more about them and go on another mystery with Ally in 'Murder At The Loch'. There are a number of new characters to get to know which may take some time especially if you are like me and have come from Dee's 'Kate Palmer' series but I am truly looking forward to making new friends in this series!
Congratulations to Dee MacDonald on yet another absolutely successful and addictive page turning murder mystery and a fantastic introduction to this new series! This is why when I want an addictive cosy mystery which I can read anywhere I hunt your books down and why you are in my top 5 cosy mystery author list!. Here's to you're next success 🥂



Overall an absolutely compelling, addictive and page turning cosy mystery that is perfect to read on front of the fire and a fantastic introduction to a new series!!!


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Murder in the Scottish Highlands is a first in a new cozy mystery series by Dee MacDonald with Ally McKinley as an amateur sleuth.

Ally, recently retired has now started her own business in the Scottish Highlands converting an old Scottish malthouse into a B&B and taking in new guests when one of them is found dead in the courtyard. Ally must help solve the crime before local gossip ruins her chances of success with her B&B.

I loved the descriptions of the quaint Scottish village and instantly took to Ally's charm and wit. This one had cozy written all over it. I found myself being entertained with feel good humour, relatable and interesting characters, village gossip and lots of tea. However, the book kinda dragged in the middle before picking up towards the end where the identity of the killer and their motive was made known.

Overall, a fun read and a great start to the series. I am already looking forward to Ally's next adventure.

Thank you @bookouture for having me on the @booksontour and for the digital advance reader copy to read and review.

This was very cute and cosy but incredibly predictable, like a murder happens but its barely a mystery. I think there is a large audience that will be fine with that, would just advertise that aspect more. Am curious where else the series will go though.

Bed, breakfast and… butchery? It’s not exactly what Ally McKinley had in mind when she decamped from Edinburgh to run a guesthouse in the picturesque village of Locharran in the Scottish Highlands, but she soon discovers that murder and the solving thereof offer a great way of getting to know the locals. Of course, given that recently deceased American tourist Wilbur Carrington had riled everyone up by claiming to be the rightful Earl of Locharran, one of those locals could well be the murderer.

As a result, after Ally finds Wilbur stabbed to death with a skean dhu, body dumped in the courtyard of the Auld Malthouse B&B that she has just opened, there proves to be a plethora of potential killers. The crime has Detective Inspector Bob Rigby flummoxed from the outset—what else could be expected from an English incomer though—so Ally decides to don her metaphorical deerstalker and do a spot of investigating.

Dee MacDonald’s Murder in the Scottish Highlands is the first cosy mystery in a proposed series featuring Ally McKinley and makes for a great introduction to the nascent amateur sleuth. After celebrating her 68th birthday, having been recently widowed and newly retired from her job as a television researcher, Ally decides to move to Locharran in search of a new adventure in life, and she certainly finds herself embroiled in one.

When it becomes clear that the local police are far from accustomed to dealing with murder and Ally happens to remember the likely location of some key documents concerning Wilbur’s claim to the earldom—which she cannily takes copies of before turning them over—she realises that the only way her guestroom is going to cease being a crime scene is if she solves the murder herself.

Her no-nonsense approach to crime solving is convincing and refreshing, as is the fact that she’s not treated as a two-dimensional bumbling or cutesy elderly person. Whether it’s due to the average age in Locharran being higher than the norm or to everyone in the village already being all mixed up in everyone else’s business, Ally’s enquiries are neither dismissed nor condescended to. For an outsider, she fits in well and manages to convince people to talk to her.

She does annoy the police somewhat, largely due to drawing their attention to key evidence and prompting them to actually do some detective work, but she’s always taken seriously. In treating Ally as an amateur investigator who also happens to be a pensioner—rather than as a kooky senior whose curtain-twitching happens to embroil her in crime—MacDonald has created a well-rounded and believable character who more than holds her own when in pursuit of a killer.

Plus, all good amateur detectives should have a special skill that aids them in their investigations—and situates them in an advantageous position compared to the police—and MacDonald has made a wise choice in making Ally a retired television researcher. This background informs her methodical approach to the case and how she is able to track down and interpret key information, and it also equips her to compile an enviable murder board, which she hides from prying eyes behind a painting.

As for those who populate the murder board, the villagers of Locharran are the perfect mix of oddballs, busybodies and suspicious characters. In particular, sisters Queenie and Bessie, who run the gossip hub that is the local shop, are delightfully eccentric, both welcoming Ally to the village and being overtly suspicious of her motives. When Hamish Sinclair, the current Earl of Locharran, takes a interest in her, the conversations around Ally being a potential femme fatale are hilarious. And despite being the most likely suspect, Hamish himself is a very funny and engaging character.

To widen the suspect pool further, MacDonald brings in a couple of outsiders—Wilbur’s fiancée, Mamie Van Nuyen, and his brother, Tyler Carrington. While Tyler is more quiet and conciliatory than his brother, Mamie is just as eccentric as some of the locals, albeit a touch more flamboyant, and they’re both determined to stay at the B&B until Wilbur’s murderer is brought to justice. The detective trio they form with Ally works really well, even if they do spend more time drinking wine than interviewing suspects.

The scene-setting in Murder in the Scottish Highlands is just as rich as the characterisation. MacDonald clearly establishes the features and personality of the Auld Malthouse—including its rumoured ghost, Wailing Willie—and the wider village of Locharran. Both of them quickly develop into realistic and characterful places, and they form a deceptively bucolic background to the murder. Ally’s exploration of the churches and countryside of the surrounding Highlands also splendidly evokes the landscape and atmosphere of the place.

With its intrepid amateur sleuth, eclectic supporting cast, vivid setting and intriguing central puzzle, Murder in the Scottish Highlands is a great start to the Ally McKinley cosy mystery series. The plot races along as Ally throws herself into the role of detective and makes impressive strides towards uncovering all manner of secrets and unmasking the murderer, and she encounters plenty of suspects, clues and red herrings along the way. Plus, the descriptions are so good that no measly murder could spoil the atmosphere of the Highlands.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Watch out Miss Marple, Ally McKinley is on the case! Ally is recently retired and decides to open a guesthouse. Ally is enjoying her new life when her first guest is found murdered on her property. Ally, and her cute puppy Flora, are on the case. This is a quick paced cozy mystery that will keep you glued to your seat.
This book pairs well with a cup of tea. I’m looking forward to the next book in this series! Thank you Bookouture for inviting me to be part of the Books on Tour. Thank you to the author, Bookouture and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
#MurderInTheScottishHighlands #DeeMacDonald #NetGalley #Bookouture #BooksOnTour #BookLove #Bookstagram #NewBook #ILoveBooks #BooksSetInScotland #BooksSetInASmallTown

A good start to a new cozy mystery series featuring Ally McKinley, a widow who moves out of Edinburgh to a small town, restoring an old malt house into a B&B. With her children grown with families of their own, Ally decides to make a new start, feeling comfortable in her small town until her first guest, an American, is murdered in her back yard. Many of the townspeople are suspects, since the American was threatening the status of the Earl, which would displace them and cause them to lose their jobs. I really enjoyed this one and look forward to reading the next installment. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.