The Careful Use of Compliments

Isabel Dalhousie's life has accumulated new complications: a newborn son named Charlie, a marriage proposal from his father Jamie, and a professional humiliation when she is ousted as editor of the Review of Applied Ethics by a man she thoroughly dislikes. Into this personal turbulence arrives an irresistible puzzle: two paintings attributed to a deceased artist have appeared on the art market simultaneously, and at least one of them must be false. Isabel investigates with the philosophical diligence the series has made its signature.

Davina Porter's narration has defined the Isabel Dalhousie series for audio listeners, her voice suited to the Edinburgh setting and the character's particular blend of intellectual intensity and genuine warmth. The fourth entry finds Isabel navigating the domestic and the detecting with the gentle comedy that distinguishes McCall Smith's approach to the form. At just over eight hours, The Careful Use of Compliments offers the series' reliable pleasures: good company, considered thought, and a mystery that earns its quiet resolution.