Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: Paul English enjoys telling people the truth, or at least his version of it, even if it means hurting their feelings. So, it isn't much of a surprise when he winds up murdered and buried in a bog. Unfortunately for Sergeant Hamish Macbeth , he has a long list of suspects to choose from while, at the same time, trying to protect himself and his constables from the unhinged and murderous Detective Chief Inspector Blair. Review: Roughly two years ago, I wanted to take a break from Agatha Christie and, since it was in the same aisle at the local library, picked up a copy of Death of a Gossip . To tell you the truth, I wasn't a huge fan of that book. But, I liked the character Hamish Macbeth enough to give the next book, Death of a Cad , a try and became hooked. As a result, Macbeth became a regular part of my reading list. When I started reading Death of an Honest Man a couple days ago, it was with mixed emotions. I was excited to read the next chapter i...

I discovered M. C. Beaton's Hamish Macbeth series pretty much by accident a couple years ago and the Scottish police constable quickly passed Hercule Poirot as my favorite fictional detective. I am a few chapters away from finishing the most recent book, Death of an Honest Man , and, when I looked to see if there was going to be another one after this one, I was shocked and saddened to learn Beaton passed away in December. I honestly never thought this would be the case about someone I never actually met in person, but I'm pretty bummed out about it. In fact, I've been reading the book a little bit slower now because, with it likely being the last one in the series (at least from what I can tell), I want to savor it while I can. May she rest in peace.

I missed getting a photo of the cardinal that landed literally two seconds after I turned my camera off this morning. But, here are some photos taken of the bird feeder in my front yard.

Synopsis: While attending to the android double he designed, scientist Tom Trimble is accidentally launched into space at the speed of light and travels back in time to Medieval England where he meets a beautiful maiden and saves King Arthur's kingdom from the evil Sir Mordred. Who's in it? The movie stars Dennis Dugan , Jim Dale , Sheila White , Kenneth More and Ron Moody . Review: My wife and daughters decided to go out shopping and, since I was home by myself for a couple hours, I decided to finally watch this movie on Disney Plus. I faintly remember seeing this film when I was younger (about 5 or 6) but didn't remember much about it. After seeing it again, I have to say I enjoyed it a lot more than I was expecting. The plot itself was relatively simple and mostly involved Trimble (Dugan) trying to convince people he wasn't some sort of monster while using modern technology and science to avoid being killed before ultimately gaining Arthur's (More) t...

Synopsis: When Sergeant Hamish Macbeth is asked to investigate reports of a ghost in a castle owned by a retired police superintendent, he assumes it is just someone pulling a prank. But, when he and his constable, Charlie Carson, find the body of a well-known and outspoken atheist in the tower, he once again finds himself looking for a murderer. Review: After enjoying Death of a Nurse , I decided to check out the remaining Hamish Macbeth books at the library so I can finish up the series (or at least be caught up if/when another book comes out). I finished this book last night and found I loved it. The mystery in this book was surprisingly complex. When the first body was discovered, my first thought was the police superintendent who called him was somehow responsible. But, as the book progressed, it was pretty obvious that wasn't necessarily going to be the case. There were just too many other potential suspects ranging from smugglers to religious zealots and potentiall...

Synopsis: Shy high schooler Bird Fitcher enjoys photography and is thrilled when one of her friends gives her a vintage Polaroid camera he purchased at a yard sale. However, when the people begin to die shortly after she takes their photo, she begins to suspect there is something evil attached to the device and has to work quickly to stop it before it kills her and her friends. Who's in it? The movie stars Kathryn Prescott, Tyler Young , Samantha Logan , Keenan Tracey and Priscilla Quintana . Review: I haven't had much luck picking horror movies lately so, when I picked out this one Friday evening, I definitely had some doubts about it, especially since it only had a PG-13 rating. However, as it turns out, it was actually quite a bit better than I was expecting it to be. I'm not saying this movie was perfect. I thought the characters were a bit one-dimensional and, for a high school "loner," Bird (Prescott) seemed to have an awful lot of friends. Plu...

Synopsis: When Lochdubh Police Sergeant Hamish Macbeth meets a new nurse, Gloria Dainty, he is instantly attracted to her and, under the pretense of visiting her wealthy employer, James Harrison, follows her home and ultimately convinces her to have dinner with him. What Hamish doesn't know is Gloria is leading a less-than-honest life and, before they have their first date, he winds up investigating her murder. Review: After being somewhat disappointed by the last Hamish Macbeth book I read , I was honestly a bit hesitant to start this one. However, I did manage to read it over the course of the past few days and, after finishing it last night, did think it was pretty good. I think the thing I liked best about this book was the fact there wasn't an obvious killer. This hasn't been the case with some previous mysteries in this series and I found I enjoyed not knowing, for sure, who the bad guy was until toward the very end. The victim's seedy past contributed ...

Synopsis: As America edges closer to victory in its war with Japan, a group of Army Rangers embark on a dangerous mission to liberate 500 soldiers that have been held as prisoners of war for the past three years. Not only are they outnumbered, one wrong move could result in the prisoners being executed before they can be saved. Who's in it? The movie stars Benjamin Bratt , James Franco , Robert Mammone , Max Martini and Connie Nielsen . Review: I intended on watching this movie over the course of a few days, while I was walking on the treadmill a lunch. However, my wife was busy with a sewing project last night and, since she wasn't in the room with me, I figured I would finish it. Overall, I enjoyed this film. While I did feel some of the characters (especially from the Japanese side) were a bit one dimensional and did question just how historically accurate the film was, I thought it wound up being an entertaining movie. The film did a great job describing the obs...

My oldest daughter and I definitely learned this lesson last night. In the past, whenever her skates needed to be sharpened, we would just take them to whoever was convenient and affordable and really didn't think much about it. Then, after the last time they were sharpened, something just seemed to be a bit "off" when she was skating. Her spins (something that is normally a strength for her) weren't as crisp and, as she described it, something never felt quite right about her right skate. Then, there was the concussion that was caused by her feeling almost as though something grabbed her skate and caused her to fall backwards. Image courtesy of Pixabay Since they were due to be sharpened again anyway and our normal sharpening places were temporarily unavailable, I opted to ask one of her coaches to sharpen them this time. She had a good reputation and wasn't any more expensive than where we normally would take her skates. The only reason I never asked ...

Synopsis: As she attends a social media convention, a burnt-out internet star believes the worst part of her week will be avoiding hundreds of kids looking to take a picture. Instead, she finds herself being stalked by a ghost child looking for "friends." Who's in it? The movie stars Lauren Elizabeth , Claudia Sulewski , Mimi Gianopulos , Carl Gilliard and Lukas Gage . Review: I was in the mood to watch a horror movie last night and, because I didn't want to spend too much time trying to choose, I wound up picking one of the first ones I came across on Netflix. Truthfully, I didn't have high expectations for this film when we started watching it, mostly because the cast consisted of a bunch of people I had never heard of. But, I also wasn't expecting it to be as much of a disaster as it turned out to be. I think the biggest problem with this film is, when watching it, it feels like there is something missing from the plot. I mean, sure you have a ...

Synopsis: Biographical book about Reckless, a Korean race horse that was conscripted by the United States Marine Corps during the Korean War and, because of courage under fire, quickly became a hero. Review: I was at the library when my oldest daughter sent me a text saying she needed the science book she left at home and, because I had a limited amount of time before having to get back to the office, I wound up picking out this book pretty much at random. I have no idea why it managed to catch my eye in the first place, but it wound up being a very interesting read. To be honest, when I started reading this, I figured it would be a nice feel-good story about a horse that was nothing more than a mascot. But, as I began reading about her exploits, which included everything from hauling ammunition to rescuing wounded soldiers while avoiding enemy fire, I had a hard time putting the book down. She truly was remarkable, especially when you consider she completed a lot of her missi...

Synopsis: Liz Bentley is a well-known liar who has a history of filing false police reports. So, when she calls up Sergeant Hamish Macbeth asking for help while he is already investigating a double homicide, he chooses to ignore her. When he finds her body the next day, he suspects her homicide might be related to the two previous victims and searches for a connection. Review: I'm not sure if this book was shorter than some of the others I've read or I just had a little more free time this week but I started reading this book Monday and had it finished by Tuesday evening. Overall, I thought it was an OK book but, after some reflection this morning, realized it wasn't one of my favorites from this series. There were a couple things, in particular, that I found I wasn't a fan of when it came to this book. The first is the mystery is a little too easy to solve. I kept hoping for some surprise bad guy, but the obvious villains turned out to be the ones behind the va...