Motherhood, Fatherhood, Editorship, and Art Collecting - Rated 
The Careful Use of Compliments shows us Isabel Dalhousie, the practical philosopher of Edinburgh, as she grapples with becoming the unmarried mother of Charlie, keeping Charlie's father Jamie in her life, re-establishing her relationship with her niece Cat (who is miffed that her aunt has borne a child by Cat's ex-boyfriend), fending off a hostile takeover of her editorship of the Review of Applied Ethics, and checking out the authenticity of some paintings that attract her attention. In the course of these joys and trials, Isabel steers close to her notion that people who mean well should act ethically . . . even when it is to their disadvantage to do so. In the process, she learns that a careful use of compliments can open up doors to valuable information and perspectives.
Although Isabel and Jamie, her young lover, share parenthood of the adorable Charlie, they don't share as many other things as they should . . . including trust in one another. Jamie proposes marriage, but Isabel doesn't trust him to mean it. Jamie wants to know how much money Isabel has after she contemplates spending 25,000 pounds on a painting . . . and is chagrined to learn how wealthy she is. Jamie doesn't like Isabel's meddling so she keeps some of it to herself.
Isabel is also on a voyage of self discovery. When a ladder-climbing academic engineers her downfall as editor of her beloved Review, Isabel is shocked by her competitive reaction and what she does based on it. Isabel becomes jealous of Grace (her housekeeper) and her attempts to take good care of Charlie. Isabel is downright annoyed when Cat looks longingly at the covetous academic who is her enemy.
Ultimately, her meddling uncovers a secret she isn't supposed to know . . . and reveals a wrong that needs to be righted. Naturally, Isabel digs in to do the right thing.
The book moves smoothly and covers more interesting ground than many of the earlier books did. Isabel is a little more human and not quite so reluctant to stake her claim on the beloved Jamie.
I found it to be a quick and enjoyable read that left me wanting to see if Isabel and Jamie can build more common ground . . . at least for Charlie's sake.
Motherhood, Fatherhood, Editorship, and Art Collecting - Rated
The Careful Use of Compliments shows us Isabel Dalhousie, the practical philosopher of Edinburgh, as she grapples with becoming the unmarried mother of Charlie, keeping Charlie's father Jamie in her life, re-establishing her relationship with her niece Cat (who is miffed that her aunt has borne a child by Cat's ex-boyfriend), fending off a hostile takeover of her editorship of the Review of Applied Ethics, and checking out the authenticity of some paintings that attract her attention. In the course of these joys and trials, Isabel steers close to her notion that people who mean well should act ethically . . . even when it is to their disadvantage to do so. In the process, she learns that a careful use of compliments can open up doors to valuable information and perspectives.
Although Isabel and Jamie, her young lover, share parenthood of the adorable Charlie, they don't share as many other things as they should . . . including trust in one another. Jamie proposes marriage, but Isabel doesn't trust him to mean it. Jamie wants to know how much money Isabel has after she contemplates spending 25,000 pounds on a painting . . . and is chagrined to learn how wealthy she is. Jamie doesn't like Isabel's meddling so she keeps some of it to herself.
Isabel is also on a voyage of self discovery. When a ladder-climbing academic engineers her downfall as editor of her beloved Review, Isabel is shocked by her competitive reaction and what she does based on it. Isabel becomes jealous of Grace (her housekeeper) and her attempts to take good care of Charlie. Isabel is downright annoyed when Cat looks longingly at the covetous academic who is her enemy.
Ultimately, her meddling uncovers a secret she isn't supposed to know . . . and reveals a wrong that needs to be righted. Naturally, Isabel digs in to do the right thing.
The book moves smoothly and covers more interesting ground than many of the earlier books did. Isabel is a little more human and not quite so reluctant to stake her claim on the beloved Jamie.
I found it to be a quick and enjoyable read that left me wanting to see if Isabel and Jamie can build more common ground . . . at least for Charlie's sake.
6 out of 5 - Rated 
In my humble opinion the Isabel Dalhousie series are Alexander McCall Smith's best novels, and exceed even the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency, which are brilliant.
His characters are utterly engaging and his portrayal of Edinburgh and Scotland so gentle, real and colourful I love reading these novels. His prose falls off the page painting beautiful pictures and characters which come to life as the reader turns the page!
It is difficult to explain what I love so much about this series, but I will try... I imagine Mr McCall Smith reading this and laughing as maybe I have got it all horribly wrong, but it seems to me that there is much left unsaid in these tales, leaving the reader to draw his own conclusions. Life is seen through Isabel's eyes and a series of seemingly inconsequential events and conversations are cleverly woven together.
Isabel continues to believe that the age difference between herself and Jamie means he cannot love her quite enough to really want to marry her, and that he has `settled' for something rather less than Isabel's extremely self centred niece Cat, who dumped him in a (much) earlier novel. This particular reader believes that Jamie loves and respects Isabel very much, but fear of being thought a gold digger prevents him from pressing her further into formalising their relationship. In any case, they seem to have settled into a very satisfactory arrangement that defies definition and is warm and caring but still keeps the spark between them very much alive.
The introduction of Charlie, which I (oh so wrongly!) thought would never work, has brought further interest into Isabel's relationship with her housekeeper Grace as they subtly battle for authority over child care and gripe water, and many more opportunities for comedy as Isabel introduces him to her friends. And are those `oh so cute' tartan rompers for real or is Mr Smith really taking the mickey here?
Isabel's involvement with the `Review of Applied Ethics' continues and develops and there is a puzzle to be solved concerning two paintings which Isabel suspects are forgeries.
As the reviews say, it is `mental comfort food' which `captivates' and `enthrals'.
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