The Perils of Morning Coffee: An Isabel Dalhousie eBook Original Story

Isabel Dalhousie #8.5

by Alexander McCall Smith

In this Isabel Dalhousie original short story, available exclusively in electronic format, our intrepid heroine—accused by a distraught wife of being the "other woman"—makes a surprising discovery as she attempts to defend her reputation.Summer in Edinburgh is a season of delicate sunshine and showers, picnics with loved ones in blossoming gardens, and genteel celebrations of art and music. But Isabel Dalhousie’s peaceful idyll is broken when a single meeting over coffee with fellow philosopher Dr. George McLeod brings an irate phone call from his wife, Roz, who implacably accuses Isabel of conducting an affair with her husband. Wounded by the injustice of Roz’s wild allegation and concerned both for her standing among the gossipy group of her scholarly peers and for Roz’s apparent state of hysteria, Isabel sets out to discover more about the McLeods, and to set the record straight before the bitterness in their marriage poisons her own reputation. For insight into the McLeods’ relationship she turns to Millie, who is both an old acquaintance of Isabel’s and a university colleague of George’s. In this engaging, intelligently observed story, Alexander McCall Smith’s sharp-eyed heroine is reminded once again to avoid jumping to hasty conclusions about the lives of others, and to value friendship wherever it’s found.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Scotland, Short Stories, Audiobook, Contemporary, Mystery Thriller

56 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2011

About the author

Alexander McCall Smith is the author of the international phenomenon The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, the Isabel Dalhousie Series, the Portuguese Irregular Verbs series, and the 44 Scotland Street series. He is professor emeritus of medical law at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and has served on many national and international bodies concerned with bioethics. He was born in what is now known as Zimbabwe and he was a law professor at the University of Botswana. He lives in Scotland. Visit him online at www.alexandermccallsmith.com, on Facebook, and on Twitter.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

An Isabel Dalhousie novella that'll take you an hour or so to read. Vintage Alexander McCall Smith, Isabel is accused of having an affair with a married man, at which she takes great umbrage, but ferrets out the truth in the end and, in the process, thinks about things a little too much. If you like this series, this one will not disappoint.

Post Script:

How does McCall Smith churn out such good books so quickly and regularly. He publishes at least one per quarter. Here we are screaming at George R. R. Martin to get off his ass and finish Song of Ice and Fire, while AMS is churning out four (!) different series faster than I can read them.

I suspect this outwardly genial Scot has actually enslaved an army of writer gnomes in some hidden underground lair, chaining them to antique typewriters and starving them until they give him 1000 good words a day. It's the only explanation.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Perils of Morning Coffee is an Isabel Dalhousie short story by Alexander McCall Smith. The audio version is narrated by Karlyn Stephen. Isabel accepts an invitation from a fellow philosopher to meet for coffee, but is subsequently accused by the man’s wife of having an affair with him. As usual, Jamie urges caution, but Isabel is indignant about her innocence and cannot resist investigating further. And again, as usual, Isabel gets the wrong end of the stick, although this time, her misunderstanding is quite understandable. Brother Fox makes a fleeting appearance. As always, this is filled with charming sentiments and amusing repartee. This is a short, but truly delightful offering from Alexander McCall Smith.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This title appeared last week as I was enjoying my morning coffee; I knew I had to read it and I was really happy to see it was a short story.
What's not to like? A little puzzle and a few misconceptions mixed with a bit of philosophy and a touch of humor.
I shall have to check out this series.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick but delightful story. Isabel always likes to meet with fellow philosophers to discuss and think about a variety of things. Her minds wanders constantly and it is fun to follow her tangential train of thought. In this story, a chance meeting gets her involved in a dramatic situation involving people she doesn't really know. She is accused of having an affair and sorts it out in a very Isabel-like fashion (lots of thinking) before she comes to a conclusion. I was shocked by the truth and smiled a lot during reading this.

[Roslyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I continue to have mixed feelings about the Isabel Dalhousie series, though there is usually enough to keep me interested. As usual, I found Isabel's domestic world unconvincing, but I enjoyed the moral and philosophical probing elicited by Isabel's musings. This is probably really a 3 and a half, but I'm rounding it up to a 4 because it's Isabel, after all! :-)

[Sonja Arlow · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have always loved the Nr 1 Ladies Detective series by the same author and this novella served as an introduction to his Isabela Dalhousie series however I just didnt like it. The characters seemed immature, annoying and making drama out unnecessary events.

[Debra · Rating 3 out of 5]

A philosophical little story. Interesting little twist of an ending.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Alexander McCall Smith so it is with a bit of reluctance that I give this book only 3 stars.

It is a short story featuring Isabel Dalhousie who is wrongly accused of having an affair by the wife of a man she met once.

There were many many memorable quotations and the writing is, of course, excellent.

The reason I only give it 3 stars is that I didn't much care for the ending.

[Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't drink coffee but understand the perils of not giving a coffee drinker their morning coffee! Lol, that remark has nothing to do with this novella. As others have posted, an interesting little tale with a little plot twist.

[dancingdeer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful teaser of a story! Bring on the next in the installment!

[Lis Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an Isabel Dalhousie short story, centered around the mystery entangled with a philosophical dilemma that she encounters. Her husband Jamie and son Charlie are present, as are friend/housekeeper/babysitter Grace, and the handsome Brother Fox. (For those who don't know, an actual fox, who frequents Isabel's garden with her blessing.)

The core of this story begins with an accidental email invitation to coffee one morning that week, with two philosophy professors at a nearby university. Isabel hasn't met either of them, but she does know some of the work of at least one of them. She assumes they're interested in her journal, Review of Applied Ethics. She replies, accepting, then is very apologetically informed by the apparent inviter, Prof. George MacLeod, of the misfire of the software he uses to manage invitations and meetings. They wind up agreeing to meet anyway, only the two of them because the other professor isn't available, at a coffee house they both like.

When Jamie warns her it's potentially risky to meet a stranger, even in public, she dismisses his concern. As is often true, Jamie isn't necessarily wrong.

The meeting goes well, and they agree that Isabel will ask him to do some reviews for her journal.

Later, MacLeod's wife, Roz, calls her and accuses her of being George's lover. Roz is hostile and borderline threatening. Isabel is offended and outraged.

What is she going to do about it?

What follows is a puzzle and a dilemma. Isabel decides it would make sense to start by finding out if it's even likely that George is having an affair. Roz might just be paranoid about it. Since she really does know many people in academic philosophy in Edinburgh, she has a friend she can talk to who knows George and Roz.

Along the way, she makes some unexpected discoveries, while being kind to everyone even when she wants to run screaming in the other direction, which is, of course, the Isabel Dalhousie we know and love.

Recommended to anyone who enjoys the Isabel Dalhousie series.

I bought this short story.

[Lynda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Felt a bit lost but guessing as it's not a series I've come across before and I read it out of sequence, that was probably the reason why I wasn't able to work out the characters.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled across several novellas that Alexander McCall Smith has written that are in ebook format only. Perhaps they were attempts at starting the next book in a series but didn't take off. It was a quick, short read that once again affirms how up with the times Smith (and consequently Isabel) is.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a charming little story, just what I was in the mood to read.

[Mandolin · Rating 5 out of 5]

What harm could an innocent meeting for morning coffee bring to a quiet life of a philosopher? When a computer glitch schedules Isabel Dalhousie for a coffee meeting with a professor from the nearby university, she decides to meet with him despite the initial mistake. Initially glad in her choice, for she finds in him a kindred spirit, she comes to later regret it when his wife unjustly accuses her of carrying on an affair with her husband. Isabel is hurt by the accusation and, as usual, cannot leave the situation alone. Instead, she determines to set the record straight and defend herself by delving into the professor’s life and learning if he truly is carrying on an affair with another woman. Though her beloved husband Jamie attempts to dissuade her from this course of action, Isabel relentlessly pursues it, leading to some surprising discoveries and more philosophical musings about life and love.

This short story highlights everything that I love about McCall Smith’s writing: sympathetic characters, wise observations, subtle humor (I absolutely loved the discussion about the accuracy of the frequent use of “being run over by a bus” as a metaphor for future disasters!) and simple truths that enrich the reader and leave such a pleasant feeling after the curtain closes. If you’ve never read a Dalhousie book, this short story just might be the perfect starting point to draw you into this writer’s magical Scottish world.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short story in the Isabel Dalhousie universe is quintessential Dalhousie; with regards to the title, it's as if one is drinking an espresso version of the series versus drinking a cup of coffee. THE PERILS OF MORNING COFFEE is Isabel investigating a tiny "mystery" of an affair and all of the usual things that happen in these books happens in this enovella:
- Random philosophizing, usually at embarrassing times such as in mid-conversation with someone else
- Agonizing over whether Isabel is getting too involved in someone else's business
- Love of Edinburgh (and why not? Edinburgh is quite lovely)
- Fascinating art descriptions from Scottish painters like Peploe or Classicists like Poussin

I think what's nice about this particular short story is how a simple conversation over coffee can trigger a number of effects. In this case, Isabel meets a new colleague who becomes a reviewer for her journal, a wife finally breaks down and sees a therapist, and Isabel becomes closer to a friend than she's ever been, all because of a buggy email program and a misunderstanding.

For fans of the series, it's a nice rather short addition to the books. For the newcomers, one might not be used to the style of these series, and I think it's better off reading one of the full-length novels instead of this short story. It does capture the gist of the books in a pretty abbreviated way, but I think that it doesn't fully get the laidback style of the author because of its short length.

[Damaskcat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a fan of this author’s No 1 Ladies Detective Agency Series but this is the first story I’ve read featuring Isabel Dalhousie. I enjoyed reading the story but found I was having to consciously slow down my reading speed in order to appreciate the philosophical asides. This is not a criticism because I actually found those asides of interest and worth thinking about. I liked the gentle humour and the huge knowledge of human nature this author displays.

If you’re not sure whether the Isabel Dalhousie series will interest you then reading this story and the extract from ‘The Forgotten Affairs of Youth’ which is included with it may be a good way to try the series. If philosophy and ethics don’t interest you then it might be best to stay away. I liked Isabel as a character and reading this story has whetted my appetite for the rest of the series.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Perils of Morning Coffee is an Isabel Dalhousie short story by Alexander McCall Smith, offered in electronic book format. Isabel accepts an invitation from a fellow philosopher to meet for coffee, but is subsequently accused by the man’s wife of having an affair with him. As usual, Jamie urges caution, but Isabel is indignant about her innocence and cannot resist investigating further. And again, as usual, Isabel gets the wrong end of the stick, although this time, her misunderstanding is quite understandable. Brother Fox makes a fleeting appearance. As always, this is filled with charming sentiments and amusing repartee. This is a short, but truly delightful offering from Alexander McCall Smith.

[Ed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having read the first five books in the Sunday Philosophy Club/Isabel Dalhousie series, I thought I'd squeeze in this e-book exclusive novella to get a few more quick pages read before the end of 2011. Technically, I guess this would be considered Book 7.5 in the series, but no worries of any ongoing plot spoilers as long as you are past Book 4 (The Careful Use of Compliments) when Isabel's personal/home life took a dramatic turn.

As with the rest of the series, this was a perfectly pleasant tale as Isabel is accused of being the "other woman" (you can imagine how she takes that news!). Over the course of these few dozens pages (errr... screen clicks), she uncovers what's really going on in her usual meddlesome manner. A quick literary snack!

[Fr. Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting more mystery out of it, but it was a great introduction to Isabel Dalhousie. I really like this character and will be getting more of McCall Smith's books with her. She is endearing, intelligent, and a philosopher all at once. It was great little story. I somewhat expected the ending but he changed it up enough to be a surprise.

SPOILER ALERT

The reveal at the end is that her good female friend is homosexual. I found it odd that an ethics philosopher had nothing at all to say about her friend being homosexual, even if to say to herself it is an non-issue. I think McCall Smith failed in that regard because he brings up the issue and does not resolve it. He did so well to create Dalhousie's interior life only to neglect this very important revelation.

[Rrshively · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book comes between book 8 and book 9 of the Isabel Dalhousie series. It is a delightful short book which took me less than an hour and a half to read. What perils can come from morning coffee? When Isabel has coffee at a café with a philosophy professor from the university, his wife angrily accuses Isabel of having an affair with him. No spoilers here, but, of course, Isabel eventually has to try to get to the bottom of this accusation in spite of Jamie's warnings. This book can stand alone without having read other books in the series, but it is even more fun if you know the characters well. In spite of only 3 stars, I had great fun reading this book.

[Kathyanngallagher · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first Isabel Dalhousie book. It was a very short read & left me wanting. I was genuinely surprised when the story ended on my Kindle-Fire. I was at 87% and it was done. Maybe I missed something along the way as I generally love Alexander McCall Smith's "Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency" series. I will try to start with book #1 and hope it has a better story line than than "Perils of Morning Coffee" did.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short novellette in this series but a good one. Isabel meets a colleague for breakfast coffee but is soon confronted by the man's wife who accuses Isabel of having an affair with her husband. This is a good story but I don't see why it is separate from the other books.

[Alison · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh

[cecelia clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and Sweet

Tightly written with characters I could recognize. Sweet story of the drama that pokes up sometimes in my life but resolves better on paper than in reality.

[Maryanne Theyerl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the short story format.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always enjoy my time with Isabel Delhousie. This is the first I've read from the series (as opposed to listening) which made it easier to focus in on the sweet words of wisdom and insight that I've come to expect from Alexander McCall Smith

"Time, she felt, made quite enough claims on us, without our conniving in its relentless tyranny."

"She liked the light of morning, with its crispness and, well, its innocence. The light of afternoon and evening was a used light, a light that had no intentions of encouraging or revealing anything new; a light under which all sorts of minor sins could be practised without detection."

"Almost every act of violence had hate at its core, had behind it a heart filled with resentment; so many victims of such acts must have felt secure in the knowledge that it would never happen to him, or to her. But it did. It happened."

"...our own failings were invisible to most of us, or, if we did see them, they often appeared rather minor."

[Elysia Fionn · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's only fault is being too short...

... but I feel that way about every Isabel Dalhousie story... I wish they were longer, because they are so enjoyable, in that way that stories are when you recognize bits of yourself in a character. As long as Mr. McCall Smith continues to write this series, I will continue to read it. Such good stuff!
On a side note, not the author's fault, it's frustrating that there appear to be no online images of the painting of Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar by the artist mentioned in the story. I was able to find a mention of it being in some gallery, but the gallery's website does not have photos of their art online. I always look up art references in stories, because it's a chance to expand my horizons. Sadly, I will apparently have to go without seeing this painting.

[Camile Doubtfire · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoy the pace of these stories very much and I am a huge fan of the more recent series of books by Alexander McCall Smith about Paul Smith.

This is the second book of this series I have read and whilst there is something cosy and warm about these quaint Scottish stories, I find the main character a little pompous and difficult to relate to. This may be a personal thing as I have had bad experiences with a certain someone who studied philosophy, but I find her way of questioning everything and not allowing anyone to have a moment of irrational thought very irksome and almost impossible to sympathise with. Isabel comes across as very "holier than thou" and meddlesome so I don't think I will be reading any more of this series but, I am very excited to read another Paul Smith story!

[Elle Jay Bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly this was the first McCall Smith book I’ve read. I chose it partly because it was short, so it would give me a taste of style & content without a big commitment. I’m glad I did as it was an enjoyable read; I’m a bit of a sucker for books featuring Edinburgh, so it scored highly there, and I enjoyed the philosophy references. I also seem to like books which focus on the oddities of human nature and this box was ticked with style and quite a bit of substance. And, for a short read, it actually had some depth, a feature I find many writers just don’t seem to be able to achieve! Only minus point for me was the amazing detachment of Isabelle as a mother and the way her life appears to be so incredibly organised despite a small child. That’s certainly not realistic!