Charming is the word that comes to mind. I had forgotten that about Alexander McCall Smith's story telling. I have read most books in The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series, but I jumped into the 44 Scotland Street series at #11. I had to work a bit at first to figure who was who, but still I thoroughly enjoyed this book for what it is. Set amongst a group of Scottish neighbours, the book follows the trials and tribulations of a few characters. Their personas and stories are pushed a bit beyond anything realistic, but they are still recognizable which makes for some good humoured satire about modern Scotland mixed in with some real emotions. This one fits my resolution to read more humour this year. It definitely makes me feel like reading the other books in the series. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy.