Books : No Nest for the Wicket (A Meg Langslow Mystery)

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Author name: Donna Andrews

: No Nest for the Wicket (A Meg Langslow Mystery)
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Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN num: 9780312997915
ISBN number: 0312997914
Label: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 320
Printing Date: June 26, 2007
Publishing house: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Release Date: June 26, 2007
Sale Popularity Level: 79860
Studio: St. Martin's Paperbacks



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Product Description:
LINE YOUR DUCKS UP IN A ROW…
The hilly terrain subsequent to the old Sprocket house that Meg Langslow and her fiancé, Michael, are refurbishing is the perfect location for an “extreme” croquet field—even the legs of cows and sheep are convenient extra wickets. A sport  traditionally reserved for genteel society, croquet has become all the rage in Caerphilly…until it appears someone in town has taken the “rage” a bit too literally.
 
AND KNOCK ’EM DEAD.
While stumbling down a steep bank after her ball, Meg encounters the body of a fresh female corpse with a mallet-sized dent in her head. If that isn’t reason enough to call a time-out, it turns out that Michael knew the woman from years before. Ever curious, Meg decides that playing arm-chair sleuth is far more important than working on her game…and soon she finds herself in the perfect position to solve the murder mystery—or become the subsequent victim.
 




Customer Reviews
User popularity level: out of 5 stars

Rated by buyers 5 out of 5 stars - Entertaining, witty, well-plotted - one of best in the series
I generally enjoy this series, and when I see that the author has a new book out, I always get it. I have sometimes been disappointed because it's not as good as I expected, but that's not the case with this book -- it was one of the better in the series, all of which have a bird reference in the title.

In this case, the nest belongs to a duck -- named Duck. You can imagine what happens when someone calls her... That gives you an idea of the humour in the book. But even funnier is the game that is played throughout the book -- eXtreme croquet! I guess there really is such a game, and it sounds fun -- croquet played on rough terrain rather than the usual flat lawn. The series' "detective," Meg Laslow, lives on a Virginia farm with her fiance Michael. They're renovating an old farmhouse, and since they live in the country, they're hosting an eXtreme croquet tournament.

Almost immediately, Meg stumbles across a body -- an unknown woman who has apparently been murdered with a croquet mallet. Because the murder was on land used for the croquet tournament, it seems likely that someone in the tournament or working on the house committed the murder. Although the sheriff is investigating, Meg is interested in discovering which of the people at her place for the weekend is the killer.

Staying with Meg and Michael are Meg's colorful parents and brother and other assorted family members (where are all these people sleeping? not clear), who add to the humor. Also staying with Meg and Michael is Spike (actually belongs to Michael's mother), a tiny little dog who has been through umpteen dog trainers and still bites unwary people. He also adds to the humor.

I really didn't guess "who dun it," which is to the author's credit, as I read so many mysteries that I often do. Only toward the last 75 pages did I add the person to my "possible killer" list.

If you haven't read any in the series, if you like witty, cozy mysteries, you're likely to enjoy this one. If you are already a fan, you won't be disappointed.



Rated by buyers 4 out of 5 stars - No the Best of the Series but Still a Delight
As many others have said, this is not the best in the series, but it is still a great read. I chuckled aloud on the bus (commuting) a couple times, causing startled looks and a couple of questions about the book. It is now on loan to another rider.

The idea of Xtreme croquet is a fantastic concept carried out throughout the book. Adding a Morris men team with their bells was a fun device. The appearance of all the unusual family members and the assorted livestock just add to the hilarity. I was much taken with the in-fighting in the town, having lived through my mother's protacted wars with neighbors and family (please, I hope she never learns about email and Amazon and stumbles across this).

If this is your very first foray into Donna Andrews start with another book, but work your way to this one - it is a delight.


Rated by buyers 4 out of 5 stars - Escape reading
Donna Andrews has a lively imagination and has created a set of memorable characters. I was startled to learn that she did not create the sport of Extreme Croquet for her book as the game seems to have her madcap sense of humor. However, the game actually exists. The mystery is almost incidental to the humor, but this is a good read.


Rated by buyers 5 out of 5 stars - Great
As usual, Donna Andrews has managed to make murder funny. Reading about Meg and her family always makes me laugh even though there is a murder involved.


Rated by buyers 4 out of 5 stars - Interesting but Not as Fantastic as Previous Books
I had really begun to believe that Donna could write about anything under the sun - a wait at a doctor's office, an afternoon of painting the walls - and have it end up hilarious. I was just SO pleased with the last three books she created, and the environment and characters she had populated them with.

With this book, Donna comes down to earth. That's not to say I disliked the book. It was quite interesting, set in a tournament of eXtreme croquet in her back yard. You get the fun family members as well as a collection of newcomers to interact. Still, the previous books were just so amazing, with numerous laugh out loud moments and great insights. With this book, things were "fine". It's almost as if Donna had gotten so used to her great successes that she put things on cruise control a bit.

One thing which bugs me about these books is that Meg has been dealing with dead bodies repeately over the years - but every time she encounters a new one it's as if she's never seen one before at all. The cop in this one - a cop who knows her from previous stories - even makes a comment that she shouldn't be squeamish because she has a doctor for a father. How about she shouldn't be squeamish because bodies fall dead around her at a regular rate! I'm not sure I understand why this is an issue for the writer. When we read about other mystery series, we know the main characters have seen death. We know it's a series. There's no need to pretend in every book of Nancy Drew that she has just become a detective and has never faced danger before. I don't see a need here to treat Meg as an innocent every time out.

I also found the plot here a little repetitive compared with previous plots. I knew right away who the killer was and then simply had to wait for the story to unfold to find that out. As usual, Meg doesn't realize the truth until the last possible moment. I suppose you could say her charm is that she 1) feels grumpy about finding bodies and 2) blunders Clouseau-like around until the killer prepares to take her out. I just wish she'd do a little better with her investigation. She is, after all, an intelligent woman. Some of the clues she misses are pretty obvious.

Still, it's nice to see the progression of some of the characters, and the flaws in others. These aren't perfect people by any stretch of the imagination - but they still get along and love each other. It gives hope to the rest of us!

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