The Meg Langslow series of cozy mysteries is set in the fictional town of Caerphilly, Virginia. Meg Langslow is a blacksmith (mostly decorative fences, planters, benches, andirons and like, with occasional swords) and personal assistant to the Mayor, Randall Shiffley. The Shiffley Clan runs most of Caerphilly, as they range from the mayor to the judge to the construction crew to the owners of the hottest BBQ joint to deputy on the police force (luckily, they use their powers for good, not evil, unlike the previous dynasty in Caerphilly, the Pruitts.). Meg and her husband Michael Waterston, drama teacher and performer of the annual one-man Christmas Carol at the local college, have twin sons Josh and Jamie. And a house (and next door neighbors, and strategic houses in town) full of parents, nephews, cousins, brothers, grandparents and other distant and varied relations of the Langslow clan, as well as llamas, chickens, cats, and dogs, and anything else that comes down the pike. In the middle of the insanity, Meg finds time to stumble into multiple murder scenes and assist the Chief of Police in helping to solve them. So, basically Murder She Wrote if Jessica Fletcher was forty-something, a blacksmith, and really, really trying to not get involved in any murders, and listened to the police over how far she legally can go.
For Duck’s Sake, the thirty-seventh in the series (with the thirty-eighth coming out in a few months; Andrews, she is prolific), is about Meg attempting to avoid getting dragged into assisting in overseeing the Dog March, a local parade/adoption event that is happening in town. Isn’t it enough that the over 300 dogs are all residing at Meg’s house, never mind all the volunteers who are bathing, training, walking and costuming the dogs? To escape the canine mania, Meg has volunteered to oversee the digging at the duck pond at her neighbors’ (who happen to be her brother Rob, his wife Delaney, and their daughter Brynn) house. This plan goes up in smoke when a skeleton is discovered during the dig. With that mystery to solve, and a dognapper set on stealing a pooch for a dogfighting ring lurking around, is Meg ever going to get some peace and quiet? And will Rob and Delaney get a chance to have their Cayuga ducks?
There is never a bad book with Donna Andrews. Just like Terry Pratchett, even her worst book (which this isn’t; it just isn’t an absolute favorite) is still fantastic. Honestly, the second book, Murder with Puffins, was probably my least favorite, with We’ll Always Have Parrots (#5) and Terns of Endearment (#25) tying for second-least) And yes, all the titles are bird-themed puns; and yes, frequently the birds in question have at least a small cameo in the plot. Honestly, I know it sounds kitschy, but Andrews makes it work.
Most of my old favorites make cameos in this one, and the ones who don’t make appearances are mentioned. I would go into all of them, but that would not only make this review far too long, but it would spoil large chunks of the series, and that would be a crime.
The murder had me guessing until the reveal (the identity of the victim was not one I expected), and I love how Meg got out of being shot this time around. Yes, I said this time; Meg has almost been shot in I believe 33 of the 37 books out. Each time is different though, so it doesn’t get old. There is a character in this book Ethelinda, who I want to be when I hit my 80s; the sheer amount of profanity-laced needlepoint she produces alone is enviable. That is one of the greatest gifts Donna Andrews has given; her books are filled with women (and mostly women mid-thirties and up) that are sarcastic, and funny, and so very relatable and admirable. There are some really great men as well, but the true stars are the women.
Plus, how could you not love a book where there’s an 8lb dog alternatively called “The Small Evil One” or “The Scourge of Caerphilly”? Or a retired Norwegian Death Metal drummer who is turning a Martha Stewart-inspired black and white house into an all-black Gothic Castle halfway house?
If you love mysteries, cozy or otherwise, you need to read this series.