Murder by Death

17 books and Donna Andrews is still kicking tail feathers.

Meg Langslow might be is my favorite modern-day cozy sleuth.  She is smart, organised, strong both mentally and physically (she's a blacksmith) and most of all - most importantly - she's pragmatic and over flows with common sense.  There aren't any TSTL moments with Meg.  She gets in jams, but it's not because she kept things from the police, thought she was smarter than everyone else, or because she went into the basement at midnight alone during a power outage.  She and her family are a breath of fresh air in a genre that often threatens to become a mass of write-by-numbers.

I loved this book in spite of a pared down cast of characters.  Meg has centre stage here with only a few appearances by Michael, fewer by Meg's father and brother and her mother is almost completely absent.  90% of the story takes place "away" and I typically don't like away books, but this one works.  I can't figure out a way to say why without giving the story away, so this is going to be a short review.

The biggest compliment I can give this book is that I guessed the murderer very early in the book and I didn't care.  My enjoyment was almost entirely independent of the murder mystery itself as I was too caught up in the characters - and the emus.

I was also caught completely off guard by the direction the story took, which almost never happens and was really fun.

I'd strongly urge anyone who enjoys light, humorous, well-written mysteries to give this series a go.  (If you enjoy character development, I'd also urge you to read this series in order.  It's not a requirement - I don't believe any book spoils the plot of another, but these books do adhere to a "real life" timeline.)