Will Killers Crash the Wedding of the Century?
When we first met Meg Langslow in 1999, she was the maid of honor in three weddings, and peacocks were playing a huge part in her life. The thirty-first book in the series circles back around as it features Meg, peacocks, and a huge wedding. But Round Up the Usual Peacocks is in no ways a retread.
Meg’s brother Rob is getting married, and he and his fiancée have agreed to let their mothers plan the wedding of the century. Naturally, Meg, as matron of honor, is being pulled into various wedding related tasks. That is, until her nephew, Kevin, comes to her with a problem.
Kevin and his friend, Casey, have started a true crime podcast focusing on unsolved cases in Virginia. They think one of their episodes has hit a nerve since someone tried to run over Casey a few days ago. Now, they want Meg’s help is figuring out what happened. As Kevin points out, if they don’t track down the culprit, he or she might crash the wedding. Kevin believes that one of three cases they’ve talked about led to the attack on Casey. Can Meg find out what happened before it ruins the wedding?
If you are jumping into the series here or you’ve missed the early books in the series, have no fear. While there are a couple of references to the first book, they are made in passing. Honestly, it’s been probably close to 20 years since I read the book myself, so I couldn’t tell you much about what happened in it. That’s no issue at all since this story stands completely on its own.
And what a delightful story it is. With three cases for Meg to investigate, the plot is always hopping. I had an easy time following what was happening as Meg tracked these cases, never confusing them. I’ll also admit that I suspected where things were going early, but I wasn’t right about everything, and there were some things I hadn’t figured out yet. Even so, I didn’t care because I was enjoying the ride along the way. Also, the climax hit one of my pet peeves, but again, I didn’t care.
That’s because this book, like the series, is just so much fun. Meg is surrounded by a great cast of characters. At this point, I have so much history that just a mention of a character’s name is enough to make me smile. Yes, some of them are reduced to cameos, but giving them more to do would slow down the story. The suspects fit perfectly into this world.
For me, this book wasn’t as consistently funny as some of the entries in the series. However, the funny scenes were some of the funniest we’ve had in a while. And that’s not to say I wasn’t completely enjoying myself even when I wasn’t laughing.
I know I’m usually the one telling you to make sure you read a series in order. Honestly, with this series, you could easily skip around. Yes, we reference some events from previous books, but there is nothing of a spoilery nature in those comments. There is very little you will not understand if you jump in here or anywhere you want. You will definitely wind up reading all the books eventually no matter what order you read them in.
As any fan will tell you, this series is a delight, and Round Up the Usual Peacocks is no exception. When you pick this book up, be prepared for another fun romp with Meg and company.
Laugh with the rest of the Meg Langslow Mysteries.
Wow, 31 books in this series, and she's still writing 5 star books!
ReplyDeleteI agree about the humor completely. This was as funny as the last book where they were constantly dodging blue jays that were loose in the house but the scene with the geese and the peacocks where Meg was stuck in the truck made me laugh so hard I cried.
ReplyDeleteOkay, you convinced me to add this to my TBR list. I'm a stickler for reading series in order (I'm only on number one in most of them...lol), but I might make an exception for this one. The title alone makes me want to read it. :-)
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