Customer Reviews

Play It Again, Spam (Pennsylvania Dutch Mystery)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Do you ever have occasion to think back on a situation and wish you had made this or that pithy comment? Wish you had been quick-witted and clever, just a bit more ingenious than your natural wont? Well, I do, and so it is with joy and delight that I read Tamar Myers' latest, PLAY IT AGAIN SPAM. Magdalena is lively, delightful and "full of sap," as my old maw-maw used to say! Tamar has led me on a splendid romp once again! I JUST LOVE THESE BOOKS! I give it 5 stars!

Once again, Tamar Myers has brought her Pennsylvania Dutch mysteries with recipes to life. Magdalena and her sister are hilarious (although Sis is more in the background this time), as are the rest of the characters. The recipes always look extremely yummy, but I'm not a cook. Why only 4 stars? I got really overdosed on the references to Spam the name-brand food product. But I still can't wait to start the next book. If you're a Myers fan (I think "Too Many Cooks Spoil the Broth" was the first in this series), you'll also like her Den of Antiquity books. .

Tamar Myers has a wonderful sense of humor. The main character, Magdalena, pokes fun at her various relatives and neighbors, yet communicates a true affection for them. Her Mennonite relatives remind me of my own extended family in the farming communities of Northern Illinois. I especially loved this book because of my own childhood memories of grilled spam sandwiches.

Poor Magdalena! We find that not only does she have to put up with the prospect of her sister marrying the awful chief of police, Melvin Stoltzfus (who was kicked in the head by the bull he was trying to milk), but her faithful cook and friend, Freni, quits (again!) but perhaps for the last time!? She has to contend with all this and more (eg. guests go missing), all the while playing host to a very 'cryptic' group of guests at her Amish inn. I read before I go to bed at night but there are so many unexpected twists and turns in this story that I wanted to stay up all night to find out what happened next! Tamar Myers is one of those few authors that I chuckle out loud to, and this book is no exception. I just love her dry (and not so dry) humor!

The 7th Penn Dutch mystery by Tamar Myers, and once again I loved every page. The plot is thicker than some of the others, when Nazi war criminals are sought in Hernia. Magdalena is perhaps at her best, as well as Freni. When you see both of their names on the same page, you know you're in for a treat. A couple neat, new characters come into play (hopefully they'll stay). This book has one of the most suspenseful climaxes in the series. Ms. Myers knows her characters so well, they probably speak for themselves when they say, "Ach! Buy the book why don't you?"

keep this book on your nightstand. Magdelina's "faithful, yet ever quitting chef, Freni" finds "SPAM". She proceeds to make it her "haute cusine". With some truly quirky guests (as usual, they're very, very unusual)and simply "different" receipes, you'll enjoy every, (drool) mouth-watering, minute of this (drool) yummy book.. Who would have believed it of SPAM?

Magdalena has fallen on hard times since her B&B was virtually destroyed by a tornado. After rebuilding, she finds that her PennDutch Inn is not as popular as it once was. Added to this, her sister Susannah is getting ready to wed Magdalena's sworn enemy, Melvin, Hernia's chief of police. After being married to a bigamist herself, Magdalena doesn't have much faith in the male of the species. Suddenly her Inn is filled to overflowing with some WWII veterans who are having a reunion. Rounding out her group of guests are a retired history professor and his wife, a former concert pianist. This time there are no dead bodies, but people who are seemingly unrelated begin to disappear. A new thread is introduced to the story when an elderly woman from Hernia also disappears. Magdalena does her usual sleuthing until she figures out who is behind all of this mischief. This is another fun "cozy" from Tamar Meyers.

I'm reading my way through Ms. Myers' Pennsylvania Dutch/Magdelena Yoder series and have enjoyed them tremendously. Being from a Mennonite background I can so strongly identify with the situations and some of the people; the Mennonite uncles being able to fall asleep in the living room before the table is cleared, for example, is sooo true. I'll keep reading these books, because I enjoy the humor and character descriptions so much.

I have not read the other Penn Dutch mysteries but the Spam in the title caught my eye. Magdalena was funny, especially with the nicknames but she talked about her ex-husband too much. I enjoyed Strubly Sam and the other characters. The mystery was too rushed which is why I give it only 3 stars. Had there been more focus on the mystery and sleuthing throughout the book and less about the ex-husband it would have rated higher.

In this book, Magdalena is funny again. Some of the humour in the last few books has seemed forced and slapstick, but in this book Magdalena is her usual hilarious self. The book also has a little thicker plot than usual as Magdalena gets drawn into a reunion of World War II vets who have rented out rooms in her newly rebuilt inn. (the first inn was apparently destroyed by a tornado sometime between this book and the one previous). We also meet a new character that I hope we see more of - Strubbly Sam. He's wonderful - an Amish widower who may be after Magdalena (and he cooks too). I am looking forward to other books in this series again.