Customer Reviews

Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos (A Meg Langslow Mystery)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Meg is participating in a period craft fair as part of the annual celebration and reenactment for the Battle of Yorktown. Trying to get on Mrs. Waterston's good side, she's agreed to help make sure her follow craftspeople stay completely in period. But being the go between just might be more then Meg can handle. Especially since her boyfriend's mother is cracking down on anything and everything. Meanwhile, Michael wants more from their relationship, and Meg is shying away from any form of commitment. And her brother Rob is meeting with someone interested in buying his computer game. But Roger Benson has a shady reputation at best, and when this computer guy turns up murdered in Meg's booth, the list of suspects is long. Not that she needs any more to do this weekend, but now Meg must solve this crime before the police arrest one of her friends.

As with the others is the series, this book has quite a bit going on beside the mystery. And, as the title would suggest, this is a fun, light cozy. If this is what you want, you'll love the book. Even if the mystery doesn't progress quickly, there is so much going on to keep you engaged you really don't care. And the humor, from Meg's father, who insists his air tight alibi is full of holes, to gorilla costume wearing Cousin Horace, is top notch. Yet, the mystery still provides some great twists and turns. And the characters are very well defined.

I love this series when I'm in the mood for something fun and light. Donna Andrews does such a great job of keeping everything balanced that it makes for an entertaining read.

Donna Andrews has topped her freshman and sophmore outings with "Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos." These are mysteries you can share with your friend who complains she doesn't like mysteries--she'll sit curled up on the sofa, giggling like a madwoman, and never notice that there's a murder and a solution sliding down as smooth as...well, as egg-drop soup, to extend the bird metaphor. In too many comedies featuring female protagonists, the humour comes from her helplessness in the face of the increasingly outrageous demands made upon her by family and friends. This annoys me. Meg Langslow is also beset on all sides by straight-faced, well-meaning lunatics, but she never does a doormat imitation. I predict the only thing that might hold back this increasingly engaging series will be Ms. Andrews' difficulties in coming up with titles. Somebody send her a "Peterson's Guide." Quick!

To me this did not live up to the first book in the series, "Murder with Peacocks". The writer seemed to spend so much time elaborating on the settings - a craft fair at a Revolutionary War battle re-enactment - that she had no energy left to develop her characters. I would happily have traded several pages of information about craft sales and battle enactment strategies for some decently developed characters. As it is, there are a couple of bad people, a whole lot of bland but nice people and a pair of oddballs for light relief. Whatever happened to complex characters who don't obviously wear black hats or white hats?

Having said that, I'll say that the writer has a pleasant light touch and her sense of humour and practicality shine through. The basic plot is good, but the subplots could have been developed a little further. I liked the juxtaposition of the high-tech computer world with the craft fair and historic background. I also liked the concept of the weaselly cop. We meet a variety of unpleasant cops in the cozy who-dun-it genre but I can't recall a truly weaselly one before.

Now if only Meg's handsome heart throb would develop a mind of his own and some backbone to go with it.....

Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos takes place at a re-enactment of the battle of Yorktown. The conflict on the field, however, isn't where the real action is. Instead, battles between the craftsmen and the "Anachronism Police", legal wrangles over crafts software, and an unexpected murder make the reenactment look positively tame.

Donna Andrews creates eccentric and engaging characters. Those characters are my favorite element of the Meg Langslow series. Meg's father, enthusiastically recreating 18th century medicine complete with leeches, is a hoot. So are her handsome and irresponsible brother, her elegant and surprising mother, and her boyfriend's formidable mother.

The wrought-iron flamingos of the title remind me of a real-life wrangle in historic Hanover Courthouse over pink plastic lawn flamingos. I found myself wishing there was some way I could have bought those wrought iron ones for myself.

If you enjoy a witty cozy mystery, this one's for you.

I really enjoyed REVENGE of the WROUGHT-IRON FLAMINGOS, enough that I have recommended, not only this book, but the series to others. I literally found myself guffawing outloud during the scene where the murderer is caught. The series is a good read for those who like mystery, a little romance and a lot of laughs.

Meg and Michael have been dragooned(excuse the pun) into participating in a craft fair and reenactment of the battle of Yorktown. Michael's mother is running the event with her usual iron fist. Anachronisms are forbidden and fined. Meg is forced to wear itchy linsey woolsey while she sells her ironworks. Michael, as a member of a French regiment, gets to wear a magnificent uniform. Various of Meg's eccentric relatives are there to add spice to the event. Her father is a particularly gory colonial doctor. Her weasly cousin Wesley is looking for a tabloid story to boost his career, and Cousin Horace is out of his gorilla suit and into the uniform of a Virginia regiment. Meg does her best to hide Mrs. Fennimore's recent commission, a dozen glow in the dark pink wrought iron flamingos, to replace the plastic flock outlawed by the town. A shady businessman is found dead in her booth, and a good friend is accused. Meg and Michael must solve the crime themselves or Faulk will be charged with murder.

I found myself enjoying this book more and more as the story progressed. Meg and Michael's families are always the most entertaining parts of these books and this one was no exception. The background story of the reenactment was pretty interesting also, and blended well with the mystery. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Donna Andrews writes lovely mystery novels. they arent genius.. and they don't take a long time to read and ponder... just good plain reads that take one away from ones every day life. Ive read other reviews of Andrews' work and being juvinile... hardly true. This is a great mystery series... esp since Im awaiting the publication of the next installments in other series.

keep the birds coming Donna!!

This is definitely a case where you want to read the first two books before you take on this one. The family members, friends, and even pets are all well developed in those first books so that when you encounter them here you already understand their quirks and strengths.

I greatly enjoyed this book as the best one yet. The previous two books had vastly bizarre situations and a cavalcade of murders which made it hard to suspend your disbelief. On the other hand, the characters were great and three dimensional. This book puts you in a situation which is "unusual" but very believable - a reenactment of colonial America. It has the great odd characters, now well known to the audience. It also has a more realistic murder situation.

I loved the details of costume, environment and accessory in the colonial world and, as always, liked the slightly zany but believable characters that were involved. There wasn't a need to go into explicit detail with many of the characters - you'd already established a connection with them in the previous two books - but the new characters added a nice texture.

I was happy to see that Michael was no longer just a "pretty face" and that Meg was becoming more independent. Details were filled in about both characters to help explain their personalities. Michael is exposed as a preener who, aware of his good looks, likes to play them up, and to find new outlets for his acting talents. Meg is taking on weapons creation and worries about minimizing her reputation by creating kitschy pink flamingos, even though it could mean a good income.

I still was annoyed that Meg and others continually judged Michael on being a "good looking accessory" as a primary trait. It's just as bad to do that to guys as it is to girls. He also seemed, like in the previous book, to be a rather passive partner. He spends much of the book wanting to look pretty and whining about Meg not committing enough to him. He ends up being a damsel in distress.

I also was annoyed that - still- Meg seems to show no empathy or care when she finds dead bodies. In this book she even comments that she hopes it's someone she knows and likes, so that she won't be likely as a suspect. Jeez, nice thought!

Still, you can look at these as further evidence that the characters are not "shiny perfect" cardboard heroes. We know Meg has temper issues. Michael is rather spoiled, with his mom simpering when he snaps and women falling over each other for his good looks. Even with their foibles, they find a way to make their relationship work and to navigate the difficult issues of an eccentric extended family. It gives hope that the rest of us who are imperfect can still find ways to live happy lives and persue our dreams.

Recommended!

Ms. Andrews Meg Lanslow Mysteries are top-notch, entertaining and you can't put them down! Delightfully fun mystery.

I first picked up on this series because mystery fiction has become so dire that I occasionally have an uncontrollable urge to wolf down a cozier story. Donna Andrews manages to be lighthearted, intriguing, and thoroughly modern in a genre that is often noted for its stuffiness. Meg Langslow, the often unwilling, heroine of these tales is an ornamental blacksmith. As many do, most of her income comes from craft fairs, which is one step removed from life in hell on a good day.

This time Meg and her boyfriend Michael are caught up in a period art fair that includes a reenactment of the siege of Yorktown, and, even more deadly, a chairwoman who has gone around the bend on an authenticity kick. It doesn't help that said chairwoman is also Michael's mother, which makes it impossible for Meg to end her agony with a well aimed flamingo. Someone else, however, has taken a severe dislike to a businessman with few, if any, ethics, and has used the aforementioned flamingo in extremis.

The story brings Meg, Michael, a host of family and friends, and even not so innocent bystanders to a furious boil. Everything from software piracy to yellow journalism get tossed in the pot in the name of diversion. There are few dull moments, and any reader who wants to spend a few hours discovering characters who grow increasingly eccentric as the story progresses.

I'm not going to pretend this is a deep tale with lasting values and powerful writing, but it's hardly likely to leave the reader grabbing for the anti-depressants either. Into every life some flamingos must come.