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The hilly terrain next to the old Sprocket house that Meg Langslow and her fiancé, Michael, are refurbishing is the perfect location for an extreme croquet field?even the legs of cows and sheep are convenient extra wickets. Croquet has become all the rage in Caerphilly…until it appears someone in town has taken the rage a bit too literally. While stumbling down a steep bank after her ball, Meg encounters the body of a fresh female corpse with a mallet-sized dent in her head. If that isn't show more reason enough to call a time-out, it turns out that Michael knew the woman from years before. Ever curious, Meg decides that playing arm-chair sleuth is far more important than working on her game. show lessTags
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This was a fun Meg Langslow cozy mystery! Meg is playing extreme croquet out in a cow pasture because this is what they do in Caerphilly, Virginia for fun. While she’s out there, unfortunately, she discovers a dead body, and after the police question everyone at the site and no one seems to know who the dead woman is, it eventually turns out she’s one of Michael’s exes.
Awkward.
This is where the story takes some interesting twists and turns. There are boxes and boxes of historical documents, a historical society up in arms, a strip mall that no one wants built nearby, and of course, the croquet game. But how does it all tie in together? As always, the quirky characters and zany situations are the fun of this book. I always enjoy show more reading Meg’s adventures and seeing what her family is up to next. show less
Awkward.
This is where the story takes some interesting twists and turns. There are boxes and boxes of historical documents, a historical society up in arms, a strip mall that no one wants built nearby, and of course, the croquet game. But how does it all tie in together? As always, the quirky characters and zany situations are the fun of this book. I always enjoy show more reading Meg’s adventures and seeing what her family is up to next. show less
The seventh book in the Meg Lanslow series has Meg and her fiance Michael refurbishing an old farmhouse. It also features games of "extreme" croquet in a neighbor's cow and sheep pastures.
When Meg stumbles onto the body of a woman who died as a result of a blow from a croquet mallet, she becomes involved in solving the mystery of her death. She soon learns that Michael once dated the victim who was a history professor with a penchant for blackmail.
Meg also learns that the farmer next door is considering selling his farm to a developer who plans to build the world's largest outlet mall on the property. Naturally, Meg and Michael aren't please about that. Meg is tempted to join forces with the head of the local historical society who show more wants to stop the development, but Meg really dislikes the woman.
The historical society wants the land set aside as a historical site because of a Civil War battle fought there whose hero was the leader of the historical society's ancestor. But Meg can't find any verification that the battle ever happened beyond a book written by the historical society's president.
There are numerous suspects to the woman's death. Meg finds herself a target when she gets too close to the solution.
I enjoyed this humorous story filled with quirky characters both human and animal. From wandering sheep to a cranky puffball of a dog, the animals provide a lot of humor. Then there are Meg's always entertaining relatives to add both humor and help for Meg's amateur detective work.
This was a fun story. I liked the narration by Bernadette Dunne who managed a wide variety of voices and moods. show less
When Meg stumbles onto the body of a woman who died as a result of a blow from a croquet mallet, she becomes involved in solving the mystery of her death. She soon learns that Michael once dated the victim who was a history professor with a penchant for blackmail.
Meg also learns that the farmer next door is considering selling his farm to a developer who plans to build the world's largest outlet mall on the property. Naturally, Meg and Michael aren't please about that. Meg is tempted to join forces with the head of the local historical society who show more wants to stop the development, but Meg really dislikes the woman.
The historical society wants the land set aside as a historical site because of a Civil War battle fought there whose hero was the leader of the historical society's ancestor. But Meg can't find any verification that the battle ever happened beyond a book written by the historical society's president.
There are numerous suspects to the woman's death. Meg finds herself a target when she gets too close to the solution.
I enjoyed this humorous story filled with quirky characters both human and animal. From wandering sheep to a cranky puffball of a dog, the animals provide a lot of humor. Then there are Meg's always entertaining relatives to add both humor and help for Meg's amateur detective work.
This was a fun story. I liked the narration by Bernadette Dunne who managed a wide variety of voices and moods. show less
Maybe it is my mood but each book in the series is as good as the last and I am thoroughly enjoying them. I am amazed at how many eccentric characters she is juggling and making funny and keeping interesting and attractive. The descriptions of playing in muddy fields and bogs dogging cows and sheep was so vivid I was tempted to go shower. Another book finished after midnight.
Reread May 2020 to help me through Covid-19 isolation and Ashley's death...perfect for it.
Reread October 2023..SADs hit hard this year and me without my light. Donna Andrews books are better than Zoloft for lifting one out of the pits.
Reread May 2020 to help me through Covid-19 isolation and Ashley's death...perfect for it.
Reread October 2023..SADs hit hard this year and me without my light. Donna Andrews books are better than Zoloft for lifting one out of the pits.
My heart says this is a great cozy! My brain will give in and forgive it for having so many suspects! This is my first venture into this cozy series written by Meg Laslow. I now want to go back and read the first of this series, “Owls Well That Ends Well”.
The story starts off with an "eXtreme croquet" which means croquet played in rough terrain, this time involving cow and sheep pastures. Which means that you could end up with a cow standing guard over your wicket? Meg, the main character finds a tall, beautiful blonde bludgeoned a by croquet mallet. Since there were four teams of players that means there was a plethora of suspects. But I really enjoyed. I felt at home with Meg, her fiancé Michael, both her quirky parents and in show more particularly Spike, a very unusual dog. All this happens in the little town of Caerphilly.
Since Meg’s house was undergoing major renovations Meg and Michael were sleeping in the barn during the time of the croquet match. After the discovery of the victim, all the suspects and even the Shiffleys had to stay put. The Shiffleys were a large family that you went to get anything done. The Shiffleys won my heart with their huge breakfasts that they cooked up for everyone. They set the spread on horses and sheets of plywood. I could almost smell their cooking.
This may sound a bit confusing but it wasn’t for me. I let the narrator, Meg carry me along with story and even ventured a guess or two about who committed the murder. This book is so rich in quirky characters and even a strange event, the Battle of Pruitt’s Ridge during the Civil War. Sometimes even battles need to be questioned!
I highly recommend this book to all cozy mystery lovers and quirky character lovers. show less
The story starts off with an "eXtreme croquet" which means croquet played in rough terrain, this time involving cow and sheep pastures. Which means that you could end up with a cow standing guard over your wicket? Meg, the main character finds a tall, beautiful blonde bludgeoned a by croquet mallet. Since there were four teams of players that means there was a plethora of suspects. But I really enjoyed. I felt at home with Meg, her fiancé Michael, both her quirky parents and in show more particularly Spike, a very unusual dog. All this happens in the little town of Caerphilly.
Since Meg’s house was undergoing major renovations Meg and Michael were sleeping in the barn during the time of the croquet match. After the discovery of the victim, all the suspects and even the Shiffleys had to stay put. The Shiffleys were a large family that you went to get anything done. The Shiffleys won my heart with their huge breakfasts that they cooked up for everyone. They set the spread on horses and sheets of plywood. I could almost smell their cooking.
This may sound a bit confusing but it wasn’t for me. I let the narrator, Meg carry me along with story and even ventured a guess or two about who committed the murder. This book is so rich in quirky characters and even a strange event, the Battle of Pruitt’s Ridge during the Civil War. Sometimes even battles need to be questioned!
I highly recommend this book to all cozy mystery lovers and quirky character lovers. show less
Meg and her fiancé Michael are attempting to get settled into their new home in Caerphilly, or actually their barn more like as the house itself is still going through all sorts of repairs and renovations. Since they're also hosting Caerphilly's first official extreme croquet tournament, their home is swarming not only with the Shiffley family work men, but with all Meg's family as well, including countless cousins and second cousins.
Therefore, there's no shortage of suspects when Meg finds a dead body at the bottom of a small ravine, following the path of her stray croquet ball. The woman's head has been bashed in, and it would appear that a croquet mallet was the likely weapon. Of course, in addition to the sheriff and local police show more force, Meg must do her own digging, attempting to discover the identity of the woman and the reason someone would want her dead.
I totally enjoyed this 7th book in the Meg Langslow mystery series, and like it's predecessors, the wacky, zany antics of Meg and family make getting there half the fun. Whether or not you remember whodunit in a year's time is irrelevant as the journey will remain with you for awhile to come. :) show less
Therefore, there's no shortage of suspects when Meg finds a dead body at the bottom of a small ravine, following the path of her stray croquet ball. The woman's head has been bashed in, and it would appear that a croquet mallet was the likely weapon. Of course, in addition to the sheriff and local police show more force, Meg must do her own digging, attempting to discover the identity of the woman and the reason someone would want her dead.
I totally enjoyed this 7th book in the Meg Langslow mystery series, and like it's predecessors, the wacky, zany antics of Meg and family make getting there half the fun. Whether or not you remember whodunit in a year's time is irrelevant as the journey will remain with you for awhile to come. :) show less
Croquet is a genteel game, usually played on a summer afternoon on a tranquil green lawn. Extreme Croquet is a whole other story. That's what Meg Langslow and her new friends are playing on the several-acre farm of her new neighbor, a countryside studded with rocks, steep hills, and placid, seemingly immovable cows. While this society game can get quite warm, it hasn't reached the stage of actual homicide at least not until Meg knocks her ball down a small cliff and encounters the body of a dead woman.
These books really alternate from average to hilarious for me. This was average because you didn't know if a person was important enough to remember(crucial for a mystery) which meant that, at the end, two people were brought forward who I had apparently been introduced to but had no memory of. Not bad. Still chuckled a bit. But I know she's capable of better.
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- Canonical title
- No Nest for the Wicket
- Original title
- No Nest for the Wicket
- Original publication date
- 2006-08-08
- People/Characters
- Meg Langslow (blacksmith); Rob Langslow (Robert James, Meg's brother, CEO, Mutant Wizards); Mrs. Fenniman (Mrs. Langslow's best friend); Henrietta Pruitt; Rose Noire (cousin Rosemary Keenan, an herbalist); Michael Waterston (Caerphilly College drama prof, Meg's man)
- Important places
- Caerphilly, Virginia, USA (fictional, pronounced 'car--FIL-ly')
- First words
- "Move," I said. "You're blocking my shot."
- Quotations
- [Mrs. Langslow finds out that Meg and Michael don't want to join the country club, so Mrs. Pruitt's favor is not needed.]
'I wish you'd told me that earlier,' she said with a sigh. 'The time I wasted being nice to that... (show all) woman.'
'You can relax,' I said. 'You don't have to be nice to her at all on our account.'
'That doesn't mean we should be gratuitously rude to her,' Mother said.
'No, but isn't it a relief to know we don't have to be gratuitously chummy with her?'
'Dreadful woman,' Mother murmured, and I suddenly felt more cheerful. Mother knew more ways to cause someone trouble without actually being rude than anyone I'd ever met. Mrs. Pruitt didn't stand a chance. (chapter 5) - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)With that, he ran off to join the dance.
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