Probable Caws by Donna Andrews

The book is off to a galloping (pun, har) start when Meg gets a phone call from her father. A local horse rescue has been pushed off their land and are being moved to Ragnar's property. All hands are needed. 

There are a few prickly characters in this book including Abel, the man whose land the horses were on, his brother George, who thinks he inherited half the property and wants the horses off, and Helen, the woman who runs the Hoof and Hearth nonprofit. There is a death but it was not anyone I expected at first. 

A lot of our favorite returning characters are away for this book which was fine. The mystery was a bit thin and the solution a bit improbable but I still enjoyed the reading. 

Four stars

Meg Langslow #39

Follows Five Golden Wings

Followed by Jay to the World

ARC of ebook kindly provided by MacMillan and Edelweiss

Five Golden Wings by Donna Andrews with Bernadette Dunne (Narrator)

Meg has two cousins getting married the Saturday before Christmas. Not a great day to begin with but their inconsiderate choices don't stop there. They are getting married on the same day at the same location and are feuding about it the whole time. Somehow, Meg's mom has become their de facto wedding planner since they've run everyone else off. The only bright point is that they are having their receptions at the Caerphilly Inn and Ekaterina is able to handle their nonsense.

Robin is only a little less adept at handling them at the church. It's just too bad that the front of the church is closed off at the moment and everyone is having to go through the graveyard. The same graveyard that has only just been re-consecrated after a series of pranks by some local teens. The same graveyard where a body is discovered.A

If you are a regular Langslow reader, you will probably clock both the victim(s) and the perpetrator(s) (trying to obfuscate this a little.) And that just adds to the delight of this book. The mystery is overall a little thinner than normal but a good read.

Four stars

Meg Langslow #38

Follows For Duck's Sake

Followed by Probable Caws

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

ARC of ebook kindly provided by MacMillan and Edelweiss

Reread as Audible book April 2026

For Duck's Sake by Donna Andrews

Meg is enjoying an afternoon at her brother’s house when it’s interrupted. Not by the backhoe, that noise is expected. Rather, it’s the lack of noise. A skeleton has been uncovered.
Even though her family is, of course, helping uncover the whole skeleton, Meg is also dealing with housing dogs that are up for adoption until the Mutt March takes place in a few days. It’s a major adoption event and, while there are plenty of volunteers, they are also having to deal with the worry that someone may be trying to adopt a dog for nefarious purposes. 

As usual, a lot going on but Meg manages it all with aplomb if not always with dignity. A lot of call backs to previous books in the series, especially since they are dealing with a skeleton that may be linked to the Pruitts. I don't think you need to have read previous books in the series to understand them all but reading and re-reading this series is always a delight, especially when Bernadette Dunne is narrating. 

Four stars

Meg Langslow #37

This book comes out August 5, 2025

Follows Rockin' Around the Chickadee

Followed by Five Golden Wings

ARC (both ebook and audiobook) kindly provided by St. Martin's Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Reread as Audible book April 2026

Rockin' Around the Chickadee by Donna Andrews

Meg's sister-in-law Delaney is pregnant and about to burst. While she's on bedrest, the rest of the family is helping out by feeding her chickadees. This leads to Rose Noir finding a body behind the barn. The bad new is that it's the Gadfly.

Gordon Norton, called the Gadfly by Meg's family, has been a thorn in the side of many people in the true crime community. He keeps trying to prove that people who have been exonerated were actually guilty. In fact, he's been harassing them pretty thoroughly. Which is why no one was happy about the fact that he was coming to the true crime conference that Meg's grandmother, Cordelia, had put together. 

There seem like a few more side characters than usual but we do get to see a lot of the regulars. I didn't love the ending and the motives but the overall book is a nice addition to the series. 

Three and a half stars

Meg Langslow #36

This book comes out October 15, 2024

Follows Between a Flock and a Hard Place

Followed by For Duck's Sake

ARC of ebook kindly provided by MacMillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

Reread as hard copy from library March , as audiobook from Audible April 2026

Between a Flock and a Hard Place by Donna Andrews

If you've ever looked up how houses have fared after a makeover show, you'll see that people are often unhappy. Based on what she's hearing through the grapevine, the Smetkamps are going to in the same place. They've won a makeover from Marvelous Mansions but the producer seems shady and the workforce is unsettled. Meanwhile, Meg is just trying to make sure they stay in code. 

Someone seems particularly against the show though (or maybe it's the Smetkamps) because they've gathered up the wild turkeys and released them on the Smetkamps street. There's a fairly amusing bit where an Amazon driver almost gets taken out by the turkeys. He makes it out alive with some help but someone else on the street does not. So, Meg is once again sleuthing a murder mystery. 

This book doesn't have much with Josh and Jamie, nor Michael. We do see any number of other regular characters in this book though and it is a nice addition to the series. 

Four stars

Meg Langslow #35

This book comes out August 6, 2024

Follows Let It Crow, Let It Crow, Let It Crow

Followed by Rockin' around the Chickadee

ARC of ebook kindly provided by MacMillan and Edelweiss

ARC of audiobook kindly provided by MacMillan and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Reread as hard copy from library March 2025, as audiobook from Audible April 2026

Let It Crow! Let It Crow! Let It Crow! by Donna Andrews

A main reason I love these books is that Meg Langslow is just so darn pragmatic. Is she an amateur detective? Yes, she is. Does she share all of her information with the police chief? Does she actively hide evidence or mess up crime scenes? No she does not. She's smart, she solves crimes, and she does so without being an bumbling idiot. 

Even better, she's competent at any number of things (though she has her failings) and her blacksmithing, which sometimes takes a back seat, is out in full force during this book. There is a reality competition being filmed at Ragnar's estate and Meg is there as a general dogsbody. She has been asked to be in the show but prefers not to. However, when someone attacks her friend and mentor Faulk, Meg reluctantly joins so that he won't lose the investment money he and his husband put into the filming the show which was thought up by another one of Faulk's students. 

I got ARCs of both the ebook and audiobook. The ebook was not as good though I had some personal stuff going on which made it harder to concentrate. The audiobook, and Bernadette Dunn, were amazing as always. 

Meg Langslow #34

Four stars

This book comes out October 10, 2023

Follows Birder, She Write

Followed by Between a Flock and a Hard Place

ARC kindly provided by MacMillan and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Reread as hard copy from library March 2025, as audiobook from Audible April 2026

Birder, She Wrote by Donna Andrews

Meg is looking forward to a quiet afternoon in her hammock. Of course, that's not going to happen, she's got too much going on. Some of the new people moving in to Caerphilly have complaints (again) including against Edgar Brockton, the man who has been helping Meg's dad with his bees. Which is interesting because Meg herself has just gotten a new delivery. Her dad has come over to help get the hive set up when her grandmother Cordelia arrives with a journalist in tow. The journalist is following Cordelia around and that's going to include looking for a pre-Civil War graveyard. Too bad they stumble across a dead body.

If you are a regular Andrews reader, you can probably predict most of the beats of this story but that doesn't mean it's unenjoyable. It is a nice addition to the series.

I also got to listen to the audiobook and, as always, Bernadette Dunn only makes the story better. 

Four stars

This book comes out August 1, 2023

Meg Langslow #33

Follows Dashing through the Snowbirds

Followed by Let It Crow, Let It Crow, Let It Crow

ARC of ebook kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

ARC of audiobook kindly provided by NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Reread January 2025 as audiobook from Libby, as audiobook from Audible April 2026

Dashing Through the Snowbirds by Donna Andrews

This reminds me of an early Langslow in the best of ways. Large ensemble of characters we know and love (though Michael and the boys weren't as prominent in this one, that's okay,) all of them gathered for holiday, getting glimpses of Caerphilly as Meg tries to solve a murder, and Mutant Wizards!

A Canadian genetics company has teamed up with Rob's computer folks to try and develop a better website. They are a small company currently headed by the owner's son, Ian. The son has decided that the entire genetics team needs to be in Caerphilly even though it means most of them will be missing Christmas with their families. Even worse, he did NOT plan well and they should up in town with no place to stay. In Caerphilly, known for their Christmas festival. So, once again, Meg and Michael are hosting any number of people in their house. 

At least the house is furnished and warm. And cousin Nora is there to feed everyone so all Meg has to do is keep her temper around Ian, even as she learns more and more and it makes her less and less impressed by the man. Of course, that means he's probably the one who will end up dead. 

Among the suspects are the young women Ian hit on, the woman who is stalking him, and a convicted killer who was released because their genetics company says that his DNA was not the one found at the scene.  

Four stars

Meg Langslow #32

This book comes out October 11, 2022

Follows Round Up the Usual Peacocks

Followed by Birder, She Wrote

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

Reread December 2022 as audiobook, January 2025 as hard copy from library, as audiobook from Audible April 2026

Round Up the Usual Peacocks by Donna Andrews

Meg's nephew Kevin has started a true crime podcast with his friend Casey. Everything is going well, their audience is growing, but when Casey is nearly run over, they suspect that they may have stirred up a hornet's nest. They are able to narrow down the episodes most likely to have caused some problems to three. One is a rumor about cheating at the Caerphilly College Business School twenty years ago, a young woman who disappeared, and a man who was possibly wrongly convicted in Clay County. The last, Meg decides to leave to the regular police. After talking to the man, Lucas, Vern Shiffley is also wondering whether he got a fair shake. 

But that leaves two cases for Meg to chase down. 

Four stars

This book comes out August 2, 2022

Follows The Twelve Jays of Christmas 

Followed by Dashing Through the Snowbirds

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

Reread as Audible book January 2025, April 2026

The Twelve Jays of Christmas by Donna Andrews

If you've read Donna Andrews before, the beats of this book are going to feel very familiar including the victim and the murderer. It is a major holiday and Meg Langslow is busy. This time, Michael and the boys are skiing while she is left at home because of a severely sprained ankle. But that doesn't mean that life is any less busy. Rob and Delaney are almost back from vacation but Delaney's mother has arrived to confer with Meg's mom on how they can transform the upcoming nuptials from the small affair that Rob and Delaney want to something more grand. Meg is also hosting a visiting artist who is working on pictures for her grandfather's new book. Unfortunately, the artist, Castlemayne, is not only grumpy, he's a jerk. He's let birds out in the house that are now dive bombing people, he is smoking in the library, and the doorbell rings constantly from people trying to track him down. Mostly to pay his late bills. How do they know where he is? A new gossip blog that is spilling all of the town secrets.
Of course, Castlemayne is going to be the one who ends up dead. And there are plenty of people who might have wanted him that way including two ex-wives, a long-suffering assistant, and a reporter who wants the full scoop.

Three and a half stars

Meg Langslow #30

This book comes out October 19, 2021

Follows Murder Most Fowl

Followed by Round up the Usual Peacocks

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

Reread as Audible book January 2025, April 2026

Murder Most Fowl by Donna Andrews

Something's afoot when Meg's twins find what appears to be a hand in the local woods. Thank goodness it just ends up being some interesting-looking mushrooms. She's already got a lot going on. Their rambling house is once again full of actors; this time Michael is directing Macbeth and some of the actors might be truly be trying to bring their roles to life. There's also a camp of medieval reenactors in the neighborhood who might be taking their vow to live like those in Macbeth's time a little too seriously, especially because they're not doing it well. Just ask the sheep they "liberated" from Seth Early's farm. 

To add on to everything else, there's a filmmaker capturing it all on camera and he's not just annoying because of his noise level, it seems like he's trying to film something more like an expose than a straight up documentary. When his first edit is screened in the library, somebody sees something they don't like and the documentarian ends up dead with his trailer trashed and all of the raw footage gone.

Another enjoyable book. Many mysteries overlap to make for many people but not overly complicated.

Four stars

Meg Langslow #29

This book comes out August 3, 2021

Follows The Gift of the Magpie

Followed by The Twelve Jays of Christmas

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

Reread January 2022, January 2025, as Audible audiobook April 2026

Lark! The Herald Angels Sing by Donna Andrews

Meg Langslow is once again embroiled in a Christmas mystery. This time, she is in charge of the Christmas pageant when a second baby Jesus shows up. But this one is a girl and the note that was left with the baby points at Meg's brother Rob as being her dad.

This is bad because Rob was planning on proposing to his girlfriend and, with a rash of past girlfriends popping up, Delaney doesn't seem like she's going to accept any time soon.

All of this is tied into a murder in nearby Clay County (often the bad guys in this series) and it will take Meg to tie it all together.

Three and a half stars

This book came out October 16th, 2018

Follows Toucan Keep a Secret

Followed by Terns of Endearment

Opinions are my own

Reread as Audible book December 2023, April 2026

The Real Macaw by Donna Andrews

Meg has her hands full, not only with her own twins but also Timmy, whose mother joined the army and is now stationed in Germany. So when she wakes up one night to the sounds of animals, she's confused. The only animal they have is her mother-in-law's (now her and Mike's) dog, Spike, and he's with her. When she goes downstairs, she discovers her father, grandfather, brother and the local vet moving animals into her living room. It seems the CORSICANs (Members of the Committee Opposed to the Ruthless Slaughter of Innocent Captive Animals) have broken into the local shelter after the news that the county manager and mayor have decided that it is too expensive to keep up the no-kill policy. This is only one of the most recent controversial decisions made by the new manager and mayor.

Then, the fifth member of the break-in crew turns up dead, some really hard questions have to be asked. Was it one of the many women that this fella was sleeping with? Or something more sinister?

Four stars

This book came out July 19th, 2011

Meg Langslow #13

Follows Stork Raving Mad

Followed by Some like It Hawk

Borrowed as audiobook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

Reread November 2024, February 2026 as Audible audiobook

Stork Raving Mad by Donna Andrews

Caerphilly College has no heat anywhere on campus which means that all of the students have been outsourced and Meg and her professor husband's house is a likely spot since it is large and rambling. That includes one student whose final thesis project is interpreting a Spanish play into English and then performing it. The 80-something playwright is discovered to be alive and has even flown over for the event. However, the head of the English Department (which oversees the drama students as well) has shown up with her minion from the President's Office saying that the thesis is unacceptable. Since this isn't the first time she has proved herself to be thoroughly unlikable, it's no surprise that she ends up dead. In fact, the bigger surprise is exactly how many people actually tried to kill her. 

There was a lot going on in this one but I think it is the basis for at least one of the twin's names.

Three stars

This book came out July 6th, 2010

Meg Langslow #12

Follows Swan for the Money

Followed The Real Macaw

Borrowed as audiobook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

Reread November 2024, January 2026 as Audible audiobook

Swan for the Money by Donna Andrews

Meg's parents have always been slightly eccentric and often pick up new hobbies (Meg's dad learning lockpicking has come in handy in more than one book). Now her parents are getting into the hobby of raising and showing roses. There's a lot that goes into the practice and a lot of rules around what kind of roses can be entered into competition. Putting together a show can be time consuming and Meg has been roped into being the lead on this particular flower show. She's having problems finding volunteers and it has quite a bit to do with the fact that she is dealing with Mrs. Winkelson. The woman has graciously allowed the show to be on her property. Well... "gracious" might be an exaggeration. The woman has tried to run the show according to her own rigid standards - standards that very much make it likely that she herself will be the winner. None of what she does makes life any easier for Meg. For instance, Mrs. Winkelson called up many of the competitors and told them only black and white roses (the color scheme of her entire property including all animals) will be shown. 

Because Mrs. Winkelson is so universally reviled, it should come as little surprise to the reader that she is the one targeted for murder. This time, Meg is more of an active sleuth rather than just a busybody or being pushed into it by her family. 

An okay story but not one of my favorites in the series. Mrs. Winkelson is kind of fun and I did like the flipping of some of the solution.

Three and a half stars

This book came out July 21st, 2009

Meg Langslow #11

Follows Six Geese A-Slaying

Followed by Stork Raving Mad

Borrowed as audiobook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

Reread July 2023 , November 2024, January 2026 as Audible audiobook

Six Geese A-Slaying by Donna Andrews

Chosen to lead the local holiday parade (at least, it's the "holiday" now that she's in charge), Meg Langslow is wondering why she accepted. Well, she didn't exactly know that she was going to be in charge of everything. So that's why her house is teeming with most of the town of Caerphilly. Or so it seems. And many animals including donkeys, camels, elephants and more. Everything is chaotic and only made more so by the late appearance of Ralph Doleson who is playing Santa Claus. He is someone whom no one in town actually likes but yet somehow has a coveted role in the parade. He also has the temerity to kick Spike. True, the eight-and-a-half pound dog has a tendency to bite but that doesn't mean that he should be treated that way. It's just too bad that Meg's nephew is the one to find him murdered while in costume.

Regular readers will know who the murderer is pretty quickly but this is still worth reading.

Three and a half stars

Meg Langslow #10

This book came out October 28th, 2008

Follows Cockatiels at Seven

Followed by Swan for the Money

Borrowed as hard copy from library

Opinions are my own

Reread July 2023, September 2024, January 2026 as Audible audiobook

Cockatiels at Seven by Donna Andrews

A woman drops off her two-year-old and then disappears.  Makes sense to me.  Okay, not really, but it's still a good story. Dealing with a child is scary but a great way to move along the character development in this series. We got to see Meg start dating Michael, get married, and now starting to consider whether or not she wants kids. This is a great practice run but a little scary since her friend Karen is no where to be found.

Added to that, Meg discovered that Dr. Blake Montgomery, well-known animal activist and TV personality, is actually her biological grandfather in the last book. Now her dad seems to be running around trying to impress his father: storing birds in the attic, helping snakes shed skins in the basement, and just generally being furtive.

Three stars

Meg Langslow #9

This book came out July 8th, 2008

Follows The Penguin Who Knew Too Much

Followed by Six Geese A-Slaying 

Borrowed as hard copy from library

Opinions are my own

Reread January 2023;  September 2024, January 2026 as Audible book

The Penguin Who Knew Too Much by Donna Andrews

Not my favorite in the series but still entertaining.

Meg and Michael have finally gotten to move into their home. Too bad Meg's father is so hell-bent on saving the animals of the Caerphilly zoo since it seems like the owner, Patrick Lanahan, is nowhere to be found. Well, until he turns up in Meg's basement. When her father starts digging a pond for the penguins, he finds the body.

If that's not bad enough, he has told everyone that Meg would be happy to take any animals that they are tired of fostering. Soon her house and barn are filled with wolves, hyenas, lemurs, and more. And Michael seems strangely endeared by the llamas. Add to all of that, Dr. Montgomery is lurking about. He is a big name animal activist who supposedly is in town to help with the zoo or maybe take it over... but it seems like his motives might be a little shadier than what it looks like at first glance.

Three and a half stars

Meg Langslow #8

This book came out August 7, 2007

Follows No Nest for the Wicket

Followed by Cockatiels at Seven

Borrowed as hard copy from the library

Opinions are my own

Reread January 2023,  September 2024, January 2026 as Audible book

No Nest for the Wicket by Donna Andrews

This series continues its greatness.  I love that this book centers around extreme croquet.  I know I've played that way (putting wickets up all over and playing around whatever is in the way) but I didn't know anyone else did.

In this book, Meg has to figure out who killed a little-liked historian whose body she stumbles across as they're playing croquet. The lady's head is bashed in and, though the players all deny knowing her, she finds out that more than one is hiding the truth. Michael, Meg's fiance is not one of the people hiding the truth. He readily tells Meg that the woman, Lindsay, was someone he dated before they got together. Meg is incredibly pragmatic and not at all jealous that Michael dated before they met which I adore about her.

The how is fairly obvious but the who and the why have to be deciphered. Once Meg finds out that Lindsay once worked in the local college and was incredibly vindictive about perceived slights, she realizes that motives range from blackmail to revenge in the killing. 

Four stars

This book came out May 8, 2006

Meg Langslow #7

Follows Owls Well that Ends Well

Followed by The Penguin who Knew too Much

Borrowed as hard copy from the library

Opinions are my own

Reread September 2022 as audiobook, Reread January 2023, September 2024, January 2026 as Audible book

Owls Well That Ends Well by Donna Andrews

I learned more about owls than I think I ever wanted to know.  However, setting up a murder in the midst of a yard sale? I can see it happening.  People are crazy.

Meg and Michael are organizing all of the junk in the house they recently bought. The Sprocket family let it go for a song because the aunt was a hoarder. But the Sprockets are sticking around to make sure they get their cut of the profit (10% of anything that they sell from the house goes back to the family). Then add the family members who have moved in so they can sell their own materials, or buy anything that's available, and the scads of early birds who can't understand why they can't go in early and you've got more people than Meg is really wanting around. She's just glad that two months of cleaning out the house is about to culminate in no more junk. Dreaming of a life of minimalism, she's not excited to find the body of a particularly nasty antiques dealer in a trunk. 

A fun mystery, very typical of the Andrews series. Meg is an incredibly competent, though reluctant sleuth. She is hesitant in this book to share with the police chief the things she learns though that changes in later books.

Four stars

This book came out March 7th, 2006

Follows We'll Always Have Parrots

Followed by No Nest for the Wicket

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Reread December 2022; September 2024, January 2026 as Audible book