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Title details for The Twelve Jays of Christmas by Donna Andrews - Wait list

The Twelve Jays of Christmas

#30 in series

by Donna Andrews
ebook
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Wait time: About 2 weeks

The cast of Donna Andrews' New York Times bestselling Meg Langslow mystery series is back for an unforgettable holiday story in The Twelve Jays of Christmas.

Meg and Michael's annual holiday celebration is well underway, with a throng of out-of-town relatives staying at their house. Hosting these festivities is a little harder than usual—they have to relocate all the events normally held in their library, currently occupied by Roderick Castlemayne, the irascible wildlife artist who's creating twelve paintings of birds to illustrate Meg's grandfather's latest nature book.
Still, the celebrations continue—and the entire family rejoices to learn that Meg's brother Rob and his longtime fiancée Delaney have finally decided to tie the knot. Unfortunately, they decide to do this in the middle of Meg and Michael's annual New Year's bash, dashing their mothers' hopes of planning the wedding to end all weddings.
Delaney's mother sneaks into town so she and Meg's mother can secretly plot a way to talk the happy couple into having a big bash. Hiding her only adds to Meg's holiday stress—it's almost a full-time job fending all the visitors who want to confront Castlemayne—reporters, bill collectors, process servers, and several ex-wives in search of unpaid alimony.
Then someone murders Castlemayne in the middle of a blizzard and sets loose the birds he was painting. Can Meg help the police crack the case before the killer strikes again? Can she keep Christmas merry in spite of the body in the library? Can she negotiate a compromise between Rob and Delaney and their disappointed mothers? And can she recapture the twelve escaped jays before they begin nesting in the Christmas tree?
This intrigue-filled Christmas mystery takes readers home to Caerphilly to join in Meg's family's holiday celebration—including, of course, another baffling mystery.

  • Creators

  • Series

    Meg Langslow Mystery

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    October 19, 2021

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781250760197

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781250760197
      • File size: 3479 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Library Journal

      May 1, 2021

      Meg's brother Rob and his beloved, Delaney, don't want the splashy wedding their mothers would just love, so they throw a big party before Christmas with plans to elope afterward. But the partiers get snowed in, the mothers discover the couple's intentions to sneak away, and a dead body turns up. With a 40,000-copy first printing.

      Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Publisher's Weekly

      August 9, 2021
      Agatha Award–winner Andrews’s fast-moving, high-spirited 30th Meg Langslow mystery (after Murder Most Fowl) finds witty Meg preparing to host her large extended family at her home in Caerphilly, Va., for the Christmas holidays. Unfortunately, she’s hampered by a sprained ankle, two wombats in the basement, and flocks of birds in the library. The birds were released from their cages by an unwanted houseguest, wildlife artist and “misogynistic jerk” Roderick Castlemayne, who’s in Caerphilly to illustrate the new book by Meg’s grandfather, an eminent naturalist and the owner of the zoo from which the furry and feathered guests have been brought to serve as models for the artist’s illustrations. When someone plunges a Swiss army knife into Castlemayne’s throat, the only people who are sorry to see him go seem to be the legions to whom he owes money. Ex-wives, bill collectors, and process servers are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to suspects. This Christmas romp, complete with a litter of adorable puppies, will certainly please fans and newcomers alike. Andrews consistently entertains. Agent: Ellen Geiger, Frances Goldin Literary.

    • Booklist

      October 15, 2021
      Wombats in the basement, northern mockingbirds flying freely through the house while dive-bombing residents, and a sprained ankle are creating issues for Meg Langslow, but these difficulties pale in comparison to the problems caused by wildlife artist Roderick Castlemayne. The obnoxious Castlemayne, who is illustrating a book for Meg's grandfather, has set up his studio in her library and is a demanding, inconsiderate guest. His downtrodden, spineless assistant, Harris, is also living at Meg's house, which is quickly filling up with relatives for the upcoming Christmas festivities. Meg must also divert a steady stream of journalists, bill collectors, and ex-wives who demand to see Castlemayne, so there is no shortage of suspects when the artist is found murdered in the library. Meg investigates, with help from her extended family and friends, leading to a potentially disastrous confrontation with the killer. The large cast of familiar characters, the charming and close-knit community in Caerphilly, Virginia, and the amusing details about animals and their behavior will please fans of the long-running cozy series.

      COPYRIGHT(2021) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Formats

  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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