'Tis the season...

A few weeks ago, I shared some books I'm looking forward to this fall.  Here's the first book on my list, being released tomorrow.

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).

reviewed by Marlyn Beebe.

As usual, Meg and her husband Michael have a lot on their plates.  Not only do they now have twin four-year-old boys, Michael has signed up to be a volunteer fireman, and it's almost Christmas.
A few days before the holiday, they are awakened in the middle of the night by an emergency call summoning Michael to the New Life Baptist Church.

Luckily, there's no fire.  However, the choir loft has a cage full of angry skunks in it, who have done what angry skunks do.  As a result, even after the skunks have been removed, it will be impossible to use the church for any Christmas events.  Trinity Episcopal, which Meg's mother attends, offers to let the Baptists use their sanctuary for their Christmas concert.  Meg is conscripted to create a schedule for the other events planned at the Baptist church, but there are complications.

At the concert itself, a boa constrictor slithers out of the Christmas tree, and the next morning, the parishioners of the Catholic church arrive to find it filled with hundreds of ducks.  Meg's task is becoming more complex by the minute. 

So far, the pranks have been harmless, but then there is a fire at Trinity Episcopal, and an elderly vestryman is killed.  Obviously, this is not the work of the original pranksters, but Meg doesn't know how to prove it.

This story is vintage Andrews.  Meg's family and the  residents of Caerphilly are, as usual, just eccentric enough to be believable.  This is bound to become a classic Christmas mystery.



FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for the e-galley.

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf

Duck the Halls (Meg Lanslow #16) by Donna Andrews (Minotaur hardcover, 22 October 2013).
- See more at: http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-10-09T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=8#sthash.qDM0I2Af.dpuf