The Penguin Who Knew Too Much (Meg Langslow Mysteries Book 8) (edició 2007)

Not only did this cozy mystery have the penguins (that I was expecting to be featured based on the title), but it also had llamas and camels! So cute. Meg and Michael are just finishing up renovations on their house and are secretly planning to elope to avoid a huge wedding and drama with their mothers when unfortunately a body is discovered in their basement. There’s always something quirky and fun going on in each book in this series, and this one ties into a small local zoo and its zookeeper. I especially enjoyed the hijinks of the animals and the colorful cast of characters. Some interesting surprises and reveals towards the end! ( )

" Meg! Guess what I found in your basement?"
I looked up from the box I was unpacking to see Dad standing in the basement doorway, his round face shining with excitement.
"A body?" An unlikely guess, but Dad was a big mystery buff - perhaps if I amused him, he'd stop playing guessing games on moving day.
"Oh, rats - you already knew? Well, how soon will the police get here? I need to move the penguins - we don't want them any more upset than they already are."

Today I finished the book, took a look at it, and it hit me like a ton of bricks:

I have become THAT person. The person who reads cozy mysteries with punny titles and questionable literary value. The person who doesn't like the current styles and the newest technology. In short, I have become old.

Or at least what I thought old was when I was 15. Hopefully, I can forgive myself. And hopefully, somewhere out there there is a store that sells better clothing.

All that aside, 4 stars for the unusual mystery setting though it doesn't live up to her best humor. ( )

Andrews brings the absurdity to new levels in this eighth novel in her series of humorous cozy mysteries featuring Meg Langslow and her eccentric family. A body is found buried in the basement of Meg and Michael's new home, and animals from the local small zoo keep appearing at their property. As usual, Meg balances butting into the murder investigation with handling lots of complications in her life, and we have great fun watching her do it. ( )

Here is where my own personal prejudices interfere with critical reading. My enjoyment of this book was hampered by dread of reading something that my squick me. I hate zoos, I think 90% of them are poorly run and detrimental to animals, especially smaller ones. I hate hunting for sport or any cruelty to animals and like Scarlett O'Hara whenever faced with unpleasant facts I try to put it out of my mind till another day. I know from having already read the book once before that there is nothing really squicky but just reaching the part about shooting and killing a small animal with a crossbow is enough to set up the tension in me and ruin my pleasure in the rest of the book.

Reread 2020 - knowing ahead of time that it was okay, I settled in to enjoy the book. ( )