Book Review: The Penguin Who Knew Too Much

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

The Penguin Who Knew Too Much     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
Donna Andrews
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Amateur Sleuth   Woman Main Character
Series: Meg Lanslow # 8
Dunne, Aug 2007, $23.95

Meg Langslow and her fiancé Michael Waterston are moving into their renovated home in Caerphilly, Virginia with the help (an extremely loose use of the word help that is) of her dad and her relatives from mom’s side. Dad suddenly leaves the basement to inform his daughter that he ran into a slight problem while digging a swimming hole for the penguins he adopted from a bankrupt zoo; he dug up a corpse.

The police investigate, but struggle with identifying the John Doe. The assumption made by the townsfolk and fostered by Meg’s family is that the deceased is the bankrupt zoo's missing owner. Thus those who were fostering animals no longer want them on their property so they drop them off at Meg’s place. Meg and Michael discuss eloping early to elude the menagerie; that is the two legged beasts who share her DNA. However, first there is a question of who killed and interred the body in their basement.

This jocular whodunit is a terrific tale that will leave the audience laughing especially with some outrageous slapstick yet the humor remains inside a strong mystery. The incredibly calm Meg does not blink as animals run amok and her family is even more out of control. Fans will appreciate her calm juggling act as Donna Andrews provides a great entry in what may be the best humor-mystery series on the market today.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner