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Merry Wrath Mysteries #31

Mingling with Murder

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From USA Today bestselling author Leslie Langtry comes a mingle turned murder...

Welcome to Mingle, Iowa—We’re Putting Our Past Behind Us!

Merry Wrath, ex-CIA agent turned Girl Scout leader, is accompanying thirteen year olds Mayor Ava, Betty, Lauren, and Inez from her troop to the regional conference for small town mayors. Mingle, Iowa, the home of the Mayor Mingle conference, is famous for a major scandal in the 1980s that no one seems to remember, even though the current mayor does everything in his power to keep them from forgetting!

Have dinner at the Nothing to See Here Restaurant! Relax at the It Didn’t Quite Happen That Way Bar!

Merry is excited that her husband and detective, Rex, is getting an award for having a 100% murder solve rate! But she's concerned that Ava's presenting The Most Murdery Town—How To Utilize Your Town’s Biggest Assets! Not to be outdone, Ava's right hand henchgirl, Betty, is presenting on How to Bend City Hall to Your Will & Everything I Learned From Huey Long. Merry’s hoping she can sit in on the sessions to jump in when things most likely go awry (as they often do).

We hope you survive—er, enjoy your stay!

Unfortunately, things go very awry when one of the mayors is murdered. But who did it? Was it the mayor from the town famous for its termite infestation? Could it be the snooty mayor who descended from her town’s founders? Or the mayor who always dresses like an ear of corn? How about the mayor from the lobster capital of Iowa? Or the mayor who is an actual pig? It doesn’t help that the victim's dying wish was for Rex to solve this case before the conference ends despite it being out of his jurisdiction! Can Merry and Rex solve this crime in time—or is Mingle destined to have the stain of a new scandal on their Welcome To billboard?

209 pages, Paperback

First published October 15, 2024

71 people are currently reading
2512 people want to read

About the author

Leslie Langtry

97 books722 followers
Leslie Langtry is a USA Today Bestselling Author of the Merry Wrath Mysteries and the Bombay Family of Assassins Greatest Hits series. She lives in the Midwest with her family and is an active Girl Scout volunteer. Her dream is to someday invent calorie free cake.

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
Profile Image for Missi Martin (Stockwell).
1,129 reviews34 followers
October 23, 2024
With Mingling with Murder being the thirty-second book in the Merry Wrath Mystery series by Leslie Langtry I don't think readers need any encouragement to read these books. I would have to think and believe that there is already a huge fan base for this series ..... but just in case there are still some cozy mystery readers out there that are not familiar with this series and are looking for something new to read, here you go !!

Unfortunately I, myself, have only read a few books in this series but as soon as I opened up Mingling with Murder and started reading I was hooked !! This series is a HOOT !!! Besides there being a murder to solve, the characters and the towns are so much fun !!

In Mingling with Murder main character Merry Wrath is tagging along to the annual Mayor Mingle. Her husband, Detective Rex Ferguson is receving an award for 100% solve rate on cases in their hometown Who's There in Iowa. Also attending the Mayor Mingle is their mayor, thirteen year old Ava and her three friends of the same age.

Unfortunately on the early in the conference during dinner, the Mayor of Mingle, Mayor Michael, gets sick and ends up in the hospital. It is soon learned that he was poisoned and before he died, he wrote a note to Rex to solve this !! Even though it isn't his jurisdiction, he feels he should investigate. So he works along side Detective Bill Upton from Mingle while Merry gets to know his sister, Mary, and finds out they have a lot in common.

Also Merry has to keep her eye on her young mayor and friends as they are acting strange .... well stranger than normal.

Readers cannot help but become fans of this series. It is such a unique series with so many different things for readers to love. I wish I had started with the first book but am glad that I was able to read the ones I did.

Profile Image for Vicky.
Author 26 books69 followers
September 20, 2024
Thoughts: Like previous books in this series, this was an… interesting read. I’m not sure I liked it, but I couldn’t seem to put it down. The characters were unbelievable – and I mean that they were so over the top ridiculous that I couldn’t believe it. The only semi-realistic characters were Merry Wrath (who’s ex-CIA), her husband Rex (detective), Mary (ex-FBI), and her brother Bill (cop). Even the names of the towns are bizarre.

In this book, Merry and Rex accompany their 13-year-old mayor, Ava, and her three cohorts to a mayor convention in the town of Mingle, Iowa. While there, the mayor of Mingle is killed and, while there are multiple police in attendance with their mayors, it’s up to the foursome of Merry, Mary, Rex, and Bill to solve the crime.

Meanwhile, Ava and her cohorts are turning the convention into their own kind of playground by leading sessions on how to make city councils bend to your will (and effectively doing so) and other forms of coercion. They are actually rather scary! And only in sixth grade!

The story is so tongue-in-cheek and silly as to be groan-worthy hilarious.

Recommended – but only if you are willing to completely suspend any sense of sanity while reading this.
Profile Image for Carole Craddock.
282 reviews3 followers
September 22, 2024
Get ready for the Mayor Mingle, a conference for Iowan Mayors held in the small town of Mingle, Iowa. Mayor Ava, along with Betty, Inez, and Lauren, all attend with Merry and Rex. Rex is receiving the conference's first ever award for a 100% solve rate, and Merry couldn't be more proud of her hubby! Of course, there can't be a conference without a murder! The victim leaves a request for Rex to solve the case himself, so he and Merry set out to do just that. Oh, Merry meets Mary, an almost identical ex-FBI agent, and they become fast friends! Betty is going ballistic because she thinks Conrad is ghosting her, and maybe even cheating on her! I really enjoyed this one, and I love the introduction of some new characters. I found this book very witty, funny, and entertaining, and it's always amazing that these little thirteen year old girls in Merry's Girl Scout troop can take control of the situation everywhere they go!
Profile Image for Barbara Hackel.
2,806 reviews46 followers
September 17, 2024
Merry and Rex (along with 4 of the scouts) go to a conference in a nearby city that includes mayors and police chiefs. Of course Mayor Ava attended with Betty, Lauren and Inez, and Rex went because he was receiving an award for his 100% solved crime record! Merry? Her reason to go was her van...she was the designated driver! You can not even begin to imagine the high jinks that ensued during the multi-day convention!
Hilarious characters and a surprising doppelganger added levity to murder and mystery. So many quirky little towns were represented, old grudges exposed, as well as not-so-hidden agendas made it impossible to predict what would happen! Be prepared to be entertained in this newest addition to a fantastic series!
4,508 reviews38 followers
October 13, 2024
Mingling With Murder is another wild ride in this crazy, wonderful, entertaining series! Ms. Langtry manages to make the mayors in attendance at the Mayor Mingle conference in Mingle, Iowa are even more outrageous and over the top than Ava. Merry meets Mary, an ex-FBI agent, whose story is almost identical to Merry’s They become fast friends and unite to help Rex and Mary’s brother solve the murder while Ava and Betty make presentations at the conference. You will not want to miss this latest twisted tale!
12 reviews
October 21, 2024
Mingling with Murder review

Merry Wrath series bk # 32-- does not disappoint if you like lots of laughs , snickers and chuckles with a good cozy mystery. The interplay between the characters as well as each character's individual traits lend to the humour of the story. There is a reason this is #32. Hopefully we will see the series continue ad- infinitum! For anyone not familiar with the series, I recommend to start at bk#1 and continue from there, as each one is full of hilarious exploits mixed with more "serious" mystery. 5 stars for each of the 32 books!!!
537 reviews6 followers
October 21, 2024
Merry and the girls are at it again! Mayor Ava has committed their town to participate in the Mayor’s Mingle, a gathering of small-town mayors in Iowa. Merry is not that excited, but when she learns that Rex is getting an award, she changed her mind. Suddenly, one of the mayors is murdered! Seems like this group has just as many quirky characters as the rest of the series. Rex doesn’t want to get involved as it isn’t his jurisdiction, but before he died, the victim requested that he should investigate it. There is no shortage of suspects in this funny cozy mystery!
Profile Image for Debi Paglia .
614 reviews17 followers
September 20, 2024
Such a great series! This book is a little different in that the setting is out-of-town at a mayor’s conference. It was so fun to see all of the different characters this time. Ms. Langtry outdid herself with all the crazy mayors in this one! If you like bizarre storylines and wacky, funny characters, then you need to read this series! It never disappoints!
Profile Image for Bonnie J..
224 reviews9 followers
October 16, 2024
I received a copy from the publisher.
Love, love, love this series. Merry accompanies 2 of her girl scouts to the Iowa Mayor Convention. Yes, one of her 13 year old scouts is the mayor of their town. What could go wrong?! How about the murder of the host town's mayor. With ALOT of laugh out loud moments, Merry will solve this mystery.
Profile Image for Shannon Binegar-Foster.
2,779 reviews19 followers
October 17, 2024
Oh goodness I could not stop laughing while reading this. The humor was on overload. Betty’s antics were hilarious. I loved the new characters introduced. Merry’s doppleganer was exceptionally good. Lots of quirkiness amongst the towns. Several twists. Especially the last one involving who the killer was. Excellent read as always.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader copy of this book.
Profile Image for Nancy Haddock.
Author 8 books419 followers
December 13, 2024
3.75

I love this series overall. The settings, the girls, the wacky cast, Merry, Rex, and the rest. This premise of a conference for small-town mayor's was inventive. Merry bonding with former FBI agent, Mary, was fun. The story moved at a good pace, but it lacked cohesiveness for me. The end felt anticlimactic. I'll read the next book, but this one is not a favorite.
Profile Image for Marsha.
1,774 reviews
October 16, 2024
Another good one. Lots of mayor's from other towns show up in Mingle to honor Rex. One gets murdered, and the festival gets exciting. The girl scout group gets in on conference doings. Can't wait for the next excitement.
Profile Image for Sylvia.
46 reviews
October 17, 2024
I have read many, many Merry Wrath Mysteries and each one gets better than the last. The characters are all growing nicely and the new characters added are wonderful. I am looking forward to the next book and thank Leslie Langtry for all her contributions.
Profile Image for JEM.
75 reviews
November 4, 2024
The usual good fun with Merry Wrath and Betty! Leslie Langtry, I don't know how you keep coming up with new and interesting situations for Merry and the girls, but you've done it again with the mayors' conference.

Keep 'em coming!
562 reviews4 followers
January 14, 2025
So much fun

I really enjoyed this book. So many laugh out loud moments with hilarious scenes at the seminars for the small town mayors. The usual murder happens which needs to be investigated by Merry and another amateur sleuth. Highly recommend.
911 reviews15 followers
May 23, 2025
hilarious!

And the craziness continues in this insanely funny series. All I can say is expect the unexpected and be prepared to laugh your way through the book. Another book well written and well done.
51 reviews
October 20, 2024
Fun read!

Another great addition to this series. I can’t get enough of Betty’s antics. This is a series worth investing in.
Profile Image for E.
1,876 reviews
October 26, 2024
Hilarious!

Laugh out loud funny. 32 books and still just as good if not better than the first. I look forward to each new release. Can’t wait for the next one!
Profile Image for Karen Zulkowski.
46 reviews
November 15, 2024
Love this series

This series is a refreshing way to let go of every day worries. It is fun to watch the characters grow and change. I especially like Betty. Please write more.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews

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