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Meg Langslow #10, 16, 15.5- A Christmas Rescue
Two Deadly Doves
From ducks to geese to nightingales, Donna Andrews knows her birds! And she's channeled all her skill and winning humor into crafting these two Christmas mysteries with the perfect balance of comedy, suspense, and a dash of holiday cheer.
This special collections starts with Six Geese A-Slaying, centered around the Caerphilly holiday parade. When the local curmudgeon playing Santa is murdered, it's up to Meg and Chief Burke to tackle a two-fold mission: Solving the murder and saving Christmas…
Next in Duck the Halls, an unknown prankster is setting skunks and ducks loose in the New Life Baptist Church, seemingly to derail the Christmas concert. Before they can find the culprit, though, an elderly vestryman is found dead. Who would have murdered such a harmless old man? And will Meg ever be able to finish all of her shopping, wrapping, cooking, and decorating in time for Christmas Eve?
Also includes an all-new short story, "A Christmas Rescue."
This special collections starts with Six Geese A-Slaying, centered around the Caerphilly holiday parade. When the local curmudgeon playing Santa is murdered, it's up to Meg and Chief Burke to tackle a two-fold mission: Solving the murder and saving Christmas…
Next in Duck the Halls, an unknown prankster is setting skunks and ducks loose in the New Life Baptist Church, seemingly to derail the Christmas concert. Before they can find the culprit, though, an elderly vestryman is found dead. Who would have murdered such a harmless old man? And will Meg ever be able to finish all of her shopping, wrapping, cooking, and decorating in time for Christmas Eve?
Also includes an all-new short story, "A Christmas Rescue."
608 pages, Paperback
First published October 13, 2015
2 people are currently reading
503 people want to read
About the author
Donna Andrews
103 books2,123 followersDonna Andrews was born in Yorktown, Virginia, the setting of Murder with Peacocks and Revenge of the Wrought Iron Flamingos, and now lives and works in Reston, Virginia. When not writing fiction, Andrews is a self-confessed nerd, rarely found away from her computer, unless she's messing in the garden
http://us.macmillan.com/author/donnaa...
http://us.macmillan.com/author/donnaa...
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 2, 2020
What a clever idea! (Sarcasm alert.) Combine two already-published novels in one oversized paperback. The publishers will make money, the author will make money, completists will be able to buy books they may have missed. The only potential losers are readers who don't realize that they already own/have read both books, and for them there's the consolation of a brand new, if very minor, short story! I didn't buy this compilation, and I enjoyed re-reading the two books (reviews of each of them, "Duck the Halls" and "Six Geese A-Slaying" can be found under the individual titles).
December 24, 2018
Having just read my first Donna Andrews Christmas novel, I was surprised to find this volume, Two Deadly Doves, with two previous Christmas novels, "Six Geese A-Slaying" and "Duck the Halls," plus a new short story," A Christmas Rescue," in the shelves of my bookstore. Okay, it is after Christmas, but I grabbed it, and am totally satisfied with the humor and spirited Christmas stories.
"Six Geese A-Slaying" has Meg Langslow, who is the marshal of Caerphilly's annual holiday parade, telling us about the event. As usual (I've now read 3 of the over 20 Meg Langslow books) Meg is full of enthusiasm and tells her story with a jolly, bubbling tone which is easy, as the story is filled with funny examples of problems with the parade. Not only are there the problems with the citizens portraying the 12 days of Christmas (lords leaping, maids milking, etc.), but the number and types of animals in the parade add their own problems, such as scooping the poop of the elephants representing Diwali. As the title would indicate, however, the geese cause the most problems since there are far, far more than six, and unlike most of the other animals, they are really people in goose costumes. The primary mystery is the murder of a nasty man who plays Santa who was stabbed by one of the stakes used to hold up signs by SPOOR (Stop Poisoning our Owls and Raptors) members--the people in the geese costumes. Of course, as is proper for problems at the Christmas season, a huge snowstorm threatens the parade, and near the end does indeed continue to cause difficulties in solving the murder. But since Santa was a disreputable soul who wasn't appropriate for his role anyway, there is no problem that can't be solved keeping up a happy, seasonable mood. Some threats, some suspense for those we do like, but it is a Christmas story; it ends peacefully and pleasantly.
Duck the Halls, again narrated by Meg Langslow, tells us about the desecration of several churches during the Christmas rush of events. Meg is charged with scheduling all the events from one church to another when the rooms of one become unusable. She revises her list over and over; Caerphilly has all the events you could imagine for the season. First twelve skunks are found in the New Life Baptist Church. While their church is being aired out, their Christmas concert has to be held in Trinity Episcopal, where an emerald tree boa appears during their show. Then a flock of ducks are found in the sanctuary of St. Byblig's Catholic Church. If these animal "pranks" are not enough, a vestryman at Trinity is found dead in the undercroft (basement). When the murder is finally solved, it turns out the vestryman had actually found out what a viscous man the murderer was and was killed to silence him. There is a lot of suspense trying to find out who is involved with all the problems. But finally Meg and Michael escape to their first apartment for a small family dinner only to be inundated with everyone who found out where they went by various methods.
"A Christmas Rescue" does not involve saving either animals or birds. Instead a woman is saved from her abusive husband. It is a nice rescue, but I think the story is probably mostly useful for adding background to the characters in the series. Apparently one of the rescuers is the mother of Meg's father, but then I have not yet learned to tell her father from her grandfather. Both are active older gentlemen interested in the health of animals and people; perhaps the grandfather runs the zoo and may be a veterinarian while the father may be a physician. Perhaps...
Two Deadly Doves? I thoroughly enjoyed it, laughing aloud in spots. "Six Geese..." is the funnier and made me laugh the most, but "Duck the Halls" is more exciting in trying to solve the mystery. So both involved at least this reader. Good Christmas fare.
"Six Geese A-Slaying" has Meg Langslow, who is the marshal of Caerphilly's annual holiday parade, telling us about the event. As usual (I've now read 3 of the over 20 Meg Langslow books) Meg is full of enthusiasm and tells her story with a jolly, bubbling tone which is easy, as the story is filled with funny examples of problems with the parade. Not only are there the problems with the citizens portraying the 12 days of Christmas (lords leaping, maids milking, etc.), but the number and types of animals in the parade add their own problems, such as scooping the poop of the elephants representing Diwali. As the title would indicate, however, the geese cause the most problems since there are far, far more than six, and unlike most of the other animals, they are really people in goose costumes. The primary mystery is the murder of a nasty man who plays Santa who was stabbed by one of the stakes used to hold up signs by SPOOR (Stop Poisoning our Owls and Raptors) members--the people in the geese costumes. Of course, as is proper for problems at the Christmas season, a huge snowstorm threatens the parade, and near the end does indeed continue to cause difficulties in solving the murder. But since Santa was a disreputable soul who wasn't appropriate for his role anyway, there is no problem that can't be solved keeping up a happy, seasonable mood. Some threats, some suspense for those we do like, but it is a Christmas story; it ends peacefully and pleasantly.
Duck the Halls, again narrated by Meg Langslow, tells us about the desecration of several churches during the Christmas rush of events. Meg is charged with scheduling all the events from one church to another when the rooms of one become unusable. She revises her list over and over; Caerphilly has all the events you could imagine for the season. First twelve skunks are found in the New Life Baptist Church. While their church is being aired out, their Christmas concert has to be held in Trinity Episcopal, where an emerald tree boa appears during their show. Then a flock of ducks are found in the sanctuary of St. Byblig's Catholic Church. If these animal "pranks" are not enough, a vestryman at Trinity is found dead in the undercroft (basement). When the murder is finally solved, it turns out the vestryman had actually found out what a viscous man the murderer was and was killed to silence him. There is a lot of suspense trying to find out who is involved with all the problems. But finally Meg and Michael escape to their first apartment for a small family dinner only to be inundated with everyone who found out where they went by various methods.
"A Christmas Rescue" does not involve saving either animals or birds. Instead a woman is saved from her abusive husband. It is a nice rescue, but I think the story is probably mostly useful for adding background to the characters in the series. Apparently one of the rescuers is the mother of Meg's father, but then I have not yet learned to tell her father from her grandfather. Both are active older gentlemen interested in the health of animals and people; perhaps the grandfather runs the zoo and may be a veterinarian while the father may be a physician. Perhaps...
Two Deadly Doves? I thoroughly enjoyed it, laughing aloud in spots. "Six Geese..." is the funnier and made me laugh the most, but "Duck the Halls" is more exciting in trying to solve the mystery. So both involved at least this reader. Good Christmas fare.
February 8, 2022
This book contained 2 previously printed cozy mysteries plus a short Christmas story: All three of these stories had Christmas as a theme. While they were fun, they were not as good as the “Tuccan” book I read just before these. They were not connected, just were printed one after another. Together they were a bit over the top in Christmas cheer and diverse animals. The stories seemed longer and more complicated. The amazing characters of the Langslow family were all in play and in their glory.
December 9, 2019
This tome contains two previously published Christmas novels (which I've read) and a new Christmas short story. I enjoy her books, they're funny, everything turns out well in the end just what a cozy mystery is supposed to be.
The short story is a glimpse into Meg's grandmother's life before she finally gets to meet Meg in The good the bad and the emus. Well written and entertaining.
The short story is a glimpse into Meg's grandmother's life before she finally gets to meet Meg in The good the bad and the emus. Well written and entertaining.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 15, 2018
A combo of two single books, c my review at individual titles.
January 20, 2019
I’ve already read the two Christmas books inside, but I hadn’t read her short story titled, “A Christmas Rescue.”
October 23, 2022
Two great Christmas books and a bonus short story.
September 25, 2023
The short story is so great! A look into Cordelia's life before Meg and family know about her. Well worth looking for this book!
December 27, 2024
I finished Six Geese-a Slaying and am reading Duck the Halls.
December 17, 2015
One of my annual Christmas stories for this year. This omnibus edition contains two novels and a short story. The novels are Meg Langslow #10 Six Geese A-Slaying and #16 Duck the Halls. The short story happens a few weeks before Duck the Halls.
The stories are set about five years apart and both take place at Christmas. In Six Geese A-Slaying, Meg is a newlywed and has been given the task of organizing the annual Christmas parade. While everything is hectic, Meg has it under control, more or less. The main problem is curbing the enthusiam of the local birding group who are protraying the six geese of the 12 days of Christmas. The other problem is the cantakerous old man that is to play Santa. The problem is that he has turned up dead and now Meg and Police Chief Burke have to figure out who killed Santa and how to save Christmas.
In Duck the Halls, pranksters are hitting different religious groups. Meg gets the job of developing a schedule that will enable all of the different religious groups to hold all of their different holiday programs. But when the pranks escalate to murder, Meg finds herself embroiled in yet another murder mystery.
I have never read any of the Meg Langslow mysteries. There is always the posibilty of feeling like you are missing a lot of needed background information when jumping into the middle of a series. Thankfully, that was not the case here. There was some references to earlier stories but nothing major. I felt comfortable with the characters and their relationships from the very beginning.
The series does seem to suffer froma problem I have noticed with books set in small towns. While the town is supposed to be small, it only really seems to be small when it suits the story. For example, the town has a renowned college and zoo. There are a ton of churches. While that may not be uncommon, it is the range of churches that I find hard to fully accept. In Duck the Halls, we see Baptists (with a world renowned choir), Methodists, Catholics, a Jewish Temple, Episcopalians, Unitarians, and a few more that I might be forgetting. In these ways, the town doesn't seem that small. But then, the town doesn't have things like snowplows. Supposedly, this is partly because the winters are so mild. But in both books, there is more than a foot of snow on the ground for most of the stories. Now, I do live in a small town with truly mild winters. We don't have a renowned university or zoo but we do have snowplows (or at least salt trucks with plows attached to the front). We also manage to keep phone service(cell and landline) and powerwhen it does storm.
As for the mysteries, I would say they are solid for the most part. In Six Geese A-Slaying, the mystery does depend on a lot of details happening at a certain time for it to work. In Duck the Halls, the murder doesn't happen until almost the halfway point.
I enjoyed both books (and the short story). I can see myself reading more in the series. I would mainly recommend this omnibus edition to anyone that doesn't already have the single books. In that case, it is a nice edition with an added story as a bonus.
The stories are set about five years apart and both take place at Christmas. In Six Geese A-Slaying, Meg is a newlywed and has been given the task of organizing the annual Christmas parade. While everything is hectic, Meg has it under control, more or less. The main problem is curbing the enthusiam of the local birding group who are protraying the six geese of the 12 days of Christmas. The other problem is the cantakerous old man that is to play Santa. The problem is that he has turned up dead and now Meg and Police Chief Burke have to figure out who killed Santa and how to save Christmas.
In Duck the Halls, pranksters are hitting different religious groups. Meg gets the job of developing a schedule that will enable all of the different religious groups to hold all of their different holiday programs. But when the pranks escalate to murder, Meg finds herself embroiled in yet another murder mystery.
I have never read any of the Meg Langslow mysteries. There is always the posibilty of feeling like you are missing a lot of needed background information when jumping into the middle of a series. Thankfully, that was not the case here. There was some references to earlier stories but nothing major. I felt comfortable with the characters and their relationships from the very beginning.
The series does seem to suffer froma problem I have noticed with books set in small towns. While the town is supposed to be small, it only really seems to be small when it suits the story. For example, the town has a renowned college and zoo. There are a ton of churches. While that may not be uncommon, it is the range of churches that I find hard to fully accept. In Duck the Halls, we see Baptists (with a world renowned choir), Methodists, Catholics, a Jewish Temple, Episcopalians, Unitarians, and a few more that I might be forgetting. In these ways, the town doesn't seem that small. But then, the town doesn't have things like snowplows. Supposedly, this is partly because the winters are so mild. But in both books, there is more than a foot of snow on the ground for most of the stories. Now, I do live in a small town with truly mild winters. We don't have a renowned university or zoo but we do have snowplows (or at least salt trucks with plows attached to the front). We also manage to keep phone service(cell and landline) and powerwhen it does storm.
As for the mysteries, I would say they are solid for the most part. In Six Geese A-Slaying, the mystery does depend on a lot of details happening at a certain time for it to work. In Duck the Halls, the murder doesn't happen until almost the halfway point.
I enjoyed both books (and the short story). I can see myself reading more in the series. I would mainly recommend this omnibus edition to anyone that doesn't already have the single books. In that case, it is a nice edition with an added story as a bonus.
November 9, 2015
I should of read the reviews, because this was a special edition of two previous books. Six Geese A-Slaying and Duck the Halls. It did have a short story entitled A Christmas Rescue so all was not lost.
February 8, 2016
This includes 2 books, 262pgs and 310pgs, that tells some unique Christmas stories that revolve around one particular family most of the time. There's some shooting that turns out to be pretty wild for a holiday story!
December 24, 2015
Rating is for short story. It is more of a cut scene than a real short story.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews