Release Day Review: Terns of Endearment by Donna Andrews

Series: Meg Lanslow Mysteries #25
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: August 6th, 2019
Buying Links: Amazon* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | iBooks* |
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Blurb from goodreads:

A new side-splitting Meg Langslow mystery from award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of Toucan Keep a Secret.

Meg's grandfather has been booked to give lectures on a cruise as part of the education/entertainment itinerary, and he's arranged for a passel of family members to join him.

The passengers' vacation quickly becomes a nightmare when they wake up to find themselves broken down and in need of repairs. Things get even worse when a crew member announces to all that a woman has jumped overboard, leaving behind her shoes, shawl, and a note. The note reveals she's a disliked member of a writers' group onboard for a retreat, and the group is split on whether this is in-character for her.

The captain decides not to investigate, saying he'll notify American authorities when they reach their destination. But Meg's father decides they need to look into whether there was possible foul play while the prime suspects are all stuck on board. It'll be a race against the clock to solve this mystery before they make the necessary repairs and return to shore.

Donna Andrews' long-running Meg Langslow series continues to be beloved by its fans, who loyally buy every new installment. Terns of Endearment is a perfect new addition, full of laughter, adventure, and Andrews' wonderful cast of wacky characters. (less)

My Thoughts:

"Terns of Endearment" is clever, a little convoluted, but nicely done. It gets meta with the writing group and publishing gossip, but it's also interesting. The story's not side-splitting as the blurb says but it is humorous, and it kept me reading; I finished it in a day. Meg and her extended family take a trip aboard a cruise ship from a new cruise line, one that is poorly run and not entirely ethical. You may not want to take a cruise after reading this story, lol. Murphy's Law doesn't just strike but moves in and gets comfy.

Andrews weaves several plots and ties them in with some unlikely coincidences but she makes them work. I enjoyed the story and was caught up in it. Looking back, a lot of it is improbable, and certainly a travel disaster! but as I was reading, I mostly accepted and went along with events. The story is told from Meg's perspective and we don't see a lot of her husband Michael or their sons, though they are around and helping. Her temperamental grandfather is on hand, as is her enthusiastic father, regimental mother, and inspirational cousin Rose Noire. Together, they take over the ship, solve a murder and some related mysteries, investigate a suicide, sort out a plagiarism issue, and eventually make it safely to land. Meg is her usual level-headed self while her errant brother Rob is finally growing up and becoming a more settled adult. I enjoyed the blast from the past regarding Michael's former acting career. While you could read this easily without having read any of the earlier books, as a long time reader, I enjoyed seeing both the changes and the things that haven't changed.

"Terns of Endearment" was fun, engaging, full of quirks and quirky people, and little twists. Twenty five books in and the series is still enjoyable.