- Hardcover: 259 pages
- Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books; First Edition edition (8 Aug 2006)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0312329407
- ISBN-13: 978-0312329402
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 13.7 x 2.5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,806,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
| ||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Meg's family is hosting an eXtreme croquet tournament near Meg's house, and Meg has gotten roped into playing. Not that she hates it, but the sport is a little wild for her tastes.
After Meg's ball gets roqueted into a gully, Meg finds a dead body. While the woman had obviously been hit by a croquet mallet, she wasn't playing in the tournament. In fact, Meg and the other contestants have no idea who she is.
It's Michael who makes the identification. The victim used to be a professor at the local college and had made quite a few enemies in town. What was she doing back in the area? And who knew about it and wanted to kill her?
This series has become a favorite because of the great plots and the laugh out loud moments. Unfortunately, this entry doesn't live up to the last couple. Mainly, it was because the book wasn't as funny as it could have been. Much of the humor has been done before and better in the earlier books. Not that this book isn't enjoyable. I still found myself laughing and smiling, just not as much as previously.
Fortunately, the plot is very engaging. There are several twists and plenty of red herrings before the final solution is revealed. I did feel the climax was a bit abrupt, but it was logical.
The returning characters are their usual charming selves. It's always a pleasure to spend time with Meg and her family even if murder is the result. The new characters are interesting as well. They could have used a little more development, but I could easily keep everyone straight.
While not up to the usual standards for this series, this is still a book well worth reading. It's a fast moving mystery that will keep you entertained from start to finish.
After Meg's ball gets roqueted into a gully, Meg finds a dead body. While the woman had obviously been hit by a croquet mallet, she wasn't playing in the tournament. In fact, Meg and the other contestants have no idea who she is.
It's Michael who makes the identification. The victim used to be a professor at the local college and had made quite a few enemies in town. What was she doing back in the area? And who knew about it and wanted to kill her?
This series has become a favorite because of the great plots and the laugh out loud moments. Unfortunately, this entry doesn't live up to the last couple. Mainly, it was because the book wasn't as funny as it could have been. Much of the humor has been done before and better in the earlier books. Not that this book isn't enjoyable. I still found myself laughing and smiling, just not as much as previously.
Fortunately, the plot is very engaging. There are several twists and plenty of red herrings before the final solution is revealed. I did feel the climax was a bit abrupt, but it was logical.
The returning characters are their usual charming selves. It's always a pleasure to spend time with Meg and her family even if murder is the result. The new characters are interesting as well. They could have used a little more development, but I could easily keep everyone straight.
While not up to the usual standards for this series, this is still a book well worth reading. It's a fast moving mystery that will keep you entertained from start to finish.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I've loved the Meg Langslow mysteries until this latest one - 'No Nest for the Wicket' - which, disappointingly, I found to be considerably less than her usual riotous romp.
It wasn't a totally slack effort in that the mystery was quite an interesting premise, but it all felt rather stale and flat this time around, with very little of the usual amusing background colour to hold my attention and an embarrassingly obvious culprit - in fact the supporting characters were frankly dull, which took most of the fun away.
In previous books there has been some tension involved in solving the mystery, but this time there was nothing at all. The denouement was so trite that I almost couldn't believe it wasn't satire...
Previous books had underlying threads of slight issues in the main characters' personal relationship that added an interesting continuity and depth to the series (ok, I know this isn't supposed to be in any way serious, but even in a cozy series like this, one could wish for a little character development - I mean I don't want angst, but some slight domestic interest would be nice - even if it's Michael's ongoing fight for tenure or another good acting role! He's a doormat in this one). However, even the slight conflict that had been building in previous books between Meg and Michael over her reluctance to commit to marriage was abandoned with no explanation. This is a shame, since even a little development of their relationship would add much to the enjoyment.
This book has a nice basic mystery, but it's really quite dull in a one dimensional, rather limp way, compared with the rest of the series. Perhaps Ms Andrews is losing interest in her heroine - if so, hope it's temporary as I really enjoy her work.
As a small aside(and I may be biased),I did infer with amusement that Ms Andrews may have a slightly hostile attitude to the English male for some reason - this is the second book with an English character (pointless since his nationality has no bearing on the story and adds no depth of background colour)who gets less than flattering treatment by the author.
The book ended with a possible 'hint' of the setting for the next one and I can only hope that Ms Andrews comes up with a more involving scenario to support her murders. Maybe she could re-read some of her earlier gems e.g. "Crouching Buzzard,Leaping Loon' for inspiration...
So, I'll read the next one, but for me the jury's still out...
It wasn't a totally slack effort in that the mystery was quite an interesting premise, but it all felt rather stale and flat this time around, with very little of the usual amusing background colour to hold my attention and an embarrassingly obvious culprit - in fact the supporting characters were frankly dull, which took most of the fun away.
In previous books there has been some tension involved in solving the mystery, but this time there was nothing at all. The denouement was so trite that I almost couldn't believe it wasn't satire...
Previous books had underlying threads of slight issues in the main characters' personal relationship that added an interesting continuity and depth to the series (ok, I know this isn't supposed to be in any way serious, but even in a cozy series like this, one could wish for a little character development - I mean I don't want angst, but some slight domestic interest would be nice - even if it's Michael's ongoing fight for tenure or another good acting role! He's a doormat in this one). However, even the slight conflict that had been building in previous books between Meg and Michael over her reluctance to commit to marriage was abandoned with no explanation. This is a shame, since even a little development of their relationship would add much to the enjoyment.
This book has a nice basic mystery, but it's really quite dull in a one dimensional, rather limp way, compared with the rest of the series. Perhaps Ms Andrews is losing interest in her heroine - if so, hope it's temporary as I really enjoy her work.
As a small aside(and I may be biased),I did infer with amusement that Ms Andrews may have a slightly hostile attitude to the English male for some reason - this is the second book with an English character (pointless since his nationality has no bearing on the story and adds no depth of background colour)who gets less than flattering treatment by the author.
The book ended with a possible 'hint' of the setting for the next one and I can only hope that Ms Andrews comes up with a more involving scenario to support her murders. Maybe she could re-read some of her earlier gems e.g. "Crouching Buzzard,Leaping Loon' for inspiration...
So, I'll read the next one, but for me the jury's still out...
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
25 reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Loved the live wickets
25 Aug 2006
Format:Hardcover
As usual, I got some good chuckles....love croquet, and now have a hankering to play X-treme croquet. The storyline actually rates 5 stars, but....and I continue to flog this pet peeve to death...who is doing the proofreading? It has to be a gaggle of first graders! On page 256, line 9, can anyone interpret this sentence?..."How big does do we need for one little duck?"
Most of the errors were just spelling, an extra letter here, not enough letters there, but, sentences like the one in quotes sure makes one slam on the brakes and release the cruise control.
Most of the errors were just spelling, an extra letter here, not enough letters there, but, sentences like the one in quotes sure makes one slam on the brakes and release the cruise control.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Very funny and enjoyable mystery
4 Sep 2006
Format:Hardcover
Blacksmith Meg Langslow learns exactly how dangerous a game of eXtreme Croquet can get when she follows her roqueted ball into a bog--where she finds a dead woman. It turns out that the dead woman was a bit of a trouble-maker, as well as a former girlfriend of Meg's fiance, Michael. All of the croquet players deny knowing anything about her, but the truth gradually comes out. With the fate of what might become the country's largest outlet mall (in Meg's back yard, of all places) involved, the stakes are high. Could it be members of the historical society? Or perhaps the developer? Then again, surely it isn't Michael--despite ending the relationship on a negative note.
The local sheriff isn't much interested in Meg's help, but she can't stop herself. She talks with the locals (including the family working on restoring the farmhouse where she hopes, eventually to live and from which the workmen had a great view of the croquet game) and starts trying to narrow down the suspect list. Unfortunately, the list seems to keep growing.
Author Donna Andrews combines charming characters with an intriguing story in a truly enjoyable mystery. Meg might be a bit odd in her own right, but she's definitely the normal one in her family--and her family is at the croquet match in full force. Her doctor-father's not-so-secret wish to be a forensic scientist comes into play, as does her mother's constant planning, her cousin's herbal druidry (or is it dryadry), her brother's computer incompetence (you'd think that would be a problem considering he's President of a computer game company), all play important roles.
Between late-night sheep shearing, Spike-the-dog's bad habits, and the egg-laying scheming of Duck the duck, I found myself chuckling through this entertaining story. I'm happy to recommend NO NEST FOR THE WICKET--great title, too.
The local sheriff isn't much interested in Meg's help, but she can't stop herself. She talks with the locals (including the family working on restoring the farmhouse where she hopes, eventually to live and from which the workmen had a great view of the croquet game) and starts trying to narrow down the suspect list. Unfortunately, the list seems to keep growing.
Author Donna Andrews combines charming characters with an intriguing story in a truly enjoyable mystery. Meg might be a bit odd in her own right, but she's definitely the normal one in her family--and her family is at the croquet match in full force. Her doctor-father's not-so-secret wish to be a forensic scientist comes into play, as does her mother's constant planning, her cousin's herbal druidry (or is it dryadry), her brother's computer incompetence (you'd think that would be a problem considering he's President of a computer game company), all play important roles.
Between late-night sheep shearing, Spike-the-dog's bad habits, and the egg-laying scheming of Duck the duck, I found myself chuckling through this entertaining story. I'm happy to recommend NO NEST FOR THE WICKET--great title, too.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Enjoyable, but not on Par with the Last Couple
16 Sep 2006
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Meg's family is hosting an eXtreme croquet tournament near Meg's house, and Meg has gotten roped into playing. Not that she hates it, but the sport is a little wild for her tastes.
After Meg's ball gets roqueted into a gully, Meg finds a dead body. While the woman had obviously been hit by a croquet mallet, she wasn't playing in the tournament. In fact, Meg and the other contestants have no idea who she is.
It's Michael who makes the identification. The victim used to be a professor at the local college and had made quite a few enemies in town. What was she doing back in the area? And who knew about it and wanted to kill her?
This series has become a favorite because of the great plots and the laugh out loud moments. Unfortunately, this entry doesn't live up to the last couple. Mainly, it was because the book wasn't as funny as it could have been. Much of the humor has been done before and better in the earlier books. Not that this book isn't enjoyable. I still found myself laughing and smiling, just not as much as previously.
Fortunately, the plot is very engaging. There are several twists and plenty of red herrings before the final solution is revealed. I did feel the climax was a bit abrupt, but it was logical.
The returning characters are their usual charming selves. It's always a pleasure to spend time with Meg and her family even if murder is the result. The new characters are interesting as well. They could have used a little more development, but I could easily keep everyone straight.
While not up to the usual standards for this series, this is still a book well worth reading. It's a fast moving mystery that will keep you entertained from start to finish.
After Meg's ball gets roqueted into a gully, Meg finds a dead body. While the woman had obviously been hit by a croquet mallet, she wasn't playing in the tournament. In fact, Meg and the other contestants have no idea who she is.
It's Michael who makes the identification. The victim used to be a professor at the local college and had made quite a few enemies in town. What was she doing back in the area? And who knew about it and wanted to kill her?
This series has become a favorite because of the great plots and the laugh out loud moments. Unfortunately, this entry doesn't live up to the last couple. Mainly, it was because the book wasn't as funny as it could have been. Much of the humor has been done before and better in the earlier books. Not that this book isn't enjoyable. I still found myself laughing and smiling, just not as much as previously.
Fortunately, the plot is very engaging. There are several twists and plenty of red herrings before the final solution is revealed. I did feel the climax was a bit abrupt, but it was logical.
The returning characters are their usual charming selves. It's always a pleasure to spend time with Meg and her family even if murder is the result. The new characters are interesting as well. They could have used a little more development, but I could easily keep everyone straight.
While not up to the usual standards for this series, this is still a book well worth reading. It's a fast moving mystery that will keep you entertained from start to finish.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
