A Meg Lanslow Mystery Book 39
Author: Donna Andrews
Genre: Mystery
Hardcover; Digital Book
ISBN #: 9781250407320
Minotaur Books
304 Pages
$28.00; $14.99 Amazon
August 4, 2026
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Meg has finally found time to get some blacksmithing done when a call from her dad interrupts her -- can she come out to Ragnar's right away to help with the horses? Their friend Ragnar Ragnarsen, who is gradually turning the enormous house on his nearby estate into an authentic moated castle, has agreed to shelter nearly fifty horses for Hoof and Hearth, an equine rescue organization that has lost access to the farm where the horses have been living. The owner of the farm recently died without leaving a will, and while his older son Abel would be happy to let the horses stay, younger brother George wants to sell to a developer...and is suspected of sending thug to harm the horses as part of his efforts to evict Hoof and Hearth.
That night, while Meg and her family are camping at one of Ragnar's barns, to keep an eye on the horses, they discover that the thug has been murdered. Unfortunately George is alibied...but his horse-loving brother Abel is not. Neither are the hot-tempered founder of Hoof and Hearth or the passionately protective ex-jockey who serves as its stablemaster. Meg juggles helping keep the horses safe and doing what she can to help the chief solve the thug's murder...all the while hoping that the killer won't turn out to be one of the dedicated horse rescuers she has come to like and respect.
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Meg Lanslow lives in a small town with her husband Michael and twin sons. She's a blacksmith by trade, and has been making items for a friend, Ragnar Ragnarsen, who wants to turn his mansion into a moated castle. Just when she thinks she has some time on her hands for new creations, she receives a call from her father asking if she can come to Ragnar's farm and help with the horses. The horses are rescues from Hoof and Hearth, and they have been displaced by due to a dispute. While Abel has no problem keeping them, his brother George wants them off the land so he can sell his half.
George shows up at the farm with a nasty bodyguard who doesn't say anything but is threatening just the same. Told to leave the farm, he isn't happy, but does so, threatening people as he leaves. No one is sad to see him go.
What Meg finds when she arrives as Ragnar's is the testy owner of Hoof and Hearth, along with half the town to help. Many of the horses are in bad shape, and one of them is heavily pregnant and won't allow men near her. Which leaves her grandfather, a zoo veterinarian, to find a female vet. In the meantime, Meg has decided to keep watch over her.
Her boys want to spend the night camping out near the barns, and Meg and Michael go along with their own tent. But during the night Meg fears that the heavy rain may scare some of the horses, and goes to check. What she finds in one of the barns is a man. A very dead man...
Now she's in the middle of a murder investigation, and there's just too many suspects. She doesn't know any of the people that work for Hoof and Hearth besides Abel, and she doesn't think he is a killer. Could it have been George? But he has an air-tight alibi. Is it Helena, the testy owner of the horses? Or someone else? Enlisting the help of her attorney cousin Festus, her computer-savvy nephew Kevin, and anyone else she thinks might be helpful, she sets out to find a killer. Now if she can just stay out of the orbit herself, she might even survive this...
Donna Andrews has created a winner with this book. I will give a bit of a spoiler, that is, this book is heavily saturated with horses, so if you love the creatures, you will love this book. You will also learn quite a bit along the way. Saying that, I love almost all animals, so I found it interesting as well. Especially the crows. I love crows (which is actually a good thing, it turns out!)
Meg tries to be discreet in her questioning, and even if she thinks someone might be guilty, her quick wit gets her out of trouble before she can even get into it. There is a strong reliance on family here, and it's refreshing to read about a protagonist who is not only married, but happily so. I love the (minimal) interactions between Meg and Michael, and even their sons. Everyone seems to be busy and happy.
Finding a killer isn't going to be easy, because of the murder weapon, which is indeed unusual. And when a key piece of evidence goes missing, they need to find it to see if it connects with the murder in any way. There's a lot going on here, and the clues are there (sometimes) but keep reading, because this is at the least an intriguing tale.
When we get closer to the climax of the book, things change. They move around. Surprises pop up that nobody saw coming. Especially Meg. And even I, who reads tons of mysteries, was pleased by all of this, surprised myself (although I did figure out part of it, but not all). I am not going to say anything else as I don't want to ruin this for others. I will say that even if you have not read any of her other books, this will definitely make you want to. Highly recommended.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher, but this in no way influenced my review.
More on Donna Andrews' Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/a/donna-andrews/
