The Real Macaw

May 2, 2011
At the outset of Andrews's crowd-pleasing 13th Meg Langslow mystery (after 2010's Stork Raving Mad), Meg, new mother of twin boys, awakes early one morning to find her living room filled with animals, including a bright blue macaw, who cries, "Hiya, babe!" The Corsicans, an animal activist group whose members include Meg's dad and granddad, have rescued the creatures, mostly dogs and cats, from an animal shelter that's recently reversed its no-kill policy. Furniture store owner Parker Blair was supposed to pick up all the animals in his truck, but has failed to show, hence the temporary quartering in Meg's living room. Then Chief Burke of the Caerphilly, Va., police appears and announces that Parker has been murdered. With the support of her big extended family, Meg sets out to solve one murder and prevent another. People connected to Parker provide clues, but the key is the real macaw.