Die like an Eagle: A Meg Langslow Mystery

In Agatha-winner Andrews’s charming 20th Meg Langslow mystery (after 2015’s Lord of the Wings), tenacious Meg must tangle with the dictatorial Summerball Youth Baseball League president and town contractor, Biff Brown. As special assistant to the mayor of Caerphilly, Va., Meg has had the job of hounding dodgy Biff about his unfulfilled government contracts. He’s clearly responsible for the dilapidated baseball field, where one day before a game the umpire, who happens to be Biff’s half-brother, is found dead of a gunshot wound inside the ball field’s lone portable toilet. Was Biff the culprit? Since plenty of people around the league (and the town, and the county), including family members, have a beef with Biff, Meg suspects that the bullet that hit his look-alike half-brother was really meant for him. As always, Meg turns sleuth and jumps to the rescue when needed. With its well-spun plots and distinctive characters, Andrews’s amusing avian-named series shows no signs of growing stale. Agent: Ellen Geiger, Frances Goldin Literary Agency. (Aug.)