By Hook or By Book

Megan Clark #2

by D.R. Meredith

Reference librarian Megan Clark persuades the Murder by the Yard book group to accompany her to do research on string figures. But when a valuable, unpublished manuscript about the hobby disappears--and its owner is found dead--the group gets strung along by a killer.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Mystery Thriller, Murder Mystery

259 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 1, 2000

About the author

(from Fantastic Fiction online)

D.R. Meredith, Doris to friends and family, has a split personality--by day, she is a conservatively dressed legal secretary at her husband Mike's law firm. By night she turns into Mrs. Hyde dressed in jeans, flip-flops, and Texas Rangers tee shirt, and commits bloody murder.

She is now in double digits. In her fourth book in the Megan Clark mystery series, the 18th book of her career, D.R. Meredith has just committed her 35th murder.

"I usually average 2 murders a book, because one murder in a closed circle of suspects usually leads to another in the accepted Agatha Christie fashion. In TOME OF DEATH there are two murders, but they occur 150 years apart. I like linking the past and present and exploring the effect our past has on our present. I can't tell how I use the past without giving a broad hint to the killer's identity, but I will say that human beings don't change over time except in dress and customs. My Comanche warrior amateur sleuth isn't all that different in emotional feelings from modern paleopathologist Megan Clark, except Megan isn't into scalping."

Reviews

[Nolan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my second encounter with the red-haired assistant reference librarian with a doctorate in anthropology. There’s a string figures creators’ convention in town. In fact, Megan is the one who organized it. The members of the Murder by the Yard reading group attend, as will others who make string figures as a hobby. One of the attendees is the owner of a valuable unpublished manuscript written decades earlier by the woman who was the world’s utmost string figure authority. He is eager to sell the manuscript to the highest bidder. But before he can sell the manuscript, someone murders him. Before Megan can figure out who killed the manuscript owner, another conventioneer will die.

There are only two more books in this series; so, I suspect I’ll finish it, but not for a while.

The author breaks up the flow of the book with descriptions at the beginning of each chapter of how to make specific string figures. All of that intricate looping and hooking irritated me more than anything. Much of the dialogue seems artificial, and even petite Megan Clark, who never wants you to refer to her as cute, seems overly shrill and feisty.

[L Y N N · Rating 5 out of 5]

I intend to obtain an appropriate length of string and actually try the patterns presented here! Fascinating!

A good mystery and I will definitely read more in this series and of Meredith's writing!

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Megan Clark returns in this second book in the Mystery Reading Group series. This volume is also well written, although I was more than a little distracted by the instructions on how to make string tricks at the beginning of many of the chapters. In fact, it quite surprised me that such a thing would be in enough demand to warrant a sort of convention, but hey cozies are all about the set-up. Enjoyable mystery and I did not figure out "whodunnit" on this one.

Will continue to read in this series and recommend it to cozy mystery readers.

[Trudy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first book in this series enough to read the second book so that's good. As with the first book, I enjoyed the mystery and the book club detectives. There are many fun characters but in this second book I didn't feel there was enough 'page time' for the supporting cast. To be fair, there were a lot of characters added to support this mystery. But, it was too heavy on the main character (Megan - who is fine) and her questionable relationship neighbor (can't remember his name). I say questionable because he's her neighbor who is also her childhood best friend's father. It's a little creepy but I like the neighbor as a character. We never see her childhood friend (one of four children of the neighbor's) nor do we hear from her mother who sounds like a fun character.

I might read the next book, not sure. I hope the author starts including more of the supporting characters because Megan is high-strung and it gets old.

[Sherree Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who knew string figures were a thing?

I enjoyed the read. It didn't flow as smoothly as the first but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I love the Amarillo and Texas Panhandle setting. I love the female heroine. I do look forward to the rest of the series.

[Sharon Bezrutczyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

The end of the book surprised me, I found it very good.

[Blue North · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder By The Yard Book Store is giving a convention. Although Agnes is the owner of the book store, Megan will head the convention about string figures. She has invited Dr. Brownleigh. He owns the famous, authentic manuscript of Caroline Furness Jayne. Ms. Jayne was an expert about string figures from different cultures. However, all of Megan's plans will go awry when murder or murders enter the door of Murder By The Yard Book Store.

I did not know until this mystery how important string figures are in different cultures. I had no idea there was a book written on the subject. I enjoyed learning the names of different string figure arrangements. For those who have time there are instructions at the beginning of each chapter in the book on how to make a particular stick figure.

I have read the first book in this series. So I was already familiar with the relationship between Megan and Ryan. He is her childhood friend's father. Therefore, he is much older than Megan. This does not keep him from being very attracted to Megan. However, Megan is so busy playing detective she does not have time to see Ryan's gleam in the eye or to think about her feelings about him. I wonder if this relationship will grow in the next book. When she's not playing detective, Megan is a Paleopathologist.

I did have trouble with Megan interviewing the string figure enthusiasts at the book store. Jerry Carr the in house detective seems never to find out about Megan's plan to catch the murderer or murderers. How could he so mysteriously go out of pocket at the perfect time?? It's odd because Megan's plan is so intricate. I mean she has guests and the store book owner hiding behind a bush, in closets, behind a chair, etc. This part seemed really far out even for a cozy. I expected for Mr. Carr to go walk in on this play at a murder solution and scream bloody murder. He doesn't show.

I still love this series and enjoyed By Hook Or By Book by D. R. MEREDITH. Will read the other books and hope the series continues for a long, long time. amazon.com/D.-R.-Meredith

[Avid Series Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

By Hook or by Book by D.R. Meredith is the second book in the Megan Clark mystery series, set in the contemporary Texas Panhandle. In the first book of the series, Megan Clark established a mystery reading group, Murder by the Yard. In this second book, Megan is in charge of a String Figure conference. Each chapter starts with detailed instructions to create a string figure.

Famous to all in String Figure fandom is Caroline Furness Jayne and her seminal work, String Figures and How to Make Them. When a stranger shows up purporting to have a missing manuscript of hers for sale, all conference attendees are interested, even if only to have a look. When the stranger is murdered, no one mourns, but of course the killer must be found. The detective in charge considers Megan might be the culprit (even though he's also romantically interested in her). This is the second case in which he has focused on Megan as an obvious suspect without considering all the evidence or looking for more clues. So of course Megan has to solve the mystery.

Chapters are alternately narrated from Megan's viewpoint and that of her sidekick in investigation, history professor Dr. Ryan Stevens, who is hopelessly besotted with Megan. I enjoyed the first book of the series more than this one; the plot, characters and string figures failed to capture my interest.

[Andi O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great murder mystery and the first book I've read by D. R. Meredith. I was not aware that it was the 2nd in a series when I began reading, but it was still enjoyable on its own. I love the characters, especially Megan, and Meredith did an excellent job of keeping the suspense right up to the end. I did have my guess about the murderer, but it was written in such a way that I wasn't sure until the very end when it was revealed. The one thing that distracted from the story was the string figure instructions at the beginning of each chapter, which I think made the flow a little disjointed. Yes, the book takes place at a string figure convention, but I imagine the instructions were gibberish to most readers, as it they were to me. In any case, they were easy to skip, which I did after trying to make sense of the first one. Overall, I loved the book and will definitely go back and read Murder in Volume before continuing with the 'Megan Clark' series.

[Karen Spignese · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 2nd book in D.R. Meredith's mystery series featuring Megan Clark & the Murder by the Yard book group. I absolutely love this series & already have the 3rd & 4th books in the series waiting to be started. It's a cozy mystery series, but doesn't have the cuteness & fluff that ruin a lot of cozies. This book revolves around a string figure convention. Remember the Cat's Cradle game you played with a length of string as a child? Well, I was amazed to learn there are so many variations of string figures made all over the world & there are books & societies devoted to this folk art. Read this series - you'll love it!

[Dwight · Rating 3 out of 5]

This mystery novel added an extra twist of including directions for making string figures to the beginning of some of the chapters, which is fitting because the whole plot is focused on Caroline Furness Jayne's book String Figures and How to Make Them A Study of Cat's-Cradle in Many Lands.

[Maria (Ri) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This second book of the series was less interesting for me than the first. It seemed so implausible. Are there really so many fervent string figure enthusiasts? And why did the Mystery club members jump on board to this strange hobby so quickly and passionately? Anyhow, I had my hunches about the murderer about halfway through, but wasn't 100% so I kept reading. This is definitely not my favorite in the series. I hope this is just a sophomore slump and the future books are better - I've already ordered them from PBS! ;)

[Katerina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy story and interesting plot. I hadn't heard about string figures before and it was interesting to discover about them. I am this type of person like Ryan that can't figure them out by seeing written instructions. I rather need to check pictures, so I couldn't follow any of them but I will try to check them some time. The mystery was simple but realistic. I couldn't figure out the murder till the end and the final act confused me even more. I think I might keep this series in mind for easily read mysteries.

[Prudence · Rating 3 out of 5]

This murder mystery centers around the cultural significance of the construction of string figures (i.e. Cat's Cradle, etc.), with the focus on the author Caroline Furness Jayne (String Figures and How to Make Them), which sounded rather familiar to me. Lo' and behold, we have the book in our elementary library! It is a little difficult for elementary students but pretty cool that I actually have the book at school.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the information about string figures in this book. I need to make myself a 6 foot loop and try some before I return the book. I remember my sisters and I doing 'cat's cradle' but didn't realize that there were so many other kinds. The book is pretty simplistic but a fast read and I do like the Ryan character.

[Maryellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Megan, a paleopathologist, sets up a String-Figure convention with her love stricken friend Ryan. General Murder and mayhem ensues. This was much better than Meredith's first book in the series. Megan is almost as irritating but I like the book club group and Ryan. The murder method itself was interesting as was the murderers.

[Linda Wallace · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't know why I read this book. I found it to rather boring and I usually won't finish a book if after 50 pages I find I don't enjoy it. (Too many books, too little time). The description of the string fingures was uninteresting and I couldn't fet excited about any of the characters or the mystery.

[Chi Dubinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cozy mystery featuring reference librarian Megan Clark. Megan asks her book club to help her research string figures, but a valuable manuscript goes missing, and they get involved in a murder.

[Amanda Aelker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I liked this one better than the first in the series. Same characters- so it made it easy to get into. The technical writing parts with descriptions of how to make string figures was kind of tedius- and boring- so I just skipped over those parts.

[Dale · Rating 2 out of 5]

ill pre bound a type of book i dont like to read the story was set at a string art conference (Jacob's Ladder etc.) greddy collections and lost manuscript from the queen of string art

[Martha Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Murder by the Yard is a book club and they are putting on a conference about string figures -- remember the Cat's Cradle from your childhood? And the action goes from there.

[proto · Rating 3 out of 5]

more than a human could want to know about the history and construction of string figures.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second in the series and good enough to move me on to #3.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing start, after the first book in the series, though it did improve in the second half. I felt the theme, string figures (cat's cradle) to be too obscure.

[Mkotch · Rating 1 out of 5]

A snooze

[Priscilla Herrington · Rating 4 out of 5]

Megan Clark is one of the most interesting detectives I've come across.