Under protest, Teddy Buntly, takes Alejandro, a llama, to the Renaissance Faire. Teddy is a zookeeper at the Gun Zoo which is privately owned. When the owner says go, Teddy goes. Alejandro loves children but doesn't much like adults; especially, his former owner. The former owner attends the fair drunk and tries to give Alejandro a beer upsetting both Alejandro and Teddy. That night, Alejandro, causes a ruckus. When Teddy investigates, she finds a body.
Henry the VIII, as played by the local "reverend", Victor Emerson is found dead at Alejandro's feet. With Teddy's boyfriend, the sheriff off for some Homeland Security training, the case is left in the hands of his second in command. He is making such a hash of the case, Teddy has to step in to try and solve the mystery. Even after Alejandro is cleared, Teddy continues the investigation since Elvin has charged her mother with murder.
Caro was married twice by Victor and is collecting some serious alimony. When it is learned that Victor was an escaped prisoner with no legal right to marry anyone, Caro has just as much motive for murder as anyone else.
This was my first exposure to this series but it won't be my last. Teddy's life is complicated. Her mother makes a practice of marrying and divorcing. Her father is an embezzler who lives outside the US. Her job involves a lot of hard work and she lives on an old boat which badly needs repair and lots of it. None of this gets Teddy down. She loves her home, her boat and her job.
The books are extremely funny with the unusual characters and interesting situations. If you like comedic mysteries, don't miss this series.
Zookeeper Theodora "Teddy" Bentley takes Alejandro, the Gunn
Zoo llama, to a Monterey Bay-area Renaissance Faire only to
discover the still-warm body of the Reverend Victor Emerson,
owner of the local wedding chapel, dressed in his royal
robes as Henry the Eighth. At first it appears as if
Aljandro stomped the man to death, but a closer look reveals
a crossbow dart in the man's back. Teddy's investigation
proves the "reverend" isn't really a reverend at all -- he's
an escaped convict, and every marriage he's performed in the
past twenty years is null and void. Teddy's mother Caro, a
spoiled ex-beauty queen, becomes the chief suspect and is
immediately jailed when she causes a riot in the
courtroom.The "reverend" had twice married Caro to wealthy
men, and when both marriages failed, Caro received large
financial settlements. Now she may have to give all that
money back, certainly a good enough reason to commit murder.
But Caro wasn't the only person gunning for Victor. The
child of the man Victor once murdered may have wanted to
kill him, too, and at one point, even Teddy herself if
handcuffed and jailed. Even worse, Teddy's embezzling father
flies in from exile in Costa Rica to help spring Caro from
jail, thus putting his own freedom in jeapoardy. As Teddy
continues her investigation, she finds herself up to her
ears in girl gang members, squabbling boat liveaboarders,
Renaissance Faire actors and stuntmen, and assorted animals.
Written with a humorous touch, "The Llama of Death" portrays
Renaissance Faire life, and gives the reader a rare
behind-the-scenes look at modern zoos.
No excerpt available.
© 2003-2026