Between a Wok and a Hard Place (Pennsylvania Dutch Mystery, #5) by Tamar Myers

Between a Wok and a Hard Place (Pennsylvania Dutch Mystery, #5) Reviews

• 
  Margaret

  This book was typical for this series - I enjoy the inn/food tie-in and recipes but you must suspend belief for some aspects of the plot. To me, the character of Magdelena is kind of an acquired taste and by the end of the book I was a little irritated with how she jumps to conclusions, butts in and in this story I found it hard to believe that at age 46 she was so naive (and then obsessed) about the physical attributes of men! Despite these criticisms it was a fast read and I still seem drawn to pick up books in this series occasionally.
• 
  Cari

  Another fun mystery at the PennDutch Inn! Love these stories!
  
  My only complaint is with the poor, poor editing. Nearly every page has misspellings and omitted words. My English teachers wouldn't have passed me out of 5th grade with this plethora of errors, and I was always told editors were even tougher. Seems they don't bother checking at all anymore. Really too bad, as the errors interrupt the flow of an otherwise good story.
• 
  Trish

  Well, now I remember why I haven't read one of these for a while. The way they're written they start starts off charming and entertaining, but then go through repetitive and end up being grating and annoying.
• 
  Gloria

  Magdalena Yoder was driving back to her home from dropping her husband off at the airport when she nearly ran over a young Oriental woman laying dead in the middle of the street. Melvin Stoltzfus, Hernia's Chief of Police, requests Mags' help as he has a broken leg and believes that some Amish youths are to blame for the woman's death (he also has a bad reputation in the Amish community).
  
  Mags also has guests in the hotel, including a family with children which she had promised Freni Hostetler that she would never allow children, but here they are......
  With so many guests in the hotel, the basement was allowed to be used as a dark room for processing photography...... and Mags sees some sketchy pictures.
  
  As Mags tracks down the killer of the young woman, unknown callers begin calling with flower names and eventually the unknown caller makes herself known. She turns out to be the roommate of the young woman, and gives Mags some very important information.
  
  Two Amish young men were attacked, one died, one in the hospital under an alias, and Mags had a hard time getting the boy's parents to work with her...... but the killers found him anyway.
  
  The killers were the parents of the children. The young woman was trying to blackmail them based on the types of pictures that the father was developing.
  
  As for Aaron and Magda, she had been a virgin all her life until she was married (in the previous book). Aaron called her from Minnesota, where she had dropped him off for his flight in the beginning of this book. His last call was to tell her that his first wife was still his current wife and that their marriage was null and void, and that she was either an adulterer or a bigamist...... (take your pick).
  
  Recipes:
  Annie Kauffman's Dutch Country Chicken and Cabbage
  Great-Grandma Blough's Upside-Down Caramel Apple Pie
  Hernia Corn Fritter Cutlets
  Bigamist's Breakfast Gingerbread
  World's Best Chicken Salad
• 
  Kellene

  Advertisment for PennDutch Inn: Crabby, sarcastic innkeeper who really doesn't like people welcomes you to her fine establishment where you can pay extra to make your own bed, cook your own food and muck the stalls. Food will be good until the cook quits AGAIN! Small dog belonging to sister will only bite your ankles if it falls out of her bosom. You really won't see Mags all that much cause she's running around investigating crimes because the sheriff is hapless and helpless.
  
  In all sincerity, I don't like Mags at all, don't really care for the other characters in the series, and couldn't stand any of the cast for this installment. The mystery didn't seem to be of much importance, other than to let the story have said label. And I don't usually comment on this, but the editing was bad. I don't foresee reading any more in this series, but stranger things have happened...
• 
  Maggie Shanley

  A wacky cozy mystery about a dot on the map called Hernia, Pennsylvania. This book was funny at times, but it grew kind of long. Perhaps if you had read the others and were really invested in the characters this book would earn a higher rating? Myers seems to imply that inbreeding and narrow family trees have resulted in police chiefs that might try to milk a bull and women who jump to conclusions. The hotel guests are wacky (of course) and the mystery is not that good, but this book may give you some laughs.
• 
  Rebecca

  Well, I'd be lying if I said I didn't laugh the whole way through this book. Buuut I'd also be lying if I didn't tell you I was actually laughing *at* this book and it's ridiculous tropes than at any intentional comedy. Yikes. I am going to try one of the recipes, so that's where the second star comes from. ;)
• 
  Lyn Soulia-Smith

  A good book as all of the PDM have been so far. I enjoy the quirky characters, laugh out loud and "roll your eyes" liners in each book. This ending threw me for a loop. Sad but now I wonder what Ms. Myers has in store for the characters. Have to keep reading.
• 
  Knight

  The average rating for this book is 3.74 stars. The reviewers are too kind. I won't be reading any more in this series.
  To me the most enjoyable thing about the series is the relationship between Magdalena and Aaron. And now he is gone. That just makes me sad.
  
• 
  Laurie Clarke

  Excellent wit.
• 
  Mary

  Magdalena faces another unsolved murder, along with marital woes. I will definitely be seeking out more from this series.
• 
  David McNeill

  Long-awaited sequel to the Lee Mack/Steve Jenkins collaboration, "Wok Around the Clock."
• 
  Tara

  The dotes didn't connect together like they have in the previous books. Usually the clues make sense, but I didn't understand how.
• 
  Karol

  What is it about Magdalena Yoder? She is not at all my favorite character but here I am, finding myself going back to this series yet again.
  
  Initially, I was disappointed that in the very next book after Magdalena married, her new husband had left - and it was quickly obvious it would be for good. But somehow that fits in Magdalena's life.
  
  There are some things in the series that get on my nerves in a big way - Magdalena's constant adolescent references to sex, the callous and repeated description of how her parents passed away, and her frequent use of absurd alliterations among them. But then I find myself frequently chuckling at her relationship with her Amish neighbor/friend/mother figure/employee Freni. I'm also amused that somehow Magdalena gets to the bottom of things despite bullheadedness and her amazing ability to simply miss the main point of a conversation.
  
  In this story, the solution to the mystery surprised me, although if I had been paying closer attention I might have figured it out.
  
  I suppose this series is one of those guilty pleasures for me and yes, I'll read the next one in the series, too.
• 
  Ellen

  "Between a wok and a Hard Place" or Magdalena's Mashuga Marriage and Mystery.
  
  Magdalena is still swooning over her new marriage and husband Aaron Miller Jr. when an Asian woman is found dead in the road. Apparently run over by a horse and buggy...that is until she is found to have been strangled beforehand.
  
  The Chief of Police, Melvin Stoltzfus who resembles a praying mantis, has asked Magdalena to handled the case for him due to an accident that has left him physically incapacitated. So without a badge or uniform Magdalena takes on the case of the murdered Asian woman.
  
  I've been enjoying this series and by the looks of it will be continuing for quite some time. This book and series if recommended for all lovers of cozies with humor.
  
• 
  Erin

  I did not enjoy this book, though I read it through to the bitter end. The main character seemed ridiculously thick-headed to me, not at all the type to solve murders and the preachy nature of her religion rankled. I *think* the author intended her dense reactions to things to be funny but it just was tired. I will say that I read it after several very heavy literary novels so it did act as a ... cleanser? Glad I bought it at a used book store!
• 
  Emily Cullen

  Police chief Melvin Stolftzus has broken his leg and asks Penn Dutch Inn owner Magdalena Miller to help find out who murdered and ran over an Asian woman in their Amish town of Hernia, Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, why is Magdalena's husband (Pooky Bear) spending so much time away from home? I love the Pennsylvania Dutch cozy mysteries, they are funny and a quick read. I am definitely going to read the next book in the series!
• 
  Sheri Bouvier

  Main characters ought to be likeable, or at least respectable. Magdalena Yoder is neither. She seems like a nitwit with an attitude. I so wanted to like her. The idea of a Mennonite bed and breakfast mixed with murder was interesting (although it sounds odd now that I typed that!), but I just cannot like the book because SHE is on every page.
• 
  Rachel N.

  I normally enjoy this series but didn't like this one. The mystery of who killed a Chinese woman found on a road inhernia is shoved aside for most of the book until the hasty solution at the end. the turn Magdalena's personal life takes in this book annoyed me.
• 
  Kristen

  This is another great cozy and mystery in the Penn Dutch series. Great recipes too! Each one is interesting by far!
• 
  Carrie

  The humor in this series is getting old. It's basically the same jokes every book and is ceasing to be entertaining.
• 
  Mary (Biblophile)

  Loved this quirky book. Magdalena has a smarty answer for everything and always manages to get herself involved in a murder to supposedly help out the sheriff.