Letting the police take care of the possible homicide, Delilah instead focuses on what she does best, finding lost animals for concerned pet owners. She gets a call from an acquaintance, Beryl Fairchild, about her scarlet macaw, Scarlet O’Hara. Beryl had woken a few days early to find the bird missing, and she fears it was stolen. By the time she thinks to call Delilah, the trail is already cold.

Delilah immediately sets out to finding the missing macaw, only to drag her friend, Tony Tiptoe into the mess, and stumble on to a possible smuggling ring. Not only does her case take her to Tijuana, Mexico, it also seems to land her in the middle of a police investigation at every turn.

The atmosphere in Delilah is quite charming and full of amusing moments, but the mystery isn’t much of a mystery. While finding the missing macaw is always at center stage, the culprit and their motives don’t come as any great surprise.

Occasionally, Delilah is somewhat hypocritical. She is very pro-animal and has a passion for her work. At a dinner party, she’s disgusted by another attendee’s fondness for hunting. Nothing wrong with that, if she wasn’t dining on beef Wellington, and later in the novel eating a pita stuffed with turkey. A little like a PETA activist wearing leather shoes.

Aside from that, I found Delilah’s adventures rather enjoyable, with a special blend of British wit mixed with Southern California atmosphere. There were several moments that I found myself chuckling over Delilah’s thoughts or actions.

Also enjoyable were many of the secondary characters, most notably Tony Tipton, who has a passion for surfing and a dubious past. Detective Jack Mallory, the lead man in the police investigation, also adds some charm with his personal interest in Delilah.

While not a brain-teasing mystery, Delilah Doolittle and the Missing Macaw is ideal to wile away a rainy day or Sunday afternoon. Light atmosphere and charming characters make this cozy a quick and enjoyable read.

--Wendy Crutcher