Parrots Prove Deadly: A Pru Marlowe Mystery    by Clea Simon Order:  USA  Can Poisoned Pen, 2013 (2013) Hardcover, Softcover, CD     Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth Pru Marlowe, animal behaviorist and dog walker (as well as various other titles), has what she calls her gift. She communicates with animals! Seriously. She doesn't inform others about this gift as she's sure they will have her to a psychiatrist before she can convince them it's not in her imagination. Anyway, Pru is called in to an assisted living home to retrain a parrot whose spoken language seems to be profane. As she listens to the parrot rave, she is told that her owner died and the owner's daughter knows, before the parrot can change hands, she must stop using foul language. Once Pru starts to really listen to Randolph, the parrot, she realizes the bird is trying to tell her something. What, Pru can't seem to catch. Other people in the home – a blind resident and her service dog, an aide, the dead woman's son and daughter, and an arrogant doctor – all play a part in this fun mystery. Pru is the town bad girl with a change of heart. She still has a questionable streak in her that allows her to open up her 1974 baby-blue Pontiac GTO on the open road, to feel the wind in her hair and enjoy the exhilaration of the power of her car. Both her boyfriend, a local cop, and her tabby Wallis don't approve. Their disapproval doesn't stop Pru from doing what she feels is right. She gets in difficulty without thinking of the consequences. A raccoon fits in the story, along with an animal bite that could necessitate painful rabies shots. Pru's conversations with the animals involved are fun and I find myself wanting to tell her what these four-legged creatures – and the two-legged parrot – are trying to get across to her. Clea Simon is the author of twelve books. Parrots Prove Deadly is the third in her Pru Marlowe series. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews