Saddled With Murder by Eileen Brady

First Line: A wish can be many things: optimistic, greedy, or a simple request for a favor from the vast unknown.

 

Veterinarian Kate Turner is having a very difficult time getting into the holiday spirit. She's dealing with two extremely difficult clients, and her beloved grandfather is urging her to reconcile with the father she turned her back on years ago. She'd just as soon stay in bed with the covers over her head. Then things take a decided turn for the worse.

 

Her ex-boyfriend is mugged and robbed after they have an argument out in the hospital parking lot, and those two disgruntled clients of hers both turn up dead. This all seems to be a series of unfortunate coincidences, but they really add up to something much more venomous.

 

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Saddled With Murder is advertised as the first in a new series, but it really is a continuation of Brady's Kate Turner DVM cozy series. Same characters, same setting, no big jump in the timeline. The publisher says the decision was made to start fresh because Kate had reached a crossroads in her life, but if she has, I can't figure out what it is. I think it has more to do with Poisoned Pen Press now being a part of Sourcebooks, but I may be wrong. I only mention it because some of you may have been reading Brady's previous books. Let's just move along to what I thought of the book.

 

Eileen Brady has crafted a solid mystery here that shows the pervasiveness and power of social media. (Let me tell you, I hope nothing I do ever goes viral!) The author kept me guessing, and I always like that.

 

I do have to admit that the reason why I've read all of Brady's Kate Turner books has more to do with Kate's profession that it has to do with the mysteries themselves. Brady is a vet in real life, and she infuses her stories with what the daily life of a veterinarian is like, funny, sad, and exhausting. A pet owner can pick up quite a few tips from reading Saddled With Murder. 

 

I also learned a lot about how to acclimate a mustang. Bringing a wild horse into pastures, barns, and human contact requires patience and knowledge, and I found the whole process interesting and a welcome change from Kate's usual small animal practice. Another thing I enjoyed is the fact that Brady was inspired to learn about this from seeing our Salt River wild horses right here in Arizona. These horses have a social media presence as well as their own website.

If you love books with an interesting main character, lots of animals, and intriguing mysteries, Eileen Brady's Kate Turner mysteries should be just what you're looking for.

Saddled With Murder by Eileen Brady

eISBN: 9781464212734

Poisoned Pen Press © 2020

eBook, 337 pages

 

Cozy Mystery, #1 Dr. Kate Vet mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley