After the death of her husband, ex-police officer and former P.I. Molly Madison and her golden retriever, Harlow, move cross-country from Massachusetts to California to start over.
On her first day in her new house as the movers are bringing in the furniture, a very large, slobbery Saint Berdoodle wanders in. Molly winds up taking on the responsibility of training Noodle for his busy owner. During one of their beach walks, Noodle digs up a severed hand.
When Molly alerts the local police, they run a background check on her, and a past incident they find makes her the prime suspect for one of the investigating homicide detectives. Now it's up to her to clear her name.
~
When I read the synopsis of A Deadly Bone to Pick, I was intrigued by the main character's background as an ex-police officer and former private investigator. Being a lover of canines, Molly's current calling as a dog wrangler was icing on the cake. I was ready to see how well the crime solving blended with the dog walking.
As it turns out, very well indeed.
After the fracas surrounding her husband's death, Molly has shut herself off from almost everyone, only letting in her mother and a trusted friend. Her friend worries about her and keeps telling her to get out and meet people. Molly's not so sure, but she soon finds that walking two large dogs down to the beach every day is a guaranteed way to make new acquaintances.
After learning that Molly has a collection of signed first editions of Sue Grafton's mysteries AND that one of her first stops in her new hometown was the used bookstore, I wanted to go knock on her door and introduce myself. (And pet her golden retriever, Harlow, but I digress.) Whether she wants to be or not, Molly is a magnet for both people and dogs. In no time flat, she's made friends with eight-year-old Ava and is helping her train her puppy, Butterscotch. The precocious Ava actually sets her up as the local dog wrangler, and her "collection" of canines begins to grow.
One of the things I liked the most in A Deadly Bone to Pick was the fact that the dogs aren't just a prop to draw people to read the book; they are an important part not only of the book but of Molly's life. Harlow goes through agility training. After watching him, Molly thinks Noodle would benefit from scent training, and she also takes on the training of a deaf puppy. Whenever she's questioned by the police, she sees to the needs of the dogs first.
The mystery also kept me guessing, although when whodunit was revealed, I mentally slapped myself upside the head. I guess I was enjoying being around those dogs so much that I forgot to pay attention to the clues Rothschild planted all along the way.
If you love crime fiction and animals and are looking for a mystery where the animals do more than demand to be fed or let outside, A Deadly Bone to Pick is the book for you. With an engaging main character ("Why didn't you like me?"..."You weren't nice to your dog."), an intriguing mystery, and plenty of canine involvement, I find myself looking forward to the next book in the series with a great deal of anticipation.
A Deadly Bone to Pick by Peggy Rothschild
eISBN: 9780593437094
Berkley Prime Crime © 2022
eBook, 304 pages
Amateur Sleuth, #1 Molly Madison mystery
Rating: A
Source: Purchased from Amazon.
A good plot, main character and dogs! How could that miss? I am tempted, but on book list/library hold overload. I'll keep this in mind.
ReplyDeleteI think you would like it, Kathy.
DeleteMolly sounds like an interesting character, Cathy. And I know just what you mean about dogs that are just props, and dogs that play roles in a novel and are, well, characters. The mystery itself sounds interesting, too. Little wonder this one appealed.
ReplyDeleteI've been led astray by more than one author who used an enthusiasm of mine as a mere hook to get me to read their book.
DeleteI have already read it and the second book. Heartily agree with you. I'm waiting for book three now.
ReplyDeleteI need to get the second book read before the third comes out! Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteI picked this one up a month or so ago after hearing about it from you. I really enjoyed it! Molly is someone I would like to get to know and I really enjoyed the dogs and how much of a part they had in the story. I'm looking forward to reading book two soon!
ReplyDeleteYay-- a fellow fan!
DeleteSounds like a great lead character with a nice blend of all the interests most of us enjoy most. Had to mentally chuckle a bit when I read that the second dog in this particular story is a Saint Berdoodle. I knew they were crossing more and more breeds with poodles, but this one took me by surprise.
ReplyDeleteI once had a poodle-- a toy poodle-- that would swim out and retrieve the ducks when my grandfather went hunting. They're wonderful dogs and extremely intelligent.
DeleteThey do seem to be crossing poodles with every other dog breed under the sun, primarily because poodles don't shed. Some of those breeding crosses are mistakes.
This reminds me that an article in the NY Times a few years ago said that in Beijing, a city of 10 million people, 1 million have dogs. And the largest breed proportionately was poodles.
DeleteHaving a dog that doesn't shed is a bonus.
DeleteAnd is smart. A friend who had a standard poodle years ago was amazed at how intelligent he was.
DeleteIt's definitely all the dogs that make me want to read this one. :D
ReplyDeleteThe four-legged characters are great. :-) And that reminds me-- I need to read another Ryder Creed novel!
DeleteI am reading this and laughing and enjoying it. Yesterday I attended a Zoom memorial of a young woman who had cancer. Afterwards, I was so sad I picked up this book where I had left off. I knew I was getting even more sentimental when a sentence which led off about the joy of Harlow and Noddle racing down the beach had me tearing up, thinking of them being so happy. I may have to buy the next book to have those dogs handy when needed.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like a very good idea, Kathy.
DeleteNothing like happy dogs, and if we can't have them, we can read about them. That book cheered me up so much, and I told about three friends about it and read a few sentences to a Houston dog lover.
ReplyDeleteI think it's great that you're spreading the word about this book, Kathy.
DeleteI loved this book and I just finished it and will look for book two.
ReplyDelete