A Deadly Bone to Pick by Peggy Rothschild

 

First Line: "Please be careful with that."

 

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.

First Degree by David Rosenfelt

First Line: Opening day. Said separately, they're just two ordinary words.

You just don't expect a man to waltz into your office and confess to murder, but that's exactly what happens to lawyer Andy Carpenter shortly after a police officer's body is found burned and decapitated. What's even more shocking is the person who becomes the number one suspect: the love of Andy's life, P.I. Laurie Collins, ex-cop and well-known enemy of the dead man.

Things are looking bleak during Laurie's trial. Andy is definitely going to have to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat in order to keep the woman he loves out of prison, but if anyone can do it, Andy can.

I don't know what kept me from this series for so long; it pushes all the right buttons for me. Nice, convoluted mystery, humor, dogs, and a wonderful cast of slightly oddball characters. I may not know what kept me from this series, but I do know that I intend to savor every single one. Who knows? There may be an Andy Carpenter Week (or two) in my future.

In this second book of the series, Andy is gathering together a first-rate "family." We're introduced to the very scary Marcus, whom Rosenfelt admitted he modeled after Robert B. Parker's Hawk in his Spenser series. Willie Miller, whom Andy defended in an earlier trial, makes himself at home with Andy and Laurie, and then there's the brilliant lawyer Kevin Randall who quit practicing because he couldn't face the possibility of either sending an innocent man to prison or letting a guilty man go free. And then there's Tara, the golden retriever that only seems to leave Andy's side... for Laurie's. This is ensemble casting at its best, ready and willing to expand for characters like Barry Leiter, a young man with a short role who punches a hole straight through your gut.

I would imagine that all true dog lovers like me roll their eyes whenever a normally well-behaved dog starts barking up a storm and its human ignores all the fuss. Well, that happens in First Degree, too, and I'm hoping that Andy learns to pay attention.

First Degree has a marvelous cast, laugh-out-loud humor, and a fun mystery with plenty of twists. As I read, I knew the identity of "Mr. Big," but I certainly hadn't filled in all the particulars. Now that I've read the first two books in the series, all I can say is that I'm looking forward to book three with a definite twinkle in my eye. Haven't made Andy Carpenter's acquaintance? There's no time like the present!

First Degree by David Rosenfelt

eISBN: 9780446507516

Grand Central Publishing © 2004

eBook, 256 pages

Legal Thriller/Humorous Mystery, #2 Andy Carpenter mystery

Rating: A+

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

Smoky the Brave by Damien Lewis

First Line: The image painted on the side of the aircraft's fuselage was eye-catching.

Japanese military advances are threatening to overrun New Guinea in February 1944. It is absolute chaos, but the discovery of a tiny Yorkshire terrier shivering in a foxhole in the jungle surprises everyone when she's brought into the base of a photo reconnaissance squadron. Adopted by Corporal Bill Wynne, Smoky quickly becomes the mascot and lucky charm for the unit, but few would believe the military career this four-pound furball would have.

The cover of Smoky the Brave is the photo that helped win this tiny Yorkshire Terrier Yank Magazine's Mascot of the Year award. She got a bath in Bill Wynne's helmet every day. Most people think of small dogs as nervous and yappy, good for taking up space on old ladies' laps but not much else. Smoky was one of the many dogs who behaved contrary to this popular misconception.

Smoky's life was truly extraordinary. She became the first recorded therapy dog when an acquaintance of Wynne's persuaded him to take the dog to visit soldiers convalescing in hospitals in Brisbane, Australia. She saved lives, learned how to parachute jump, laid cable on an airfield just seized from the enemy-- and was awarded eight battle stars. (And I'm not mentioning many of her exploits.)

I learned a lot from reading this book, especially about photo reconnaissance squadrons that would fly thousands of miles to obtain detailed photographs of enemy positions. Pilots who flew these missions were beyond brave. They flew alone. They never knew when the enemy would spot them, the conditions were freezing, and since the planes had to be as light as possible to travel such long distances, the pilots had no guns, so they couldn't shoot back in an effort to save themselves.

I'm still not completely sure how much I enjoyed this book. Lewis glossed over an event in Smoky's life that I thought could have used a bit more explanation, and his writing style is very matter of fact. As a passionate dog lover, I was expecting to be much more emotionally involved in the book than I was. Now I'm debating whether a more subjective approach would have improved the book, or would it have done a disservice to such a marvelous dog? The debate rages on in my mind. What I do know is that any dog lover is going to be glad they took time out of their busy lives to read about a creature that had more than her share of bravery and heart.

Smoky the Brave: How a Feisty Yorkshire Terrier Mascot Became a Comrade-in-Arms during World War II 
by Damien Lewis

eISBN: 9780306922565

Da Capo Press © 2018

eBook, 312 pages

Non-Fiction, Standalone

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased from Amazon


 

On My Radar: David Rosenfelt's Outfoxed

There are all sorts of ways that books wind up on my radar, and I thought I would tell you about this particular time. I do most of the work on my blog between midnight and 3 AM, but if I ever have any time left over, I work on The Poisoned Pen Bookstore's Pinterest boards.

I was busily pinning the July staff picks when I came to a screeching halt at one of Barbara Peters' choices. I looked at that cover. I got a huge smile on my face. And I laughed. Now I know that Barbara Peters does not choose her reading by looking at the book covers, but this one book cover made me decide to read a new-to-me mystery series. 

What was this jaw-dropping, spend-money-inducing cover? Here, take a look....

Available July 19th!

It's the latest David Rosenfelt mystery, Outfoxed. I will admit that if you're not a dog lover, this cover is bound to be a big yawn for you. However, I am a dog lover, and so is Barbara Peters. Peters has a Wire-haired Fox Terrier-- just like the dog on this cover-- named Odin, and I used to have two named Tommy and Zack. (They would take me for a nightly drag around the neighborhood.)

Look at that tree-lined path. Nice place for a walk, eh? There's a man way up ahead. Does he belong to the dog? And that dog... it's almost as if he's trying to tell us to hurry up. Wire-haired Fox Terriers have personalities that are larger than life, and the person who created this book cover certainly captured that.

Rosenfelt will be appearing at The Poisoned Pen next month to sign Outfoxed. Guess who'll be buying a copy to have it autographed?

Now be honest-- does this cover appeal to you at all? Inquiring minds would love to know!

Tommy & Zack loved the pool as much as I do.

 

 

Dog in the Dark by Gerald Hammond

First Line: I glanced over my shoulder to make sure that I was not leaving the judges behind and at that moment the Gun to my right fired a shot.

A veteran of the Falklands war, John Cunningham has been invalided out of the army and is tired of living with his brother and sister-in-law. It's time to get a place for himself. So when he hears of a likely place called Three Oaks close to Fife in Scotland, he goes to take a look. He likes what he sees, and in quick time Cunningham is the owner of his own kennel and dog breeding business. He also has a partner, veterinarian Isobel Kitts, and a kennel nanny named Beth.

What he didn't fully realize when he moved to Three Oaks is that one of his closest neighbors breeds show dogs. Cunningham has little use for show dogs and lets his feelings be known. Chalk up one enraged neighbor-- and when that neighbor is killed, chalk up one John Cunningham as a prime suspect. If he's going to pursue his dream, he's going to have to clear his name first.

This is the first book by Scottish writer Gerald Hammond that I've read, and it won't be my last. Dog in the Dark is characterized by a well-plotted mystery, three fleshed-out primary characters that readers grow to know and like, and a simple, straightforward prose style that's like slipping into your favorite pair of flannel pajamas on a cold winter night. 

John Cunningham isn't your usual main character. He's hounded by a mysterious ailment that strikes suddenly and repeatedly, leaving him weak and in bed. He's smart and observant, and when he isn't solving the mystery, he's sharing lots of lore on dog training and breeding. 

Gerald Hammond's writing isn't flashy, and it's not going to make you sit back and murmur, "Wow!" It's not the kind of writing that wins tons of awards. But sometimes quiet is the best. Sometimes quiet slips a lot more past you. When I finished reading Dog in the Dark, I sat back and thought to myself, "Now, I really liked that! I want more."

Dog in the Dark by Gerald Hammond

ISBN: 0312038194

St. Martin's Press © 1989

Hardcover, 192 pages

Amateur Sleuth, #1 Three Oaks mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Paperback Swap

REVIEW: Gold Rush Dogs

Title: Gold Rush Dogs
Author(s): Claire Rudolf Murphy and Jane G. Haigh
ISBN: 0882405349/ Alaska Northwest Books, 2004
History
Rating: B-

First Line: Legions of treasure seekers during the Alaska-Yukon gold rush era depended on the loyalty and hard work of their dogs.

Murphy and Haigh set out to tell us about the most famous dogs during the gold rush era, and they do an admirable job. This book is filled with photographs of the day: the dogs, their owners, and the places where they lived and worked. Those pictures do a lot to place the reader right in the thick of things.

Of the nine dogs written about in this book, I was familiar with three, having already read a book about the sled dogs responsible for getting vaccine to Nome, Alaska, in the winter of 1925. Dogs did more than pull sleds however. One accompanied naturalist John Muir in his treks over glaciers. Another met all incoming ships at the piers in Juneau. My favorite was Nero, the companion of the richest woman in the Klondike, Belinda Mulrooney. Mulrooney would load Nero with heavy sacks of gold dust to take on an 18-mile walk to the bank. On one such journey, Nero slipped while crossing a deep stream. The weight of the gold dust kept him from saving himself. I'd tell you what happened next, but why ruin the best chapter in a very good book?

This is a marvelous book for any dog lover. It is filled to the brim with interesting stories, history and photos. There is much to be learned in its pages. The only quibble I have with Gold Rush Dogs is its layout. Interspersed amongst the stories of the dogs are other snippets of history. Although related to the information of the chapter they're in, more than once these side stories interrupt the flow of the story of the dog. I found it more than a bit irritating and thought that there should have been a better way of including these extras. That one complaint aside, I enjoyed this book and found it to be a fitting companion to a previous book by the authors: Gold Rush Women.