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.

 

~

 

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

Penned by Eileen Brady

First Line: The killer envisioned the old woman lying in bed sleeping, a slight smile on her face.

Seven months into her one-year contract to cover for a Hudson Valley veterinarian who's cruising around the world, Kate Turner is celebrating Halloween in Oak Falls, New York when she bumps into Gloria LaGuardia. The octogenarian shows some signs of mental confusion, but she's still sharp. Kate is mildly alarmed when Gloria tells her, "Someone evil is here. I saw him."

Busy Kate puts the encounter at the back of her mind until she learns that Gloria has been murdered. She attends the elderly lady's funeral and crosses the path of aspiring true-crime novelist Tucker Weinstein. Weinstein believes that Gloria saw Carl Wolf that Halloween evening, a killer who's spent the past twenty-one years on the FBI's Most Wanted List.

Kate may be up to her eyeballs in feathered and furry patients, but she finds herself drawn to this mystery. Could a notorious killer really be living in sleepy little Oak Falls? And if he is... who is he?

I have to admit that I've been enjoying Eileen Brady's Kate Turner DVM series more for the anecdotal information about animals than for the mysteries, but that's all changed now with this fourth book, Penned. Something clicked into place and turned this book into a lean, mean Doberman of a mystery. (Don't worry, this particular Doberman still likes belly rubs and going for walkies.) There's only one thing about Penned that barked offkey, and that's the romantic triangle. Should Kate go for rich archaeologist Jeremy or for local lawman Luke? It's probably just me, but if there's one thing in a book that can have me rolling my eyes, it's the romantic triangle, and for that I can thank Janet Evanovich. (Stephanie Plum fans will know what I'm talking about even if they don't agree.)

Other than that, I really enjoyed this book. There's plenty for animal lovers to like. Brady's background in veterinary medicine means she's got plenty of tales to share-- both good, solid informational ones as well as ones that can make readers laugh. This is the part of Brady's novels that I've come to look forward to. What surprised and delighted me was that the author has successfully woven together elements of the cozy mystery with a serial killer thriller and turned it into a compelling detective story. It's not scary; there's no graphic violence, but readers are hooked into finding out Carl Wolf's identity. A canine clue shortly before the reveal made me realize the man's Oak Falls persona, but-- whew-- it was hard work.

Animal-loving mystery fans are going to find plenty to enjoy in Penned, and I know that I'm certainly looking forward to another visit with Kate Turner.

Penned by Eileen Brady

eISBN: 9781464210822

Poisoned Pen Press © 2018

eBook, 243 pages

Cozy Mystery, #4 Kate Turner DVM mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley

 

Chained by Eileen Brady

First Line: He was luscious.

When one of veterinarian Kate Turner's canine patients digs up a bone she identifies as human, the entire town of Oak Falls, New York, is shocked to learn that DNA has identified town golden boy Flynn Keegan as the murder victim. The handsome boy never got a chance to go to Hollywood and become a star.

Ten years leaves the police and the forensics team little to go on, and the grieving family begs Kate to conduct her own investigation. All she can do is go around town to interview the people who knew Flynn-- that and juggle all her patients, the defection of her current boyfriend, the re-appearance of an old flame, and worry about a brown bear that's roaming the woods outside of town. But all those questions Kate's asking? Well, she's definitely making someone very nervous.

I absolutely love this series for the details of Kate's life as a vet. Eileen Brady has been a practicing vet for over twenty years, so no matter how silly some of those patients (and their owners) may seem, I have the feeling that they are all based upon fact. This verisimilitude makes me feel as though I could walk right into the book and ride along on Kate's housecalls.

The mystery is a good one, and I also think I relived a few of my high school days as I read. With the defecting current boyfriend and an old one coming to town, I was worried that the mystery would take a backseat to romance, but my fear was groundless, I'm happy to say. Kate's grandfather the retired arson investigator is the voice of reason in her life, and Kate needs one because she had some low points in her investigation-- what I call Too Stupid to Live Moments. Like what? The snowpocalypse is going to close down the town completely, but that's the precise moment when Kate just has to go up into the mountains to take photos for evidence. Are you kidding me? Killer on the loose who's mad because you're learning too much. A bear roaming the area you're traveling to, and a blizzard that's already begun?  Shame on you, Kate!

It's a good thing that those veterinary house calls and the mystery are so good because, as a rule, I don't react well to Too Stupid to Live Moments. I'll be keeping an eye peeled on Kate during her next investigation to see if she toes the line.

Chained by Eileen Brady

eISBN: 9781464209567

Poisoned Pen Press © 2017

eBook, 275 pages

Cozy Mystery, #3 Kate Turner DVM mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Net Galley 

Unleashed by Eileen Brady

First Line: The killer took a final look around the townhouse.

Kate Turner enjoys her job as relief veterinarian at a small house-call practice in upstate New York. She likes her co-workers, and she truly enjoys helping her patients. However, helping her patients takes on a whole new meaning when a Cairn Terrier named Toto is left all alone when his owner commits suicide. Or did she?

Claire Birnham was a talented artist who had a new job and apartment in Manhattan, and she and Toto were devoted to each other. Kate simply can't believe that Claire would abandon her pet that way. When police arrest a young man who works in the kennels, Kate starts asking questions and her relationship with police officer Luke Gianetti becomes strained.

Kate just won't stop, and the trail leads from Claire's mother to a boyfriend who didn't take their breakup well to the art gallery where Claire worked. With the help and advice of her beloved grandfather, Kate is determined to find a killer.

Eileen Brady has a light, humorous touch that makes her books very enjoyable to read. Kate's voice is curious, casual, determined... and her retired fire investigator of a grandfather keeps her grounded when she becomes too embroiled in her investigations. Kate certainly does need to be reined in from time to time because her investigatory style is what I call "stir the pot." Many people don't react well to it, including her boyfriend.

For me, a failing in this series is that-- with the exception of Kate's grandfather-- all the secondary characters are a bit flat. They need to be fleshed out more, and the grandfather needs to make a few more appearances for this series to really shine.

What keeps me coming back for more are the animals and Brady's stories of them and their owners. She knows whereof she speaks, having been a veterinarian for over twenty-five years. Her portraits of both owners and pets glow with humor and affection. An added bonus is that animal lovers reading these mysteries will be able to glean tips on how to care for their own pets. This is certainly a series to keep on your radar.
 

Unleashed by Eileen Brady

ISBN: 9781464203947

Poisoned Pen Press © 2015

Hardcover, 250 pages

Amateur Sleuth, #2 Kate Turner, DVM mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley 

Muzzled by Eileen Brady

First Line: "Where's the patient?"

Working for a veterinarian while he and his wife are on a world cruise, Dr. Kate Turner feels like she's finally getting acclimated to the house call-paying practice in upstate New York. Well... she does until she pays a scheduled call to an estate owned by a couple who breeds champion Cavalier King Charles spaniels. Instead of the tea she expected, Kate finds the couple dead and all twenty-seven dogs running amok inside the house.

The police think it's a murder-suicide, but when Kate proves that the most famous champion in the group is missing, she knows something else is at work here. Since the police don't put much store in what she's trying to tell them, Kate conducts her own investigation in between house calls-- and finds that almost everyone in town wanted the couple dead. She's got to find the killer because her next house call could be her last.

Muzzled won the Poisoned Pen Press's 2013 Discover Mystery Contest, and I can see why. The mystery is a corker. When the killer was revealed, I could've slapped myself upside the head because the clues were there from the beginning. I'm going to blame my lack of prowess on two things: Eileen Brady's wonderful sense of humor, and the way she weaves the life of a veterinarian into her story.

One of my pet peeves about so many "niche" cozy mysteries-- those books with themes like knitting or running a B&B or cooking for example-- is the fact that the theme is just a thin veneer to hook the reader and has very little or nothing to do with the action in the book. If I pick up one of these books and the main character is supposed to be a glass blower, she'd better be able to convince me that she knows how to create something in glass. Same goes with knitting or any of the dozens of themes (or hooks) that are out there. That is certainly no problem in Muzzled. Eileen Brady was a vet for many years and still has a hand in the business. There is no doubt in your mind that Kate's a vet because of all the house calls she makes.

Make no mistake, those house calls can be a riot, whether Kate's saving a hamster from the maw of a vacuum cleaner or meeting a woman who dresses like her Chihuahua. These scenes provide verisimilitude, they provide humor, they provide knowledge on pet care and on the characters in the book, and they provide clues to the mystery. I enjoyed every single house call Kate Turner made.

Kate is a dedicated vet who's been experiencing a bit of man trouble. She's strong, she's smart, and it seems almost everyone who meets her thinks she's Meryl Streep. In fact her resemblance to Streep is a running joke throughout the book. If there's any problem at all with the book, it's that Kate is so strong a character that the others pale in comparison. I'm looking forward to Kate's next investigation so I can reacquaint myself with those other characters.

Naturally I have no interest at all in seeing Kate, following along on those house calls, or reading another first-in-show mystery.... 
 

Muzzled by Eileen Brady

ISBN: 9781464201844

Poisoned Pen Press © 2014

Hardcover, 250 pages

Cozy Mystery, #1 Kate Turner, DVM mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen