The Hiding Place by Paula Munier

First Line: Summer 1999. Beautiful women kept you waiting with a clear conscience because they really believed that the party didn't start until they got there.

 

When her late grandfather's dying deputy hands Mercy Carr the cold case that's always haunted him, the timing couldn't be worse. The man who murdered her grandfather has just escaped from prison, and a fellow Army veteran has turned up, claiming that Elvis is his dog, not hers. What does finding Beth Kilgore twenty years after she disappeared got to do with these events that are threatening everything she holds most dear?

 

It's the last straw when her beloved grandmother goes missing. Mercy needs help, and it means that she has to forgive Vermont Game Warden Troy Warner long enough to enlist his aid. With time running out, Mercy and her dog Elvis must team up with Troy and his search-and-rescue dog Susie Bear to unravel long-buried secrets and find her grandmother.

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Paula Munier's Mercy Carr series gets stronger with each book. In this third entry, The Hiding Place, much of the mystery and the action concern Mercy's relationships with all the people in her life. A great deal of tension also comes from Hallet, the Army veteran who is determined to take Elvis away from Mercy. Readers of the series will know how important woman and dog are to each other, so I have to admit that I was often more concerned with deducing how Hallet could be convinced to leave well enough alone than I was with all the other elements in Munier's multi-layered mystery.

 

There's much to like about the "bones" of this series. Mercy herself is a strong, fascinating character as are others like game warden Troy Warner. Munier also brings her setting of the Vermont outdoors to life. Of course, there is also the very strong draw of the resident working dogs: Elvis the Belgian Malinois, a former war dog suffering from PTSD, and Troy's search-and-rescue Newfoundland mix, Susie Bear. (I do wish that Munier would stop referring to Susie's "pumpkin head" so much, however.) There's even the added bonus of a third dog, a gorgeous golden retriever, Sunny, whom Mercy calls the "mood ring of dogs."

If you enjoy multi-layered mysteries set in the great outdoors and filled with marvelous dogs and strong humans, you should become acquainted with Paula Munier's Mercy Carr series. Do that, and you've set yourself up for some mighty fine reading.

 

 

 

The Hiding Place by Paula Munier

eISBN: 9781250153081

Minotaur Books © 2021

eBook, 336 pages

 

Law Enforcement/Working Dog, #3 Mercy & Elvis mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley

Blind Search by Paula Munier

First Line: Henry Jenkins was lost.

It's a bad time to be lost in the Green Mountains of Vermont: it's hunting season, the most beautiful and dangerous time of the year. It's not the first time nine-year-old Henry has been lost, but this time he's seen something terrible.

Former Army MP Mercy Carr and her retired bomb-sniffing dog Elvis have found Henry after discovering the body of a young woman killed with an arrow to the heart. Mercy thinks the woman was murdered. She also thinks Henry knows something about it. But the young autistic math genius isn't talking.

It soon becomes clear that there's a murderer hiding among the hunters in the forest, and it's up to Mercy and Elvis and their other crime-solving friends, game warden Troy Warner and search-and-rescue dog Susie Bear, to find the person before the death toll gets any higher--and to protect Henry at all cost.

A strong mystery combines with strong characters in Paula Munier's second Mercy & Elvis mystery set in the Vermont wilderness. Speaking of that wilderness, it comes to life under Munier's pen. I can feel the snowflakes on my face, smell the trees, and hear the crunch of the snow under my boots as I follow the characters along on their search for a killer.

For those of you who may worry about a child being endangered in Blind Search, I want you to know that I was wondering about that myself. Without giving too much away, I'll just say that you shouldn't worry too much about that. Munier has it covered, and covered well-- and she still keeps the story exciting.

She also has her characters covered well. Henry took center stage for me, and I really liked how both Mercy and the two dogs related to the young boy. Elvis and Susie Bear are stars, which should please dog lovers everywhere. Troy and Mercy have their own baggage to deal with which makes a relationship between them somewhat prickly, and if there's anything that didn't sit well with me in Blind Search, it's the appearance of a character from Troy's past. It's something that's been done so often that it's tired and worn out.

If you're in the mood for a fast-paced, exciting story with strong, likable characters and two marvelous dogs, it sounds to me like you should pick up a copy of Blind Search. As for me, I'm looking forward to my next visit to Vermont to see Mercy and Elvis.

Blind Search by Paula Munier

eISBN: 9781250153067

Minotaur Books © 2019

eBook, 352 pages

Law Enforcement/Working Dogs, #2 Mercy & Elvis mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Net Galley


 

A Borrowing of Bones by Paula Munier

First Line: Grief and guilt are the ghosts that haunt you when you survive what others do not.

In an attempt to walk off grief, ex-military policewoman Mercy Carr and ex-military bomb-sniffing dog Elvis go deep into the Vermont woods every single day. Each day reminds Mercy that Elvis, a Belgian Malinois with canine PTSD, was her fiancé's partner, and-- now that Martinez is dead-- to Elvis, Mercy is never going to be more than second best.

It's the busy Fourth of July weekend and the entire town of Northshire has been gearing up to celebrate for days. To Mercy and Elvis, it's just another walk in the woods until Elvis alerts to explosives and they find a squalling baby abandoned near a shallow grave that appears to contain human bones.

U.S. Game Warden Troy Warner and his search and rescue dog Susie Bear respond to Mercy's 911 call, and the four of them find themselves working together to find a missing mother, solve a cold case, and keep the citizens of Northshire safe on what could be an incendiary holiday weekend.

I've quickly become hooked on mysteries featuring working dogs-- especially military or police dogs. I think it's because the bond between human and dog is so strong and because the dog's capabilities are extraordinary. When I learned of this first Mercy and Elvis mystery, I knew I had to read it, and the only thing I can say now is that I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

A Borrowing of Bones is fast-paced and well-plotted, with a mystery that keeps readers guessing. Munier also makes her Vermont setting come to life, so much so that I wanted to book the next flight there. Not only do you get a feel for the lifestyle of the people living there, you can also do a bit of fantasizing since the main characters have what would be to me dream homes. (Mercy and Elvis in a perfect cabin deep in the woods complete with a fireplace and a wall of books, and Troy and Susie Bear in a converted fire lookout tower.)

However, the characters of Mercy, Elvis, Troy, and Susie Bear are what really matter. Mercy has a lot of sharp edges and bad memories. With the special bond between Martinez and Elvis, she's always felt like an outsider, as though the man and his dog were a closed circuit. She's got a lot to work through, and Troy quickly discovers that it's going to be a challenge to get to know her. I also liked the fact that Elvis has canine PTSD since most people probably aren't aware that dogs can suffer from it. Yes, compared to Mercy and Elvis, Troy and Susie Bear are big softies, so this is a relationship that's going to be fun to watch develop.

If you like fast-paced, intriguing mysteries in vivid settings that are filled with multi-faceted characters and wonderful working dogs, I strongly recommend that you get in on the ground floor of the Mercy and Elvis series. A Borrowing of Bones is a winner.

A Borrowing of Bones by Paula Munier

eISBN: 9781250153043

Minotaur Books © 2018

eBook, 352 pages

Law Enforcement, #1 Mercy & Elvis mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley