The Otter of Death by Betty Webb

First Line: Other than a few remaining wisps of fog, the morning was your standard California morning: perfect.

Zookeeper Theodora (Teddy) Bentley is taking the yearly otter count at a marsh near Gunn Landing Harbor when she sees one of her favorite otters clutching a smartphone. When Teddy rescues the phone, she sees a photo of a murder-in-progress and quickly calls the police. After a short search, they find the body of much-disliked Stuart Booth, a local marine biology instructor.

Booth was notorious for sexually harassing young female students, and Teddy is quite content to leave the investigating to the police until her friend Lila is arrested and charged with his murder. This creates a lot of tension with her fiancé, Sheriff Joe Rejas, and puts her life on the line as Booth's killer definitely does not want to be found. It's going to take a lot of investigating before Teddy will be allowed to go back to making some very important decisions about her personal life.

Betty Webb has created a fast-paced, light-hearted series that's just plain fun to read, and-- I'm happy to say-- The Otter of Death is the best of the bunch (so far). Personal relationships loom large in this book, with Teddy and Joe still having issues to iron out before contemplating setting a wedding date. There are also the soap opera-like intrigues amongst the other staff members at the Zoo. But it's not all who-did-what-to-whom. There's a tightly woven, intriguing mystery here, and Webb gives us animal lovers something else we crave: creatures of all shapes, sizes, and personalities. We learn about animal behavior, the ecology, and why flushable kitty litter is a no-no.

I have to admit that, although the mystery is excellent, I get my critter fix, and it's fun to catch up with the lives of characters I've grown to care for, it's the humor that is absolutely stellar in The Otter of Death. I laughed so hard at the Anteaters to Zebras live segment on Good Morning, San Sebastian that I woke up the neighbors' dog and made it bark. And if you don't love the identity of the cavalry that rides to Teddy's rescue at the end of the book, well... there just may be something drastically wrong with your funny bone. Make an appointment with your doctor.

Some of you may be familiar with Webb's other series featuring private investigator Lena Jones in Scottsdale, Arizona. It is marvelous and discusses some very serious issues. In Webb's Gunn Zoo mysteries, she gets to showcase an entirely different side of her personality, and these books are so much fun. It just goes to show that Betty Webb can handle both the serious and the humorous sides of your own reading personalities. If you're not already a fan, what are you waiting for?

The Otter of Death by Betty Webb

eISBN: 9781464209932

Poisoned Pen Press © 2018

eBook, 279 pages

Cozy Mystery, #5 Gunn Zoo mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley

The Puffin of Death by Betty Webb

First Line: As he snapped yet another photograph of the black, yellow, and white bird, Simon Parr congratulated himself.

Theodora Bentley can hardly believe that her boss is footing the bill to send one of Gunn Zoo's keepers to Iceland to facilitate the shipment of an orphaned polar bear cub and a pair of puffins back to California. She finds it even harder to believe that she's the lucky zookeeper.

The trip is meant to be a combination of work and play, but when  Teddy finds the body of a murdered man sprawled atop a puffin burrow, she finds herself right in the middle of the investigation. The dead man was a birdwatcher and winner of the largest Powerball lottery payout in history, and when he decided to foot the bill to bring the entire birdwatching club to Iceland, he seems to have brought along his own list of suspects. Once it's determined that an American would best understand other Americans, Teddy has carte blanche to follow the birders... but she's putting herself right in the line of fire.

The Puffin of Death is filled with Betty Webb's fascination with the people, culture, natural beauty, and wildlife of Iceland, and she easily proves that it's a worthwhile country with which to be enchanted. Although the book has a bit less of the author's humor that I'm used to, there are some laugh-out-loud moments-- particularly in describing the romance novels that the dead man's wife writes. Then there's the little thing about the Accidental Incest App to bring a touch of amazement into the lives of Webb's readers.  

We get to see Teddy working with the polar bear cub, and getting to know the behavior of the puffins. The information Webb imparts about animals in each book of this series is always choice and heartfelt.

As I read, I discovered that the book is more about Iceland than it is about the mystery, which isn't particularly difficult to solve. Instead I was left with mental pictures of Gunn Zoo owner Aster Edwina's reaction to the bills Teddy runs up while there-- especially those incredibly long transatlantic phone calls she makes to her boyfriend. There's some fascinating information in The Puffin of Death, but it's not the strongest book in this series.
    

The Puffin of Death by Betty Webb

ISBN: 9781464204142

Poisoned Pen Press © 2015

Hardcover, 258 pages

Amateur Sleuth, #4 Gunn Zoo mystery

Rating: B-

Source: Net Galley

 

The Llama of Death by Betty Webb

First Line: "Alejandro, you spit in my face!"

Once again, the owner of the Gunn Zoo has strong-armed zookeeper Theodora "Teddy" Bentley into doing something she'd rather not. Not only does Teddy have a weekly program called "Anteaters to Zebras" on the local television station, not only does she have to keep on cleaning animal enclosures and feeding the animals, now she has to dress like a trollop and lead Alejandro the llama around while he gives children rides at the Renaissance Faire. Alejandro adores children, but-- as can be seen by the spit on Teddy's face-- he has an entirely different opinion of human adults.

Is Alejandro's low opinion of adults what caused him to stomp to death the owner of the local wedding chapel? Fortunately not-- closer examination shows that the man dressed as Henry VIII was killed by a crossbow bolt to the neck.  Teddy's fiancé may be the sheriff, but the CIA has him in Langley, leaving the investigation to a completely incompetent deputy who likes Teddy's mother as the killer. Teddy has to do her own investigating before the deputy can tie her mother to the railroad tracks, and what she begins uncovering makes for one very long suspect list... and puts her right in the killer's sights.

Author Betty Webb may be better known for her more serious Lena Jones mystery series set in Scottsdale, Arizona. Her Gunn Zoo series, set on the central California coast, features a beautifully done comedic touch and lots of down-to-earth information on animals. I've read each book in this series, and they just keep getting better. From smiles and chuckles, I've now progressed to laughing out loud while reading this third book. I also feel that Alejandro is the best "feature creature" so far in the series.

I've known Betty has a wonderful sense of humor just by reading her blog. Her Lena Jones series, which tends to focus on human rights issues, is excellent, but it is good to see her put her talent for laughter to good use. Wonderful characters, interesting animals, intriguing plots, and comedy, too. Let Betty tickle your funny bone at the Gunn Zoo, too!

The Llama of Death by Betty Webb

ISBN: 9781464200663

Poisoned Pen Press © 2013

Hardcover, 250 pages

Cozy Mystery, #3 Gunn Zoo mystery
Rating: A
Source: NetGalley

The Koala of Death by Betty Webb

Title: The Koala of Death
Author: Betty Webb
ISBN: 9781590587584
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press, 2010
Paperback, 250 pages
Genre: Amateur Sleuth, #2 Gunn Zoo Mystery
Rating: B+
Source: Paperback Swap

First Line: I awoke during a pearly dawn to hear something bump against the Merilee's hull.

Unfortunately that bump against the hull of Teddy Bentley's boat wasn't a wake-up call from the resident sea otter who comes for breakfast every morning. The bump turns out to be the body of Koala Kate, a fellow keeper at the Gunn Zoo and darling of Good Morning, San Sebastian's Koala Kate's Kuddly Kritters.

Having been a guest at a party aboard the Gutterball the night before, it is assumed that Kate drank too much, fell overboard and drowned, but the police soon disprove that notion. Kate was murdered. Before Teddy's detecting bones even have a chance to tingle, she's roped into filling in for Kate on the television station's animal spot because it's bringing in much needed good press for the zoo. But being on TV, avoiding her match-making mother, and filling in for Kate in the koala exhibit isn't enough to keep Teddy from doing her own investigating-- especially since she may be the next victim.

The list of suspects in this book is a long one: from keepers at the zoo to various "liveaboarders" at the marina to an animal psychic to Teddy's own mother, and Webb does a masterful job at keeping us guessing.

Teddy is a strong, feisty main character, and her stints on television are hilarious-- reminding me strongly of watching Joan Embery bring various critters to The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. One of the things I appreciate the most about this Gunn Zoo series is that author Betty Webb can show off her skill with humor and satire.

She also imparts a lot of knowledge about wildlife, so if you like your mysteries seasoned with a bit of fur and maybe a fang or two, I would highly recommend this series. Do you have to start with the first, The Anteater of Death? No, this one works quite well on its own-- but I wouldn't deny myself the fun if I were you!

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The Anteater of Death by Betty Webb

Title: The Anteater of Death
Author: Betty Webb 
ISBN: 9781590587744
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press, 2010
Paperback, 250 pages
Genre: Amateur Sleuth, #1 Gunn Zoo mystery
Rating: A
Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen.

First Line: Intrigued by the commotion underneath the banana palm, Lucy curled her four-inch claws under her leathery pads and moved forward on her knuckles to investigate.

If Lucy, the pregnant Giant Anteater at the Gunn Zoo in central California, didn't kill the man found dead in her enclosure, who did? It's up to her keeper, Teddy Bentley, to find out before the anteater is shipped to another zoo in disgrace.

Before Teddy can really get started, another human bites the dust, the monkeys have a hissy fit, the wolves are in a tizzy, and the rich Harbor folks are trying to evict Teddy from her houseboat. Has Teddy got what it takes to save Lucy-- and herself?

I have long been a fan of Webb's series set right here in the Phoenix metropolitan area which feature P.I. Lena Jones. The only other mystery writer who gets the Phoenix area "right" is Jon Talton. (Take a look at my Favorite Mystery Series page for more information. Webb and Talton are both there.) I also know that Webb can do humor after reading her blog entry about being left at a truck stop while on a book tour. When I learned that she was starting a new-- and cozier-- series featuring a zookeeper, I was eager to try it out.

Although The Anteater of Death features one of those characters I want to slap-- the Annoying Mother-- I really enjoyed the book. Teddy has a good sense of humor that made me laugh out loud more than once, she truly cares for animals, she deals as best she can with The Mother, and she has good instincts on how to conduct an investigation:

Since I couldn't seem to find any actual clues, the solution to the mystery might be found in behavior. For all their purported brainpower, people are still animals. Deny them food, exercise, or sex, and they get cranky. Threaten them and they become downright dangerous.

Although the Bad Guy should've been obvious to me, the reveal came as a surprise-- mostly because the book was filled with attention grabbers, both two- and four-legged. This isn't called a "Gunn Zoo mystery" for nothing. Animals do play significant roles in the book, so if you're allergic, this may not be the book-- or the series-- for you. I loved the plot, the setting, most of the characters, and all the animals.

Jezebel at the Phoenix Zoo

Webb did most of her research right here at the Phoenix Zoo, where Jezebel was the role model for the book's anteater, Lucy. (I had fun watching her one morning when I visited.) I find it amusing that I'm writing this review on the day that it was announced the Phoenix Zoo would be having two koalas visit for a period of six months. Why do I find that amusing? (1) Every time I've gone to the San Diego Zoo, the koalas have never been out and about. I wonder if I'll have better luck on my home turf? (2) Webb's second Gunn Zoo mystery is titled The Koala of Death. Did she know something the rest of us didn't?

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