More Dog Mystery Book Reviews

Unleashed by  Eileen Brady (A Kate Turner DVM Mystery)

Poisoned Pen, 2015

Reviewed by Amber Polo

Kate Turner, working as a veterinarian in an small house-call practice, learns one of her clients has committed suicide. Dr. Kate refuses to believe her artist friend, with much to live for, would have killed herself leaving her Cairn Terrier Toto in the animal hospital with no instructions. Animal lovers just don' t do that.

Dr. Kate continues her house calls, nosing around and sniffing out information from the town gossips and uncovers a lot of suspects. When a gentle employee of her animal hospital is arrested for the murder, she refuses to butt out, although her sleuthing irritates police officer and friend Detective Luke Gianetti.  With some practical advice from her Gramps, a retired fire investigator, now residing in assisted living, she pushes on.

Colorful human characters and interesting animal clients, perhaps borrowed from the author's own experiences as a vet, make it fun to follow the clues Dr. Kate and her friends dig up.

Humor and a heartfelt love of animals combine in this well crafted cozy for animal lovers.

Eileen Brady is a veterinarian living in Scottsdale with six cats and two dogs of her own.

Hair of the Dog by Susan Slater(A Dan Mahoney Mystery) Poisoned Pen, 2015

Reviewed by Amber Polo

Life really heats up for insurance investigator Dan Mahoney and his PI-in-training fiancée when they arrive in Florida to look into the deaths of five valuable racing greyhounds. Of course, all is not what in seems with the fire, a dead body, and a gentle caretaker arrested and charged with arson and murder. As Dan and Eileen settle into temporarily cozy life near the beach, their Rottie Simon joins them, and Dan’s mother adopts a greyhound and prepares to purchase a house with her new boyfriend.

A well done mystery filled with as many surprises and subplots and a twisty racetrack. There’s lively banter and humor as Dan’s mother wants Eileen to investigate her mysterious fiancé just as the plot picks speed up.

Greyhound adoption issues are handled well. providing a lot of information about racing dogs prepared for rehoming in prisons, a greyhound protection organization, and the transport of dogs getting their second time around. I was surprised that some dogs were trained for agility in prison. I’d love to see that.

Note: Hair of the Dog does not contain racing horror stories. Slater even includes a request to donate to a group that transports retired racing greyhounds.

Susan Slater is the author of the Ben Pecos Indian series and the Dan Mahoney Mystery series. A college writing instructor, she now lives west of Taos, New Mexico.

Five Canine Cozy Mystery Book Reviews

A Shapeshifters' Library series reader once called my books cozy fantasy. I loved the term and thought I'd invented a new genre (or the reader named an existing genre).

But cozy mysteries with canines have been around for a long time. I've been writing a review column for a dog magazine and have been reading a lot of canine cozies and thought I'd share some of the reviews.

Catwalk Sheila Webster Bonham  

Midnight Ink Books, 2014 (An Animals in Focus Mystery)

Animal photographer Janet MacPhail competes with Jay, her Australian Shepherd, in canine agility.  The mystery begins when a dead body is found in the agility course’s crawl tube. In addition to believable and oh so funny insights into the dog world, Janet, our 50-something menopausal heroine, deals with her mother in a nursing home, her boyfriend, and her mother’s boyfriend, as well as a feral cat problem.

Janet also trains and competes with her cat in feline agility. Who knew feline agility was even a sport – and fun for owner and cat?

I loved the combination of dog/cat information, mystery, and a women’s real life issues. Read it for the animals and the laugh out loud porta-pottie Iditarod scene!

Sheila Webster Boneham, award-winning author, has written seventeen nonfiction books about dogs, cats, and rescue and founded rescue groups for Aussies and Labs. 

Both mystery series left me begging for more.

  

Muzzled
Eileen Brady

Poisoned Pen Press, 2014 (a Kate Turner, D.V.M. Mystery)

 

From the moment Dr. Kate rescues a hamster from a vacuum cleaner you know this mystery will be filled with animals and laughs. When she visits Cavalier King Charles Spaniel breeders and discovers two dead bodies and 27 blue-ribbon dogs running wild, you know she’s going to stick her nose into crime solving. While police suspect murder-suicide, Dr. Kate disagrees. Was the couple murdered for the money their champion dog could bring to another breeder? As Kate's veterinary house calls continue, so does her varied list of suspects-including a tattooed biker baker.

Pet lovers and mystery lovers will find this a cozy choice. I loved the humor, the mystery and a peek into a veterinarian’s life. Plus who could resist a vet’s view of quirky pet owners.

Eileen Brady is a veterinarian living in Scottsdale with six cats and two dogs of her own.

  

Murder Strikes a Pose
Tracy Weber
Midnight Ink, 2014 (A Downward Dog Mystery)

When George, a homeless alcoholic and Bella, his German Shepherd, disturb the peace outside Kate’s yoga studio, she loses her Zen-like calm. The three form an unlikely friendship until Kate finds George’s body behind her studio and tries to find a home for Bella.

Yogi Kate and Serenity Yoga are not always serene but always delightful. A mystery from a yoga studio owner who knows the behind the scenes work and a dog lover not afraid to deal with real problems. I appreciated that Bella had serious issues with EPI (exocrine pancreatic insufficiency) and, for a change, wasn't smarter than the sleuth.

Tracy Weber, yoga teacher and founder of Whole Life Yoga in Seattle, shares her home with challenging yet amazing German Shepherd Tasha and a bonito flake-loving cat.

 

Fifty Shades of Greyhound  

Sparkle Abbey

(A Pampered Pets Mystery, Book 5) Bell Bridge Books, 2014

Fifty Shades of Greyhound is California’s premier rescue group charity event, graced by fifty greyhounds. Smart, savvy but ditzy Caro Lamont, Laguna Beach’s pet therapist, loves animals and designer clothes and for the fundraiser gala Caro and society couples put on the dog dressed in shades of gray. All is champagne and big checks until a dead body spoils the party.

Of course things get worse for the rescue group. Caro butts in and the results bounce between humor and danger. Before the perfect ending, enjoy the Laguna atmosphere, a tiny bit of romance, nutsy pet people, and a cozy mystery that will keep you guessing. And who will end up with Grandma Tilly’s ugly brooch?

Sparkle Abbey is the pen name of mystery authors Mary Lee Woods and Anita Carter. The name comes from Sparkle (Mary Lee's cat) and Abbey (Anita's dog).


The Big Chihuahua

Waverly Curtis

(A Barking Detective Mystery) Kensington, 2013

P.I. Geri Sullivan and Pepe, her fast-talking Chihuahua, (sadly only Geri can hear him) look for a missing woman and stumble into a New Age retreat staffed by Leaf and Artichoke, where cult devotees worship the incarnation of Dogawanda.

Before Geri can say "Dog Be With You," or "Obey Your Alpha," Pepe is tapped as their new guru, and takes the name Towering Cedar. It wouldn't be a mystery without a body or two. Throw in some wolfdogs, an enigmatic celebrity, and Pepe's clever dialog and the result is a silly satire mixed with mystery and mayhem. A delightful cozy read to cuddle with.

Waverly Curtis is the joint byline of mystery writers Waverly Fitzgerald and Curtis Colbert. Fitzgerald lives in Seattle with her daughter and her daughter's Chihuahua, Pepe. The authors donate part of the proceeds of the book sales to the ASPCA.