Good Day! Murder in the Cards by Paige Sleuth comes out on July 1. Minding the Light by Suzanne Woods Fisher will be available on July 3 along with Killer Green Tomatoes by Lynn Cahoon and Dying Up Loose Ends by Maggie Sefton.
Ruff Justice by Laurien Berenson
is the twenty-second (wow) novel in The Melanie Travis Canine Mystery series. Melanie Travis along with her husband, two
sons, and Augie are at the Sedgefield dog show.
Davey is hoping to complete Augie’s, his Standard Poodle, championship after
two years. Augie does not get the win,
but Aunt Peg discovers a dead body. Aunt
Peg had ordered a special leash for Coral, her six-month-old Standard Poodle
puppy, from artist Jasmine Crane.
Jasmine was not at her booth and Aunt Peg (you know how she is) was
determined to find the leash. Instead,
Aunt Peg found Jasmine strangled behind her booth. The next day, Aunt Peg is visited by her dog
sitter’s twin sister, Abby. It seems
Amanda Burke has been missing for twenty-four hours and her sister is worried
about her. It turns out that Amanda
lived in the apartment over Jasmine Crane’s garage. It cannot be a coincidence that Amanda
disappeared after Jasmine was murdered. Abby
had heard about Aunt Peg and Melanie’s success with investigations in the past. She wants them to find her sister and, of
course, they agree. Melanie will have to
fit in questioning in between teaching, duties at home (laundry, grocery
shopping, cleaning), the kids, the various dog shows, a student who is being
bullied, taking care of the dogs, and spending time with her husband, Sam. Melanie has a busy life, but she would not
have it any other way. Melanie soon
finds herself ensnared in two perplexing mysteries.
Ruff Justice contains good
writing and established characters.
Melanie has grown over the course of the series. She has a happy home life with her two kids,
loving husband and six dogs (five Standard Poodles and Bud). Aunt Peg, though, has not changed one
iota. She is still headstrong and likes things
done her way. Davey, Kevin and the dogs (especially
Bud) provide levity. I had a good laugh
over the finger paint and tomato incidents.
Sam is the stabilizing influence
and I love that he does not discourage Melanie’s investigating. The characters are likeable and relatable. The
dog show judging is quite interesting (I did not realize how many dog breeds
there were). There are many variables as
we see in Ruff Justice as Davey and Augie work towards their goal of earning
Augie his championship title. It is obvious that the author is well versed in
the subject of dog competitions (it comes through in the book). Laurien Berenson explains dog show judging in
a way that is easy to understand. One of
Melanie’s tutoring students, Francesca is being bullied, and I like how Melanie
addresses the situation. The mystery is
well-crafted and multi-faceted. I do
wish, though, that the author had included a twist. I was able to identify the culprit early in
the story (my one complaint). Ruff Justice is not a standalone book. You
cannot just pick up Ruff Justice and dive in.
My rating for Ruff Justice is 4.5 out of 5 stars. If you
are looking for an engaging cozy mystery with great characters and a complicated
mystery, then pick up Ruff Justice.
The first book in A Melanie Travis Canine Mystery series is A Pedigree to Die. Thank you for visiting today and reading my review. I will be featuring Buried in Books by Kate Carlisle tomorrow. It is the twelfth A Bibliophile Mystery. Brooklyn Wainwright is getting married! May you have a bewitching day. Take care and Happy Reading!
Kris
The Avid Reader
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