Mysteries featuring animals, particularly cats and dogs, are almost always Cozy Mysteries. The sweet and silly nature of these animals matches the light-hearted tone of these types of stories.
Doggie Day Care Murder by
Melanie Travis thought her sleuthing days were behind her. She has a new baby to take care of-not to mention five Standard Poodles-and Aunt Peg is getting Davey ready for his debut as a junior showman. These days, the closest Melanie gets to detective work is scoping out the scene at the local doggie day centre for her friend Alice Brickman. As Melanie learns, it's a dog's life at the Pine Ridge Canine Care Centre-and life is good. The dogs are living large with a team of groomers and handlers at their bark and call. Everyone seems blissfully happy. Everyone canine, that is. For Melanie soon discovers there are some simmering resentments among the Pine Ridge staff and when Steve Pine, the centre's charming, good-looking co-owner, is found shot to death on the floor of his office, there's no shortage of suspects. His sister Candy stands to inherit their lucrative doggie day care operation. His neighbour, Adam Busch, still blames Steve for paving the way for the other businesses that now exist in the once qUiet, all-residential town. And then there's Lila Bennington, the disgruntled client who wanted to sue Steve following an embarrassing "incident" involving a Shih Tzu and a Beagle mix. And lastly, the string of female customers· Steve bedded and jilted. But which of these, suspects was desperate enough to commit murder?
The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers by
In this New York Times bestselling mystery in the Cat Who series, Jim Qwilleran and his Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum, sense that trouble is brewing in their small town... Times are a-changin' in Pickax, giving Jim Qwilleran some newsworthy notes for the "Qwill Pen." A new senior center is in the works--as well as a frisky production of Cats. And a local mansion is being converted into a charitable museum. Good thing there's lots to keep Qwill busy because Polly Duncan is off to Paris, temporarily leaving him without his lady companion. But when a mysterious death from a bee sting leaves everyone but Koko the Siamese in a state of confusion, the kitty with sixty whiskers will need to stop pussyfooting around and let Qwill in on the deadly secret...
Evil Breeding by
Holly Winters has a contract to write the text for a book of photographs recalling pre-war dog shows, but the assignment leads her into a deadly mystery.
Cat in a White Tie and Tails by
In Carole Nelson Douglas'Cat in a White Tie and Tails, Midnight Louie goes along as chaperone when PR whiz Temple Barr and her fiance, rising media star Matt Devine, head to Chicago so she can meet his family. Matt's mother has a tragic past primed to rise and bite anybody in reach, even the ex-alley cat sleuth. When Louie is snatched, the catnapping's surprising motive loops back to Vegas and a string of unsolved murders connected to magic...and ex-magician Max Kinsella, Temple's former significant other. Skeptical homicide lieutenant C. R. Molina has commissioned Max to investigate the cold case murder she suspects he committed two years earlier. With traumatic amnesia from a recent attempt on his life, the once infallible Max is more sitting duck than predator. It will take an alliance of frenemies to solve the serial deaths before one of them joins the fatality list.
Only the Cat Knows by
The prolific and delightful Marian Babson has penned another stupendous cozy for cat lovers. Vanessa has been rushed to hospital, having been found unconscious at the foot of the stairs. Was it an accident or something else? Now, smiling weakly, suffering from a head injury that has left her with complete amnesia about the fall, the events leading up to it, and even the people closest to her, here she is, back in their midst. Or is she? In fact, the real Vanessa is still in a coma and her devoted twin brother Vance, superbly disguised as a woman, has taken her place At the home of the reclusive millionaire who maintained Vanessa, Vance joins the self-absorbed retinue, determined to discover whether one of them had attempted to kill his sister. There is an unsavory roue who claims to be Vanessa's lover and assorted women who declare themselves her best friends. Others keep silent but seem to be waiting for Vance to put a foot wrong. Actually, Vance can handle all those. Only one thing really worries him: Gloriana, Vanessa's beautiful Angora cat who regards her "mistress" with a dark suspicion. If the cat can't be won over, then the whole deadly charade will fall apart. "Only the Cat Knows "is Babson's latest in a long line of wonderful mysteries offering her special mix of mayhem, murder, and cats "
Cat Playing Cupid by
"Excellent....These Joe Grey mysteries will stay popular for many years to come." --Tampa Tribune Kirkus Reviews says that award-winning author Shirley Rousseau Murphy has "raised the stakes of the feline sleuth genre." In Cat Playing Cupid, Murphy's fourteenth delightfully sophisticated whodunit to feature Joe Grey and his furry friends Dulcie and Kit, the feline P.I. is on a mission to stop a crime spree that endangers love on Valentine's Day. The winner of seven straight Muse Medallions from the national Cat Writers Association, Murphy's Joe Grey novels are the "cat's meow"--as doggone good as Rita Mae Brown's "Sneaky Pie," Carole Nelson Douglas's "Midnight Louie," and Lilian Jackson Braun's The Cat Who...books.
A Nose for Justice by
Explosive sabotage and the startling unearthing of a hundred-year-old skeleton on a Nevada ranch thrillingly start off this debut novel in a tail-wagging new series fromNew York Timesbestselling author Rita Mae Brown. With the ruins of her high-powered Wall Street job now far in the rearview mirror of her rented silver Camaro, thirty-two-year-old Mags Rogers arrives at her great-aunt Jeep’s sprawling Wings Ranch to reassemble her life. In the passenger seat, with his suspicious nose to a cracked window, is Mags’s beloved wirehaired dachshund, the urbane Baxter. Mags was named for her great-aunt, Magdalena-though everyone calls the spry octogenarian rancher Jeep. From piloting planes in World War II to discovering one of America’s largest gold deposits, Jeep has enjoyed a lifetime jam-packed with love and adventure, and she’s not done yet. At her side-to Baxter’s low-down distress-is Jeep’s loyal German Shepherd mix, King. The growlings are mutual: King sniffs that Baxter is a “fuzzy sausage.” Meanwhile, someone pipe-bombs Red Rock Valley’s pumping station, endangering the water supply near and far. Deputy Pete Meadows links the sabotage to a string of local murders, but he doesn’t yet know if it’s a corporate plot or twisted eco-terrorism. He’s also called out to Wings Ranch when human bones are dug up in Jeep’s barn; the dead man’s ring identifies him as an elite Russian military officer from the late 1800s, apparently knifed to death. In her search to find out whodunit, Mags uncovers fascinating history about Jeep’s ranch, including an intriguing connection to Buffalo Bill. Mags and Pete have mysteries to solve, among them why they are so drawn to each other. Baxter and King team up when it comes time to protect their humans. And all the while, Jeep Reed, the sassiest wit in the West, has a bold plan for Red Rock Valley in which they all will play a part. From the Hardcover edition.
A Beeline to Murder by
"After an injury forced her to leave the police department, Abigail Mackenzie started a second career as a farmer. Raising chickens, harvesting honey from her bee colony, and growing heirloom vegetables on her farmette in the beautiful Bay Area town of Las Flores, Abby has embraced all the benefits of a peaceful life. But when she attempts to deliver her trademark honey to local pastry chef Jean-Louis Bonheur and finds him dead in his shop, her old investigative instincts kick in. After the coroner rules the death a suicide, the chef s handsome French-Canadian brother insists on hiring Abby to find out who really killed Jean-Louis. With the patience of a farmer and the industriousness of a bee, Abby sorts through a swarm of suspects, including the chef s landlord, his protege, an eccentric homeless woman, loan sharks, and a brawny biker. But as she closes in on the truth, she ll need more than her beekeeper suit to protect her from a killer s sting Includes farming tips and delicious recipes!"
Miss Ruffles Inherits Everything by
Rich and flamboyant Honeybelle Hensley, the most colorful character in Mule Stop, Texas, dies a suspicious death and enrages the whole town by leaving her worldly fortune to the most undeserving recipient-her dog. The incorrigible Miss Ruffles is a Texas Cattle Cur, not a cuddly lapdog, and when Honeybelle was alive, Miss Ruffles liked nothing better than digging up Honeybelle's famous rose garden after breakfast, chasing off the UPS man before lunch and terrorizing the many gentleman callerswho came knocking at cocktail hour. But now Miss Ruffles is in danger, and it's up to Sunny McKillip, the unwilling dogsitter, to keep her safe. Sunny is new to Texas, and sometimes she feels as if she's fallen into an alien world. If it isn't the pistol-packing football fans and the sweet-talking, yet ruthless ladies of the garden club who confound her, it's the rowdy rodeo hounds and the tobacco-spitting curmudgeon at Critter Control who have her buffaloed. With a killer on the loose and a cowboy lawyer keeping a suspicious eye on her every move, Sunny needs all the help she can get understanding how Texans think. There's more to Honeybelle's death than meets this Yankee's eye, and Sunny has Miss Ruffles to protect, too. It's a bucking bull ride of an adventure for Sunny, and if she's not careful she might just get killed . . . or her heart lassoed...in Nancy Martin'sMiss Ruffles Inherits Everything.
Murder Past Due by
FIRST IN THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING CAT IN THE STACKS MYSTERY SERIES! Everyone in Athena, Mississippi, knows Charlie Harris, the good-natured librarian with a rescued Maine coon cat named Diesel that he walks on a leash. He's returned to his hometown to immerse himself in books, but soon enough he's entangled in a real-life thriller... A famous author of gory bestsellers and a former classmate of Charlie's, Godfrey Priest may be the pride of Athena, but Charlie remembers him as an arrogant, manipulative jerk--and he's not the only one. Godfrey's homecoming as a distinguished alumnus couldn't possibly go worse: by lunch, he's put a man in the hospital. By dinner, Godfrey's dead. Now it's up to Charlie, with some help from Diesel, to paw through the town's grudges and find the killer before an impatient deputy throws the book at the wrong person. But every last one of Charlie's friends and co-workers had a score to settle with the nasty novelist. As if the murder wasn't already purr-plexing enough...
Dog on It by
Meet Chet, the wise and lovable canine narrator ofDog on It, who works alongside Bernie, a down-on-his-luck private investigator. Chet might have flunked out of police school ("I'd been the best leaper in K-9 class, which had led to all the trouble in a way I couldn't remember exactly, although blood was involved"), but he's a detective through and through.In this, their first adventure, Chet and Bernie investigate the disappearance of Madison, a teenage girl who may or may not have been kidnapped, but who has definitely gotten mixed up with some very unsavory characters. A well-behaved, gifted student, she didn't arrive home after school and her divorced mother is frantic. Bernie is quick to take the case -- something about a cash flow problem that Chet's not all that clear about -- and he's relieved, if vaguely suspicious, when Madison turns up unharmed with a story that doesn't add up. But when she disappears for a second time in a week, Bernie and Chet aren't taking any chances; they launch a full-blown investigation. Without a ransom demand, they're not convinced it's a kidnapping, but they are sure of one thing: something smells funny.Their search for clues takes them into the desert to biker bars and other exotic locals, with Chet's highly trained nose leading the way. Both Chet and Bernie bring their own special skills to the hunt, one that puts each of them in peril. But even as the bad guys try to turn the tables, this duo is nothing if not resourceful, and the result is an uncommonly satisfying adventure.With his doggy ways and his endearingly hardboiled voice, Chet is full of heart and occasionally prone to mischief. He is intensely loyal to Bernie, who, though distracted by issues that Chet has difficulty understanding -- like divorce, child custody, and other peculiar human concerns -- is enormously likable himself, in his flawed, all-too-human way.
Murder She Meowed
The annual steeplechase races at Montpelier, once the home of James and Dolley Madison, are the high point in the social calendar of the horse-mad Virginians of cozy Crozet. The race meet offers a cracking good time with old friends and a chance to get even--on the racecourse--with old enemies. Postmistress Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen will be in the thick of the action on this day of high spirits and fierce competition. But the glorious thoroughbreds and the pinks and greens and purples worn by the riders do not blind Harry to the dangerous undercurrents that start to surface. There's sure to be some emotional fireworks at Montpelier. Still, no one expects the day to end in tragedy. Found dead in the main barn is one of the day's riders, a knife plunged through the jockey's heart. The only clue is a playing card, the Queen of Clubs, impaled over the fatal wound. Within the wealthy, tight-knit world of horse owners, trainers, and jockeys, the victim had both admirers and enemies. Was the murderer's motive greed, drugs--a pervasive evil in the race world--or sexual rivalry? Luckily for Crozet's humans, the tiger cat Mrs. Murphy is right at home in the stable yard ... and on the trail of the shocking truth. But will Harry catch on in time to stop a killer grown bloodthirsty with success?
