A Good Dog's Guide to Murder by Krista Davis

A Good Dog's Guide to Murder
by Krista Davis

ISBN-13: 9780593436950
Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Berkley
Released: September 6, 2022

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Visitors are arriving in droves to spend Thanksgiving in the mountains of pet-friendly Wagtail, Virginia. Many of them are bringing dog and cat gingerbread houses to enter in the contest that will be held in the new convention center. Wagtail resident Orly Biffle bequeathed the land to the town in his will, provided that they not cut down the grand old oak tree on the property. Orly's children are mighty miffed that they didn't inherit the prime piece of property overlooking the lake.

Holly notices that Trixie and Twinkletoes, her calico kitty, are fixated on the big oak tree. Trixie barks at it as though she thinks it's a corpse! Just as contestants are spicing up their sweet gingerbread creations, the majestic tree drops an enormous limb. The mayor declares that the tree is dangerous and must come down. When a bulldozer churns up some roots, the tree falls over on its own accord revealing a body inside the trunk! Everyone suspects Orly hid the body, but who's the dead man and why was he killed? Trixie and Twinkletoes now have to help Holly sniff out a killer.


My Review:
A Good Dog's Guide to Murder is a cozy mystery. It's the eighth book in a series. You don't need to read the previous books to understand this story, and this book didn't spoil the previous ones. The short chapters from the dog's viewpoint added nothing to the story and could have been easily cut.

The mystery was clue-based. Holly gathered information about missing people and narrowed down who might be the murdered man in the tree. She asked questions about relationships and possible motives. The critical clues needed to determine whodunit were not provided until the end, so it's not really a puzzle mystery. The characters were interesting and engaging. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this fun mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.