Jingle Bell Bark
4 journalers for this copy...
"It's Christmas again, and Melanie Travis barely has time to pencil in some holiday festivities. Especially once she finds herself making a list of murder suspects--and checking it twice...
Between her son Davey, teaching, and showing her Standard Poodle puppy, Eve, all Melanie wants for Christmas is a dull moment. But when Davey's bus driver, Henry Pruitt, disappears, Melanie is concerned. The elderly Henry was a friend to all in the neighborhood, so she decides to check on him...only to find that he died two days earlier, under suspicious circumstances.
As if that weren't bad enough, Henry's two Golden Retrievers are now bereft. Melanie brings them to her Aunt Peg, the most stubborn woman on the planet, who's now determined to find out the truth about Henry's death, no matter what. Soon Aunt Peg has Melanie leashed to another murder investigation. And unless she sniffs out this Scrooge of a killer fast, a lump of coal may not be the worst thing Melanie gets this Christmas..." (summary taken from back of the book)
Hm, not my cup of tea. I love dogs, so I thought I'd be interested in a dog-centric cozy mystery. But I find Peg abrasive and Melanie judgmental, and the whole book slow moving without a lot of urgency. The dog show aspects slowed down the pacing of the story so much; I really don't care to know the details in dog grooming or showing (this is much of a "author shows they did the research" trope going on, kind of like the whale hunting boat details in Moby Dick). I did like that the book mentioned ethical breeders vs backyard breeders, but there wasn't a single rescue or mutt mentioned in the whole book. And while poodles have a reputation for being clever, the dogs in the book don't strike me as such, as they don't do much besides look at Melanie funny (there are also plenty of other dog breeds known for their superior intelligence, so I was kind of off-put by the insistence of the Poodles being geniuses). As far as animal-centric cozies go, I think the Cat Who series is far better. Quil is funny, and his cats inadvertently give him clues, and as a whole, the elderly Quil is a lot less judgmental than a 30-years-younger Connecticut teacher.
Journal Entry
2 by
RNAi at
True Blue, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- Grenada on Thursday, November 14, 2019
I brought this book with me to Grenada, and it went back to WV, USA with my SO. Soon, it will be mailed out to the winner of Abi-Gibby's Christmas Themed Sweepstakes. I hope the reader enjoys this cozy mystery. Even though I'm not a fan of poodles, I do love dogs, and I just couldn't resist the adorable golden retriever on the cover with his little Santa hat.
Journal Entry
3 by
RNAi at
by Post, A RABCK -- Controlled Releases on Friday, November 15, 2019
Released 4 yrs ago (11/14/2019 UTC) at by Post, A RABCK -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Sent to the winner of Abi-Gibby's Christmas theme Sweepstakes. Enjoy!
Journal Entry
4 by
rahar109 at
Ash Vale, Surrey United Kingdom on Wednesday, November 20, 2019
Arrived this morning.
Thank you!
Journal Entry
5 by
rahar109 at
Ash Vale, Surrey United Kingdom on Wednesday, December 4, 2019
A cosy murder mystery with dogs, dogs and more dogs. A light read with, unfortunately, a little too much detail about the dog show world. Fascinating, but not needed and slowed the story down.
Thank you for sending me this, RNAi - not really my cup of tea either, but I do like to try a new author/genre.
Journal Entry
6 by
rahar109 at
Knights Templar, Chancery Lane in Holborn, Greater London United Kingdom on Friday, December 13, 2019
Released 4 yrs ago (12/14/2019 UTC) at Knights Templar, Chancery Lane in Holborn, Greater London United Kingdom
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
Being taken to the lunchtime meet-up.
Journal Entry
7 by
Poodlesister at
City of London, Greater London United Kingdom on Saturday, December 14, 2019
Picked up to re-release.
Journal Entry
8 by
Poodlesister at
-- Controlled Release, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- United Kingdom on Saturday, December 21, 2019
Released 4 yrs ago (12/23/2019 UTC) at -- Controlled Release, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- United Kingdom
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Adding to Greenbadger’s Christmas Book Box and taking a heavier one out to keep it under 2kg
Join UK Bookcrossers at the Newcastle Unconvention from 9th to 11th October 2020
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9 by
greenbadger at
St Albans, Hertfordshire United Kingdom on Saturday, December 28, 2019
Received in the Christmas bookbox. Thank you!
Journal Entry
10 by
greenbadger at
St Albans, Hertfordshire United Kingdom on Sunday, October 18, 2020
Preparing poodles for show takes an enormous amount of time that single mum Melane Travis doesn't have much of, but when she discovers that the lovely old man who drove her son's school bus has been murdered, she's determined to get to the bottom of it if only to make sure his two pedigree golden retrievers end up in a safe home. Fun dog-centric murder mystery with lots of insight into a dog-breeder's life.
Journal Entry
11 by
greenbadger at
St Albans, Hertfordshire United Kingdom on Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Released 3 yrs ago (10/28/2020 UTC) at St Albans, Hertfordshire United Kingdom
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Put into Christmas bookbox.
Journal Entry
12 by
Poodlesister at
Walthamstow, Greater London United Kingdom on Friday, October 30, 2020
This is back with me. It’s on rubyrebel’s wishlist and she is in the HGG so it will go to her. The only question is will I read it first? greenbadger gave it a good write up so maybe I’ll give it a go.
Journal Entry
13 by
Poodlesister at
Holiday Gift Giving, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- United Kingdom on Thursday, November 5, 2020
Released 3 yrs ago (11/6/2020 UTC) at Holiday Gift Giving, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- United Kingdom
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
A wishlist book going to rubyrebel with some other bits and pieces
Join UK Bookcrossers at the Newcastle Unconvention from 1st-3rd October 2021