audio fiction - dog humor mystery series, book 12 (ok as standalone but Chet does make references to previous episodes), ~9 hrs

the dog humor is predictably familiar but, thanks to Jim Frangione's narrative style, can still get a chuckle from me. Set around Christmas/Hannukah in AZ. ( )

It's a Wonderful Woof
(Chet and Bernie Mystery #12)
by Spencer Quinn
I really enjoyed this mystery! A great story with plenty of action, wit, humor, suspense, and with Chet the dog as story teller! I love how Bernie and Chet work as a team. ( )

This series is irresistible! The books can be read in any order, or as stand-alones, but once you read one you'll want more. Chet the dog, with his human partner P.I. Bernie Little, are a mystery-solving team. This time the case involves a rare and valuable painting, a missing colleague, bad guys with guns, a possible new girlfriend for Bernie, and several Christmas trees. Yes, it takes place in the days leading up to Christmas, but you will enjoy this any time of year.

This is a delightful series narrated by Chet, who takes everything literally (his interpretation of idioms will make you smile). While he can only really count to two and he has a weakness for anything edible, his sense of smell, his strength and loyalty, as well as his ability to leap are what Bernie depends on to help them overcome the bad guys and solve the crimes in each novel.

If you're looking for a well-thought out mystery, great characters, and a humorous page-turner, this is the book for you. Once you finish this, I guarantee you'll want to go back and find one of the earlier books - they're all endearing and entertaining! ( )

Bernie is approached by a prospective client for a job. It’s not a good fit for Bernie, so he refers the client to a friend. But when that PI turns up missing, Bernie gets hired by his friend’s mother to find him. Feeling responsible, Bernie goes all out in delving into a missing person case that turns out to be so much more. Before long, dead bodies are littering the trail. A very old and hidden art treasure is at the heart of the mystery, and time is running out. Fortunately for everyone involved, Bernie has his faithful dog Chet at his side. Chet, and his superb canine sense of smell, is vital to solving this case. This engrossing mystery is made even better by the doggy narration of Chet, who though more intelligent than some people I’ve met, still only sees the world through his canine eyes. And that does make for some interesting interpretations! This well written novel, in fact the entire series, is highly recommended. ( )

It's the holiday season, even in Arizona, and Chet and Bernie have a new case walking in the door. Lauritz Vogler, a man with an unfamiliar accent who describes himself as "Mittel European Goulash," offer Bernie a $5,000 retainer to investigate a matter concerned with Baroque art. This isn't Bernie's kind of case, and Christmas is coming. It seems like it's an excellent case for fellow P.I. Victor Klovsky. Victor is the timid type and prefers to avoid direct conflict, but he's a whiz at online research, and this case seems right up his alley. Bernie refers Vogner to Victor.

A couple of days later, he gets a call from Victor's mother, saying that Victor is missing.

What follows is an adventure in Baroque art, the history of a now-deconsecrated church in the valley, and an artist of the early Baroque period who was long ignored, but now gaining in reputation and significance. Dangerous men are looking for a possible lost masterpiece, and Victor isn't the only man who's disappeared.

Meanwhile, in trying to uphold his professional standards, specifically not revealing the name of a client, Bernie seems to have made a wrong step in his still-new relationship with Police Sergeant Weatherly Wauneka. She sees it as a lack of trust, and doesn't want to find herself competing with Bernie on a case. Are they going to be able to work through this?

Along the way, Bernie spends weekends with his son, six-year-old Charlie, decorates Christmas trees, finds the body of a man who appears to have been tortured, and wrecks another Porsche. It's Chet and Bernie through and through, and still a lot of fun.

Recommended.

I bought this audiobook. ( )