I have a weakness for cozy mysteries featuring veterinarians, and the dog lover in me couldn't resist the cover of D.L. Mitchell's Trust the Terrier. While I did find the main character exasperating, there is a lot to like about this first Coral Shores Veterinary mystery.

For one thing, the setting is a winner. The town of Coral Shores on the Florida Gulf Coast is a winner. Its strict building codes mean it's not the usual tourist trap, and I'm all for that. There's also the Coral Shores Turtle Project that Emily is a part of, and I always like to see people banding together to protect endangered wildlife. The author also takes readers right into a busy veterinary practice for some behind-the-scenes looks at what goes on.

Dr. Emily Benton's first outing as an amateur sleuth is aided by the dead woman's daughter who can afford to hire a private pathologist, saving valuable time in finding clues. It also doesn't hurt that her brother is the deputy sheriff in town. Emily is still grieving the death of her mother and often makes use of her mother's extensive flip-flop collection. She also has a Maine Coon cat named Bella who must get used to Elvis the canine house guest.

As I said, there's a lot to like in Trust the Terrier, but I found Emily exasperating. All dog lovers know to trust their pets whenever they strongly react to another human, but it took Emily eons to figure out why Elvis always went ballistic around one person. Then there was her belief that her brother should share every little piece of information from the murder investigation he was conducting. One of these days, I'd like to see a character lose his job for sharing information he knows he shouldn't, although that would put a serious cramp in some amateurs' sleuthing attempts.

There was also a bit more romance in this book than I really care for, but I do have to admit that it was handled well. However, what really chapped my hide was Emily's TSTL (Too Stupid To Live) moments. One such example is when she sees the truck belonging to a man she knows to be extremely dangerous parked out on the street. What does she do? She tells no one and goes out after dark to check it out. I rolled my eyes so far back in my head that they almost stuck.

Even though there is a lot to like about Trust the Terrier, the main character's behavior makes it doubtful that I'll read further in the series. Shame on you, Emily. ( )

A terrier's instinct exposes an unscrupulous real estate operation in a quiet place called coral shores.

Emily Benton is a Coral Shores' dedicated veterinarian. She discovers the body of a local resident, Mrs. Klein, on a visit for her dogs checkup. Emily becomes Elvis's caregiver while local police investigate the murder. Elvis's demeanor changes when Bucky delivers food from a local grocer. His negative reaction to Bucky makes Emily think there is a connection to the murder. As the investigation progresses, Emily uncovers a connection to Bucky's involvement with a real estate firm up to no good.

This cozy murder mystery was a fun read. I enjoyed Elvis's intuition that Bucky is not a good guy. This is a highly recommended read for dog lovers and cozy mysteries. ( )

feel-good, cozy-mystery, grieving, grief, veterinarian, first-in-series, debut-author, local-law-enforcement, florida, romantic

This is a really nice story on a par with a Hallmark book. Seems a fine start to a new series.
I requested and received an EARC from Black Rose Writing via NetGalley. Thanks ( )

I enjoyed this book, especially the glimpses into the life and work of Emily, the main character, a veterinarian. There wasn't really much mystery involved, more a how he did it, than a whodunnit. I was grateful that the romance between Emily and the detective didn't take over the story, but honestly it was the part that most made the story feel formulaic. More about the turtles could have replaced the obligatory romance. It is well written and an easy, cozy read. ( )

I received this ebook as an Early Reviewer title from LibraryThing. That in no way influenced this review.
Trust the Terrier is, I believe, the author's first published work, and it is self-published. The author is a veterinarian and uses her veterinary knowledge to portray the life of a relatively new veterinarian operating her own clinic for the first time. Emily, the vet, lives in her hometown and occupies her late mother's house. As the novel begins, Emily is still deep in grief over the loss of her mom.
Emily and her clinic manager, Anthony, drop by the house of their former piano teacher and client, Mrs. Klein., to check on her dog She recommends a nearby grocery store to Emily, who has mainly eaten takeout food since her mother's death. Not long afterward, Mrs. Klein is dead, found in her home by Emily.
Emily takes Elvis, the terrier, home with her after Mrs. Klein's death. Later, when Emily places her first order from the grocery store, Elvis goes ballistic when the delivery man, Bucky, arrives with her order. Elvis tries to both bite and attack him. At this point, the reader realizes that Bucky no doubt had something to do with Mrs. Klein's murder. Emily and law enforcement officials remain oblivious to this fact for quite sometime. Also, Emily and one of the investigating police officers fall pretty head of heals for each other. And naturally, since she was the one who discovered Mrs. Klein's body, Emily feels she must investigate the crime with help from Anthony.
In other words, this is a fairly typical cozy mystery. It's also somewhat obvious that this is a first novel. Given that the author plans to write additional books in the series, I would expect her writing only to improve. I enjoyed reading the book and will look forward to additional entries in the series. ( )