Read Online Hounded To Death (Melanie Travis, #14) Expressed By Laurien Berenson Released As Digital

win in a fun setting, How does the author keep this up and not lose me I'm hooked, These mysteries are fun and so well crafted,

I feel like this series is different than most series I've read, I feel like I'm along for the ride in the backseat in the car, at an extra chair in the kitchen sharing coffee, walking in the group of friends at the show in the life of Melanie.
I can now see that the books I have left are fewer than the ones I've already read and that makes me a little sad.
However, I don't see any signs of Laurien Berenson letting up on her adventures, I hope Melanie's adventures continue for many, many years to come, Kind of meandered. I always enjoy the dog focus of this series in particular, the training and training tips, and dog show insights.
There were far fewer of these in this book, Still, character development continued and I look forward to reading the next book in this very enjoyable series, I think my lack of satisfaction with this book reflects more on me than on the authorI like my amateur sleuths to work a bit harder, and for there to be more clues.
For the mystery to unravel because of gossip and a conversation being overheard feels cheapbut this is par for the course in the cozy mystery genre.
My favourite character was Button the chihuahua, to come Melanie Travis, Aunt Peg and Melanie's sisterinlaw are heading for a canine symposium and also hoping to get a little R amp R thrown in, but when the key address speaker winds up dead in a hot tub Melanie has to forego the comfort.
I really enjoy the "Melanie Travis Canine Mystery" series, Always good stories and characters and I like that Melanie goes through life changes as the series moves forward, I recommend starting from the first book, "A Pedigree to Die For", I find pet mysteries are hit or miss, but I rather enjoyed this one, I did find her constant refrain regarding her pregnancy to be annoying, but I just pushed those to the back of my brain.
A dog show judge is offed after making a controversial speech at a symposium and the question is why, Is it because of his speech Is it because he may be unfaithful An interesting whodunit without a complete menagerie of animals and thank god none of them talk! What a cute story I liked this one.
It was fun seeing the girls go away together, Of course, my favorite part was Walter! This is the fourteenth book in this series, Melanie Travis is a full time Special Education teacher and a part time sleuth, She shows Standard Poodles with her Aunt Peg in the local dog show circuit, She has married her long time boyfriend and is expecting a baby, With time off for fall break, she accompanies her Aunt Peg and her sister in law Bertie for a dog show conference.
Melanie is looking forward to a week of relaxation, The conference has barely started when the keynote speaker is found dead after he gives a contraversial speech, Everyone's feathers are ruffled but who was angry enough to kill him Melanie has another mystery on her hands to figure out and solve.
Really didn't like this one as much as the others in the series, Even the most recent book Doggie Day Care Murder was more enjoyable, I don't think the main and recurring characters are really acting as we've come to expect them to behave, The motivations seem a bit muddy and indistinct, This book was a fun little distraction, Nothing earth shattering, but it was an easy and fun, Not as funny or engaging as a Stephanie Plum book, but very enjoyable, Exactly what I need right now This one felt more slight even than most of these, which is okay with me right now.
I'm enjoying the competent fluff! The mystery is pretty lackluster, so this is all about hanging out with old friends.
I really liked the departure from their daytoday life, Very interesting and very nice setting, Fourteenth in the Melanie Travis mystery series with this story set in the Poconos Mountains for a dog show judging symposium.


The Story
It's October and Melanie is fourmonths pregnant, And Sam has pushed Melanie out the door to take this weeklong vacation with Aunt Peg and Bertie,

The excitement is all about Charles Evans' speech about the Future of Dog Shows, His controversial point is that dog show people are more concerned with breeding dogs to look good in the ring than in how well they function as the breed as they were original developed.


Ooh, and Aunt Peg has an Internet boyfriend! She's been emailing Richard for months and now she'll be meeting him at the symposium.
Unfortunately, he takes exception to Aunt Peg's concern for a stray German shepherd and when Aunt Peg coerces Melanie into helping her round the stray up, they stumble

across Evans' dead body in a hot tub.
Naked!

Naturally, Melanie's reputation for things going wrong around her and then fixing it is wellknown and a number of people put the arm on her to solve his murder.
A discovery that becomes more important when Richard's mother, Florence, gets hit on the head and accuses Aunt Peg of the assault.


The Characters
Melanie Travis is a special needs tutor at a private academy in Greenwich, Connecticut who recently eloped with Sam and is now pregnant.
She's been in the thick of the dog show world for just under five years,

Sam Driver finally talked Melanie into marrying him, He regained the rights to a video game he created in college, made millions from it and now he can pick and choose what he wants to do.
Such as, take time off to be with his family,

Aunt Peg is not actually related by blood but through marriage to Melanie, A former breeder and handler, Aunt Peg now judges dog shows, She also sees herself as neutral Switzerland Mel sees her more as Mossad, Bertie is Melanie's sisterinlaw and a professional dog handlersomeone hired to show another person's dogs,

Richard Donner is Aunt Peg'syearold Internet boyfriend, Who still lives with mom, Florence who is a judge on the dog show circuit who carries her Chihuahua, Buttons, everywhere with her inside her purse.
Alana Bennett is a goodtime girl who hangs with dog people, a good friend of Bertie's, and not above slanting everything to make her look good.


Charles Evans and his wife have been in the dog show world for years, They may look nice but they're really cold sharks underneath with a very unusual accommodation,

My Take
Melanie's rather selfrighteous about Aunt Peg hopping in the hot tub or bed with Richard.
What is her problem Old does not mean dead, . !

When they find Charles drowned in the hot tub, why isn't one of them immediately dialingAnd, my big question, just how is Charles' speech on an overemphasis on appearance related to the animal activist issues of eliminating pets and ending dog shows

I suppose I can't expect my queries to be answered by a novel as light and fluffy as Hounded to Death and it was an enjoyable read.


The Cover
The cover certainly covered the topic in this story with its hot tub under a night sky and Walter peering inside while Button keeps watch at the steps.
The title is a bit off, Perhaps it refers to what led to Charles' death
This takes place in Pennsylvania, The story is about a dog symposium, an animal rights activist, murder, and an abandoned dog, There is also a doomed romance, I found that a bit funny, I didn't think it would end the way it did, though, The abandoned dog part of the story was interesting, but I wanted more than was in the story, The rest of the story was okay, I thought that would end differently, too, Walter! Melanie Travis thought her visit to a rustic Pocono Mountains resort would offer some wellearned relaxation even though it meant leaving her family and her beloved Poodle Faith behind.
That was before she discovered the corpse in the inn's secluded hot tub, Now, she's sniffing out the trail of a killer as frightened guests and the police howl for swift justice,

As the dog days of summer turn to the playful nip of autumn's chill, Melanie Travis is ready for a little relaxation.
Her Aunt Peg has the perfect solutiona five day symposium for dog show judges in Pennsylvania's idyllic Pocono Mountains, While Peg and Melanie's sisterinlaw Bertie welcome the opportunity to socialize with the dog world's elite, pregnant Melanie embraces the chance to simply unwind.
Aunt Peg also plans a little face time with her new online beau Richard Donner, but the rendezvous isn't smooth because Richard never travels without his mother, the redoubtable Florence Donner, who keeps a Chihuahua in her purse and her son on a very short leash.


When renowned judge, Charles Evans, delivers a keynote address that irritates many of the attendees, the symposium's agenda takes a deadly turn.
Later that evening, the judge is found floating facedown in the outdoor hot tub,

With few clues to go on, the police are baffled, Melanie decides to take matters into her own hands, suspecting that a coldblooded murderer may lurk among her fellow dog lovers.
Now the guests' tongues are wagging anf Melanie must find someone whose bark is actually far worse than their bite.
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