Friday, February 23, 2018

Pawprints and Predicaments by Bethany Blake - #review #giveaway


The Tail Waggin’ Winterfest is the highlight of the season in the famously pet-friendly Pocono Mountains town of Sylvan Creek. But despite attractions like an ice sculpture display, a dogsled race, and gourmet hot chocolate, Daphne Templeton finds herself annoyed by TV producer Lauren Savidge, who’s filming the festivities. She’s critical, controlling, and as chilly as the January air. Daphne would like to tell her to go jump in a lake—and as a matter of fact, that’s exactly what they’re both going to do . . .



It’s the first-ever polar bear plunge in Lake Wallapawakee, and Daphne and Lauren are among the eighty or so people who charge into the frigid water to raise funds for animals in need. Daphne makes it back to shore—with the help of a mysterious St. Bernard—but Lauren is dragged out stone cold dead. Now, with her trusty basset hound Socrates at her side, Daphne intends to assist Detective Jonathan Black in his investigation—whether he wants her to or not . . .


~~~~~oOo~~~~~

MY REVIEW

First off, I don't know whether to give these Polar Plungers medals or fit them for straitjackets...am I right?  I guess I should give them medals, since it's usually to raise money for a worthy cause; I just know the shock of the freezing water would probably kill me!

Any town in the Poconos that is pet friendly is aok by me as well.  I was born in Monaca, a wide spot in the road a little north of Pittsburgh.  And pet-friendly?  Bonus points for town popularity.  We've travelled with our dog before and were pleasantly surprised at the number of hotels that are pet-friendly;  so a whole pet-friendly town?  Book my next vacation, please! :D

I wonder if they became pet-friendly to counteract the bad press from various murders that have happened there.  I would point out that each of them had a motive that wasn't "it must've been something in the air", so it wasn't a random thing when each crime happened, and it shouldn't have anything to do with the safety of the town itself.

One thing I didn't have to worry about was Daphne's love life.  First there is Detective Black, the lawman that Daphne's investigation is bound to frustrate.  Luckily there seems to be some mutual admiration going on there.  And a new guy wants to be Daphne's gentleman friend, so he's taking her out to dinner and sending flowers, etc.

We don't have to worry about Lauren's love life either, but for a very different reason.  While Daphne makes it out of Lake Wallapawakee (that is so fun to say!), Lauren does not...at least not alive.  It's Lauren's murder that sets the wheels of this mystery going.  And what a ride it turns out to be!  The great news is that P&P is part of a series.  The slightly less great news is that it is book #3 (#1 being Death by Chocolate Lab and #2 being Dial Meow for Murder);  so I've got some catch-up reading to do.

And last but not least?  It has never been on my radar to consider baking up home-made dog treats...before now!

~~~~~oOo~~~~~

MEET THE AUTHOR



Bethany Blake lives in a small, quaint town in Pennsylvania with her husband and three daughters. When she’s not writing or riding horses, she’s wrangling a menagerie of furry family members that includes a nervous pit bull, a fearsome feline, a blind goldfish, and an attack cardinal named Robert. Like Daphne Templeton, the heroine of her Lucky Paws Mysteries, Bethany holds a Ph.D. and operates a pet sitting business called Barkley’s Premium Pet Care.

~~~~~oOo~~~~~

GIVEAWAY!!!


~~~~~oOo~~~~~


Click on the banner above to go to the tour page, where you will find links to more reviews of this title, as well as interviews, guest posts and a few giveaways of print copies at several stops!  You can also find out how to BECOME A BLOG HOST FOR FUTURE BOOK TOURS while you are there!

(Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book from the author and publishers via Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

~~~~~oOo~~~~~

This book helps me fulfill the following 2018 reading challenges:

others TBD

1 comment: