Lilly Echosby just witnessed a murder on a pet cam. Or did she? When a last-minute opportunity arises to accompany her boss to an art auction in Atlanta, Lilly throws some money at the problem of where to board her toy poodle Aggie (short for Agatha Christie). Posh Pet Haven offers the most luxurious canine accommodations in all of Chattanooga, Tennessee. The place even provides pet cams so … provides pet cams so anxious owners can check in on their pampered pooches.
But when Lilly tries to take a peek at her poodle, she gets a terrible shock—she witnesses what she’s sure is a murder. She thinks the victim may be the wealthy co-owner of Pet Haven. The police follow her lead but find no body, no evidence of a crime, and no video record. Starting to feel like the dog owner who cried wolf, Lilly decides to go undercover to catch a killer who may be hiding in plain sight …
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I’m so happy author V.M. Burns decided she wanted to be a writer. Her books are fun and entertaining, and she has a good sense of what readers like.
In, BARK IF IT’S MURDER, Lilly and Aggie are back, and my time spent with them was just as wonderful as my other visits. Seriously, V.M. Burns has a way of making you feel you really are a part of the story.
What’s worse than finding a dead body? Watching someone become that dead body! This scene was well written, and, at least for me, jaw dropping. I really enjoyed that Ms. Burns let BARK IF IT’S MURDER get into the story a bit before getting to the murder, mystery, and mayhem begin.
A mystery with a surprising outcome, BARK IF IT’S MURDER is the perfect installment into the Dog Club Mysteries. Once you’ve read it, you’ll be begging for more!
Bark If It’s Murder is the third book in the Dog Club Mystery series.
Lilly Echosby is settling in well after her move to Chattanooga, Tenn. Lilly volunteers at a dog expo that the Eastern Tennessee Dog Club is sponsoring and stops by the tent for the Pet Haven Resort and Doggie Day Care and is rather surprised by the luxurious appointments that are offered for the pets. When her boss, Linda Kay, invites her at the last moment to join her and her husband for a trip to antique auction in Atlanta, she has to find someplace for her poodle, Aggie. Since she doesn’t have time to search out a kennel she decides to board her at Pet Haven. That evening she decides to take advantage of the pet cameras that are in each pets room to see how Aggie is doing. When the connection is made what Lilly sees in not her Aggie, but the killing of who she believes is the owner, Keri Lynn Simpson. She immediately calls “Red” Olson with the Tennessee Bureau Of Investigation. Olson heads for Pet Haven and soon finds that there is nobody, no evidence that anyone was killed Dallas Simpson claims that his wife is out of town visiting relatives. Lilly’s sleuthing begins to put a strain on her relationship with Olson. So Lilly decides she needs to go to work for Pet Haven and helping with the accounting. With the help of her son David, who is in town on a break from his career, they set off to find who was killed.
I love this series. The book is well-written and plotted and has plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing until the end. The book also has a cast of well-developed and believable characters. I’m sure they would all be best friends of mine.
This is a wonderful series for pet owners as it touches lightly on dog clubs and dog training.
I’m anxiously awaiting the next book in this wonderful series.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Lilly Echosby has been enjoying her temporary accounting job at the art museum. She jumps at the chance to go with her boss to Atlanta for an art auction. She just needs to find someone to care for Aggie, her toy poodle. After a friend recommends Pet Haven Lilly decides to give the place a try. On arrival, she sees it is an elite pet care facility with themed rooms and pet cams that can be accessed by the pet’s families.
Relaxing in her hotel room, almost as nice as Aggie’s accommodations, Lily decides to check up on her pooch. Instead what she sees is something that looks like murder. She places a call to “Red” Olson, a Tennessee Bureau of Investigations Officer, a man she has been spending quite a bit of time with, to report what she saw. When he arrives at her hotel the next morning he informs her there was no body or evidence that anything bad had happened at the post pet hotel. She can’t believe it. With her boss’ blessing, she returns to Chattanooga to find the truth. Offering her accounting services she goes undercover to do just that.
This was an extremely fast read, more novella length than a full-length mystery and Ms. Burns packs those pages full. In addition to the murder, Lilly’s son, David, the actor comes to visit, her daughter’s boyfriend also drops in for a day, Aggie continues her puppy training, Lilly volunteers at a dog show for the job no one really wants, her co-worker Jacob is suffering from a broken ankle and is at his mom’s mercy, and Lilly is finally moving out of the residential hotel and into a home of her own.
I really enjoyed this story. As always the characters are well developed and pulled me right into the story. The friendship between Dixie and Lilly continues to shine. We meet some new characters this time and get to know some recurring characters better. I was very happy to have Lilly’s son come to town. It is great that we have now got to know both her children. Of course, the canine characters always steal my heart.
The author blends the mystery with all the happenings in Lilly’s daily life very well and Lilly’s life is very complicated even before you throw a probable murder into the mix. Thankfully she is a strong independent woman and knows just who to call for help when needed. For me, part of the whodunit was clear very early, but as the story continued to play out there was a huge twist I didn’t see coming. Excellently played Ms. Burns!
Bark If It’s Murder is a great addition to this series. V.M. Burns gives readers a page-turning mystery full of wonderful characters, humor, Southern charm, and just a little bit of romance. I highly recommend the entire series and can’t wait for the next installment.
This is the third book in the series and the first I have read. I won a copy of this book from Goodreads. I have read Wed, Read & Dead, and Read Herring Hunt a different series by the author.
M.s Burns does a wonderful job with the story. It is well-crafted, lots of possible suspects, and fantastic characters.
There is plenty going on in this book.
I liked the twists, turns, and reveals throughout the book. Kept me interested. In fact, I have checked out number one in the series from the library so I can start the series from the beginning and have moved Number 2 to the top of my TBR pile.
This series has made it to must follow series list.
I received a copy from Goodreads And Lyrical Underground. I am not required to leave a positive review.