Kennedy’s novel moves quickly but deliberately. Flashbacks appear at all the right moments, and the novel’s ending is surprising and powerful — The Booklife PrizeWhen Cecilia Chandler kills a house intruder, she claims it was to save a life — but not her own. It was the life of her golden retriever, Ferris, a dog she’s only warming to after her husband’s death. If it had been up to her, they … had been up to her, they would never have gotten a pet.
Police Chief Holden Owens thinks Cecilia acted lawfully, but few agree. The law says that pets are property, and that one can’t use lethal force to protect property. Is his attraction to Cecilia clouding his judgment?
The prosecutor sees Cecilia’s case as his ticket to a better job. He has the law on his side, and a more personal reason to want to win as well.
Now, as the case draws to a close, Cecilia is finding she needs Ferris as much as he needs her. But will she be able to stay out of prison?
Saving Ferris is a story that makes us consider what, exactly, pets mean to us.
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