| Title | : | Trouble at the Animal Shelter (Cedar Bay Mystery #10) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Audible Audio |
| Number of Pages | : | - |
But who would have wanted the elderly spinster dead, and what was the killer's motive? Was it the local reverend who desperately needed money to pay off his gambling debts? Or the neighbor who was kept awake by Maggie's barking dogs? Was it the disgruntled father of a boy Maggie had wanted to hold back a year in school? Or even the director of the animal shelter?
Join Kelly, the owner of Kelly's Koffee Shop, and her husband Mike, the sheriff of Beaver County, Oregon, along with a bulldog puppy named Max, and Sanyu, an Akita guard dog, as they literally have to sniff out the murderer before they become the next victims.
Trouble at the Animal Shelter (Cedar Bay Mystery #10) Reviews
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Elderly ex-school teacher Maggie Ryan was murdered in her home in a horrific way – but it was the thirty plus dogs which were found in her home which had the locals astounded. Temporarily housed at the Cedar Bay Animal Shelter, the call for donations and help was immediate. And the requests to foster the animals received swift responses.
Mike, sheriff of Beaver County, Oregon was on the job – but no one could work out why anyone would want a harmless old spinster dead. Unless it was because of the constant barking of the dogs…
Mike’s wife Kelly owned Kelly’s Koffee Shop and the reaction from townsfolk to the murder was to congregate at Kelly’s and search for information. Kelly and Mike already owned a dog, but decided to foster a cute bulldog puppy they called Max to help the Centre. But when Kelly saw Sanyu, the Akita guard dog, her brain began ticking over. Would she be able to help her husband find the murderer?
Trouble at the Animal Shelter by Dianne Harman was a light hearted and fun cosy mystery which I enjoyed. Filled with complex characters, nevertheless the best were the dogs! Highly recommended. -
4 Star review Trouble At The Animal Shelter (A Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery) by Dianne Harman
Audio Review:
Dianne Harman is a relatively new author to me although I have listened to the narrator Erin deWard before. If you are an animal lover and enjoy cozy mysteries then this is for you.
When the opener of the Doggie Love Kennels, Mary Barnes is murdered it’s up to Mike, the sheriff of Beaver County, Oregon to try and find the killer, if he can keep his wife Kelly, owner of Kelly's Koffee Shop out of the investigation. There are plenty of suspects to go around, Mike just has to figure out who is the guilty party before it is too late.
There were plenty of clues to follow as I tried to beat Mike and Kelly to solve the crime. The narration by Erin deWard was good and did justice to the story. -
**This review is for the audiobook on Audible**
I love the Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery Series by Dianne Harman! Trouble at the Animal Shelter was again narrated by Erin deWard, and she did a fabulous job! The only problem is that I've listened to all of the available audiobooks by Dianne Harman on Audible. What's a girl supposed to do now?!? I tried to stretch this one out so it would last longer, but I loved it so much that I'm afraid my plan didn't work too well. :-( I highly recommend this audiobook to lovers of cozy mysteries, as well as to dog lovers everywhere! Lucky for me, I am both.
Each book in the series is a stand alone, full mystery, so in reality, you could read/listen to just this book and enjoy it....BUT, in my opinion, you should start at the beginning. Starting with Book 1 will make your listening experience that much more enjoyable. Each series by Dianne Harman is so well-written. While I love all of them, The Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery Series is my absolute favorite. I feel like I know the characters, including the dogs, so well....it is because of them (and the gorgeous setting) that I keep coming back for more! With each new release, I cannot wait to hear about the new case to be solved! I love how Kelly - and the dogs - always make sure to put their "two cents" in to Kelly's Sheriff husband, Mike, and how he is ever-so-loving and patient with her! Also, everyone in town makes an appearance in each of the books, so you always have the feeling of friends nearby. I own all of Dianne Harman's audiobooks and almost all of the books in each series in digital form. If you have not read/listened to her work, you are in for a treat, and I'm confident that you, too, will want to also be the proud owner of each book. Keep up the great work, Dianne!
Erin deWard is so awesome! I love her as the narrator of each of the books. Her familiar voice makes me feel right at home. She is consistent with her tone and the female/male voices are played out well. Her speed is good, making the entire book enjoyable and easy to listen to! Fantastic job, Erin!
I rate this audiobook the same as all the others by Dianne Harman, narrated by Erin deWard...5/5 stars! The very first cozy mystery I ever read/listened to was Book 1 in this series (Kelly's Koffee Shop). After that, I was hooked, and I still am today! So, thank you ladies, for exposing me to the world of Cozy Mysteries! You keep me laughing, smiling, guessing through to the end every single time. I'm already looking forward to the next audiobook release....as patiently as I possibly can, anyway.
Thank you for reading my review. I hope it was helpful to you. :-) -
I liked this book. It is an enjoyable little mystery packed full of dogs. The mystery was simple with not many suspects but just enough to keep you listening until the end to see if you were right. I liked the way the dogs helped solve the mystery too. The characters were like able and I liked the small town setting, as this meant the main character kept meeting people who had 're homed some of the dogs. I don't know if this is a series but I will be looking out for mores books containing Kelly and her husband Mike, especially if the books are packed full of dogs.
When the police get called out about a dog barking they are not expecting to find a house on fire and 30 dogs trapped inside. The local shelter takes all the dogs in and Kelly is the first person to step in while her husband, the police chief stays at the scene. It is only after the fire is out that a dead body is found but the woman didn't die from the friend she was shot first and the fire was set to cover up the crime. But who would want to kill the retired teacher? And why did she have 30 dogs when there was a two dog limit? The dead lady taught Kelly when she was at school, so she can't sit back and wait for the killer to be found, especially when she knows most of the suspects. At the same time she wants to help re hime the dogs before the shelter runs out of supplies.
I liked the narrator and thought she did a good job with all the voices needed in the story. -
A cozy mystery involving dogs--I really wanted to like this one. And the characters are likable, at least the ones who are supposed to be.
But.
The basic setup is pretty straightforward. Maggie Ryan taught school in Cedar Bay for many years, but retired a few years ago, and has since become a bit of a recluse. When the local police get a call about barking dogs, they arrive to find her house on fire, about thirty dogs there, and Maggie Ryan dead from a bullet hole in her head. Who killed her, why, and where did those thirty dogs come from?
I have two basic types of complaint about the book. The first is what is known in science fiction reading world is known as "As you know, Bob"; information the reader needs is conveyed by the characters telling each other things they both already know.
The other is the writer's failure to research or think about important facts involved in the subject matter of the mystery.
In this case, we have an animal shelter which is already near capacity, which is getting an unplanned influx of thirty dogs. Obviously, they need stuff donated, in quantity, quickly. Food. Vet services (they have no way of knowing if these dogs have had any vaccinations at all, for starters.) Beds.
Wait, what? Beds?
The shelter is already near capacity, and needs places to put thirty additional dogs. In these circumstances, dog beds are a "nice to have," but what's essential is dog crates. Otherwise, once their few remaining kennels have dogs in them, they have no place to put the other dogs. So they need crates, crates are never mentioned, and it's made really, really clear that when they say "beds," they mean the soft, often fluffy, things that go in the crates to make the dog more comfortable, and are not talking about crates. The thing is, if you have crates, you can use towels or blankets if you don't have proper dog beds, and if really desperate, a dog can use a crate with no bed for a while while you spread the word that you need more donations.
Then there's the fact that if there's any mention of scanning these dogs for microchips. This should be standard shelter procedure, especially given that it's a complete surprise to everyone that Maggie Ryan has even one dog, much less thirty. Where did they come from? And it's clear that we're supposed to consider the Cedar Bay animal shelter a good and responsible one, so why don't they scan for chips? Most likely because the writer failed to do research.
Then there's the dogs. A beautiful Akita. A beautiful German shepherd. A beautiful bulldog puppy, maybe twelve weeks old. We're given the impression most or all of the dogs are of easily recognizable breeds. There are purebred dogs in shelters, about 25% of the total. They are not usually beautiful examples of their breeds, and most dogs in shelters are various mixes.
There's also the awkward fact that at least one of those dogs is really suspiciously well-trained. It's almost unbelievable that that particular dog doesn't have microchip and a person looking for him. But still no mention.
A twelve-week-old bulldog puppy... But no. I will not give my bulldog rant. I will not give my bulldog rant. I WILL NOT give my bulldog rant...
I wanted to like this book. There's a good story in here, that touches on some interesting and important issues, and deals with those issues quite intelligently.
I'm frustrated more than disappointed.
Not recommended. -
I really enjoyed this. I listened to the audiobook most of the time and read at other times. I loved how this was written. There were quite a few suspects who would’ve had a good reason to want Maggie dead. In the end, it was pretty easy to guess who did it but it was the type of book where it was fun to see how he/she was discovered. I have to say, after being married to a cop who is now a magistrate, I hate how Kelly always goes out on her own to solve the murders without telling her husband the sheriff. This wouldn’t fly. At least not after the first time. My husband would kill me. But it is a murder mystery and as I always say, play along. That’s the fun of it ad the female character is supposed to be the sleuth.
I loved the dogs. I started listening to this a week after we had to have our 13 year old German Shepherd put down. At first I thought it would make it worse but no, it actually helped me through it. Thanks Dianne and also to the narrator.
The narration was good. She did voices well. Some of the deeper male voices seemed harder but all in all it was great. -
Trouble at the Animal Shelter
: Dianne Harman
I was so glad to get to listen to the next book in The Cedar Bay series. Kelly and Mike have returned with their fellow townspeople along with a few new characters. The animal shelter is barley staying in business and soon things go crazy with a death in town. A nice cozy that gives the listener a list of suspects and Kelly goes on a mission to help Mike solve the crime. The book is quick, clean and simple; something I needed after some other subjects I've read or listened to recently.
The narration was well done. The characters were well portrayed by Erin deWard.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. -
This book is listed as number 11 with Murder on the East Coast being number 10 in Dianne Harman’s listing of the series.
This is well written and Kelly doesn’t get too crazy in sussing out information. She does need to temper her need to solve the crime with caution. She again places her life in danger even though she doesn’t mean to do it. She appears to be a damsel in distress instead of a very intuitive human being.
I liked the twists and turns and the reveal. The dogs were adorable. Loved how the 30 dogs from Maggie Ryan were able to assist the investigation and be re-homed. Looks like the animal shelter benefitted from the exposure.
Erin deWard did a wonderful job narrating the story. -
This was a quick fun listen. It has lots of dogs and a murder mystery to solve. My complaints is that the audio narration is so slooooooow. I had to amp up to at least 2x to enjoy it at all. Then there is the part where there is a sheriff and I used to work in law enforcement and a lot of things that he and Kelly do are just not things that can or should happen in LE. If it di, the cases would certainly be thrown out of court. But then again it is a fiction book, but it still gets me every time I run across it.
Other than that it is a fun and quick read. It's a cozy mystery, so no cussing and no sex scenes. Lots of well trained dogs. There are a few yummy sounding recipes at the end. -
It took me two attempts to finish reading this book. I enjoyed the premise of an animal shelter, the matriarch of the town being murdered, the clever twists and turns and a variety of characters interwoven. I REALLY wanted to like this mystery. The two issues I had were knowing immediately who did it from the moment they were introduced, but most of all I was bothered by the conversations as written. Kelly and Mike constantly addressed each other by their names over and over again. They just did not feel like comfortable conversations.
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Loved the book. I had the audiobook. Listened in one day. This was a different person for the audiobook than before. Liked the Pierson from her earlier audiobooks. But this person was ok.
Book was good. I always enjoy Kelly and how she involves herself in Mike’s investigations. We all know in real life this would not happen. But they are so cute together and all she has to do is fix him a good meal and apply him with wine.. LOL..
I loved the dogs as well. Made me want an Akita for myself. Always wanted another dog but don’t think I can deal with the fur. -
This book is part of the Cedar Bay cozy mystery series by Dianne Harman. When the authorities discover a woman who was murdered, they find thirty dogs inside her home. The town is quickly buzzing about the murder and the secret of all of the dogs hidden away. The shelter quickly becomes full and everybody’s stepping up to foster and adopt. There is more than one person who could have been the murderer. The story is set back in Kelly and Mike’s hometown where the regular characters are. Lots of fun characters, mysteries concerning the murder, and a whole bunch of dogs in this story!
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The Town Is Going To The Dogs!
A gentle cozy mystery, murder notwithstanding, with a lot of lovable dogs and some clever sleuthing. Nicely narrated by Erin Ward, whose vocalizations capture the closeness, mutual regard, and deep caring between the main characters. Author Dianne Harman has a real feel for small town interactions and politics, and a number of issues relevant to everyday lives are focused on including education and various addictions. -
This is the 10th in the series. The main characters are Kelly and her husband Mike the Sheriff. Mike gets called out to an arson and murder. He is told to bring Kelly along because they have 30 dogs in the house and will need her help to move them. Since Kelly was more or less in it from the start it is hard to keep her out of the investigation. Can Kelly help Mike figure this out before it's too late ?
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Dogs galore
When a retired teacher with thirty, yes thirty, dogs is murdered, Kelly and her police chief husband investigate. I love books with pets in them, and there's a bunch of sweeties in this one. Enjoyed the book a lot -
5 🌟
This is a very entertaining series. If you are a lover of man's best friend and enjoy a good cozy mysteries then this book is for you. It is full of furry friends and of course there's always a murder to find out who done it. Good job! -
The publisher's blurb is somewhat informative but rather misleading. There seems to be an abundance of suspects and red herrings, but it moves a bit slowly for my taste.
Erin deWard does a respectable job as narrator. -
Gone to the dogs
Murder of retired teacher. Unexpected eye witness comes forward and helps solve the murder and ends up a hero. This 4th book I have read by the author. I will read more. -
Another well written cozy mystery from Dianne Harman, and one with dogs. Love the story genre and Dianne Harman does it so well. Recommended for anyone who loves dogs, cozy mysteries and HEAs. Along with a strong female with a brain. Love it!
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Happy ending!
I truly enjoyed this story and knowing all the dogs were going to be taken care of made it even better! Diane Harman is an exceptions writer and keeps the reader interested every moment of the book! -
Trouble at the Animal Shelter is a good, clean small town murder mystery with dogs. The story is entertaining and pleasant to read or listen to. The narrator of the audiobook fits the story perfectly and does a nice job.
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A fun mystery story
Husband is the Sheriff, wife has an eatery shop. She gets involved with a murder case, mostly because she knows so many people and they like to confide
In her.
An enjoyable tale
