Source: Publisher
Description: Visitors are arriving in droves to spend Thanksgiving in the mountains of pet-friendly Wagtail, Virginia. Many of them are bringing dog and cat gingerbread houses to enter in the contest that will be held in the new convention center. Wagtail resident Orly Biffle bequeathed the land to the town in his will, provided that they not cut down the grand old oak tree on the property. Orly's children are mighty miffed that they didn't inherit the prime piece of property overlooking the lake.
Holly notices that Trixie and Twinkletoes, her calico kitty, are fixated on the big oak tree. Trixie barks at it as though she thinks it's a corpse! Just as contestants are spicing up their sweet gingerbread creations, the majestic tree drops an enormous limb. The mayor declares that the tree is dangerous and must come down. When a bulldozer churns up some roots, the tree falls over on its own accord revealing a body inside the trunk! Initially, everyone suspects this unsavory trick was Orly's doing. But it soon becomes clear that someone is trying to keep the truth under wraps. Trixie and Twinkletoes now have to help Holly sniff out some suspects and leash a conniving killer.
Genre: Mystery - Cozy
Why I Picked This Book: I've been wanting to try this author and the plot caught my eye.
My Impression: This was such a fun read! I love the idea of pet friendly Wagtail and all the fun events centered around the dogs and cats. The community was entertaining with lots of likable townspeople but a few unlikable ones just to keep things interesting. The mystery kept me guessing until the very end and the reveal was quite a surprise.
I was a bit concerned coming in on the 8th book of the series but I had no problem figuring out the whos, whats, and whys of the characters and their relationships to each other. As well, I'm not a huge fan of talking pets but I liked how the author gave us little bits of Trixie's thoughts between chapters so we were able to get to know her personality but it didn't take over the story.
This is a fun cozy mystery with a likable main character and a fun premise. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next in Wagtail!
Would I Read More of this Series/Author? Absolutely! I will be going back and reading the earlier books in the series and will definitely grab the next book.
Would I Recommend this Book? If you enjoy cozy mysteries and are an animal lover I think this series is a must read!
* I received this book in exchange for an honest review. As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *
Would I Recommend this Book? If you enjoy cozy mysteries and are an animal lover I think this series is a must read!
* I received this book in exchange for an honest review. As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *
This sounds cute. I like that the dog and the cat seemed to know something was up with the tree.
ReplyDeleteI read the first one in this series and I really need to get back to it.
ReplyDeleteI have the first book in this series on my long list of books to read. Glad that you enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteSounds like another good series. I do like animals in cozy mysteries for some reason. They bring warmth I think.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed it. It's nice that you could pick up book eight.
ReplyDeleteI love books that feature animals and getting a peek into their thoughts is a fun element.
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