A Dog's Life

by Gerald Hammond, Nick Mcardle (Read by)

Overview

Novelist Tim Russell is out walking his dog one morning when he comes across a young dishevelled woman, camping out in the woods. Tim takes pity on her and offers her shelter, and Ann soon proves herself to be good company. But suddenly, one afternoon while gardening, Tim is brutally attacked. As Ann's relatives start coming out of the woodwork, Tim and Ann wonder if they've found the motivation for the attack after all. But then a local man is murdered . . .

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780857142832
Publisher:	Library Magna Books
Publication date:	10/01/2012
Product dimensions:	7.40(w) x 7.30(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

John Skelton was an ordained priest and rector. He was poet laureate at the University of Oxford and Cambridge University, a court poet for King Henry VII, and a tutor to King Henry VIII. Gerald Hammond is a professor of English at the University of Manchester. He is the author of Fleeting Things and The Making of the English Bible, and the editor of Selected Poems: Richard Lovelace.

Editorial Reviews

Scottish veteran Hammond (Silent Intruder) offers an intriguing premise in this enjoyable cozy. Author Tim Russell, who's living alone in a small village on Scotland's east coast, encounters 17-year-old Ann Erskine, who's been living rough in the woods—and who turns out to be the daughter, though Tim doesn't recognize her at first, of Walter Erskine, an old friend who died in an accident. Impulsively, Tim asks Ann to his home despite misgivings, and Ann, despite misgivings, accepts his invitation. Complications soon follow as a change in Ann's fortunes brings her mother (now Mrs. Hooper); her stepfather, Mr. Hooper; the dodgy Rev. Mr. Downing; and a shifty secondhand dealer known as Woodworm Waller onto the scene. An unknown assailant puts Tim in the hospital with a severe head wound and no memory of the attack. Hammond avoids the maudlin as Tim and Ann grow closer while trying to solve the crime with the aid of Det. Sgt. Brionie Phelps. (Feb.) Jane G oes Batty Michael Thomas Ford Ballantine, trade paper (304p) ISBN 978-0-345-51366-3 Ford takes Jane Austen—modern-day novelist, upstate New York bookseller, and vampire—on a wild and campy romp in this frothy sequel to 2009's Jane Bites Back. As Jane considers converting to Judaism to keep the love of her life, she must deal with a less than sparkling new editor, who wants her manuscript posthaste, and flatter (or at least not antagonize) Beverly Shrop, the romance blogger whose review could kill Jane's career. Jane also stumbles over her relative lack of vampire skills (despite nearly 200 years of being undead); a movie crew, come to shoot footage for the film of her bestselling romance novel; and a mysterious murder. Ford keeps the laughs coming and the dialogue snappy, mostly veiling the novel's almost complete lack of substance. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

“Suspense, plot twists, well developed characters, and the Scottish setting combine for an engaging story from genre veteran Hammond” on Silent Intruder

Booklist

“Animal lovers and cozy fans will enjoy this quirky mystery”

Booklist

A Scottish novelist copes with the departure of his live-in lover and the death of his black Lab by taking on board a new dog, a new woman and more trouble.

Out walking Umber, his chocolate Lab, Tim Russell stumbles on a ragged young woman encamped in a makeshift shelter. He lures her to his house with the promise of a hot bath, a change of clothes and no strings. Under his not-quite-fatherly care, Edith Ann Erskine quickly blossoms, but their relationship changes when Tim's attacked while working in his garden. Who lofted a missile at his head? Sadly, inoffensive Tim has been making enemies. Among them: Hooper, the stepfather who sold Ann's house out from under her and now stubbornly insists she return to him, and Woodworm Waller, the dealer who bought her household belongings for a song. Their assorted reasons for wanting to brain Tim are compelling, but then a solicitor arrives with an even stronger motive. Ann's uncle, Angus Tirrell, has died and left her enough cash to brighten every eye she's caught, especially if she can be enticed away from Tim before they can marry and make wills in each others' favor. Alas, their immediate nuptials so lower the tension that Hammond (The Fingers of One Foot, 2009, etc.) has to kill off one of the suspects to raise the stakes.

More village romance than mystery, and none the worse for it.

Kirkus Reviews