Begging for Trouble (Dog Walker Mystery Series #4)

Did

Did not like.

Begging for Trouble

Ellie Engleman is a professional dog walker. Not only that, but she actually communicates with the dogs! One of her clients, Rob Chesney, is a famous drag queen and gives her free tickets to the show. She and a group of friends-including her police officer boyfriend-are shocked when screams take over what was proving to be a wonderful show.
Rob is accused and arrested for the murder of a fellow drag queen, Carmella Sunday, who looks eerily like Rob! He doesn't have much of a defense since he was found over the body with the murder weapon in his hand. Bitsy, Rob's Poohuahua, is the only witness to the crime and Ellie is hopeful to break through the poor pooch's trauma and expose the real killer.
Ellie is known around the police station as somewhat of a nuisance and nosey person, but she doesn't let that stop her from doing what is right. She and her doggy pals investigate every possible lead to prove Rob's innocence.
A wonderfully original, well written mystery! This book will make you smile at the K-9 antics and turning the pages as fast as possible to find the killer!

Reviewed by Ashley Wintters for Suspense Magazine

??????????????

Should i get it?

Unique series - likeable characters (human and canine!)

"Begging for Trouble" is the fourth in Judi McCoy's Dog Walker mysteries. Ellie Engleman is a professional dog-walker who is dating NYPD detective Sam Ryder. The story opens with Ellie and Sam attending the opening night of one of her client's shows at a Manhattan hot spot. Rob Chesney, whose stage name is Bobbi Doll, is a female impersonator and his show is full of songs, dances, and jokes. Soon the laughs turn to screams when one of the dancers Art Pearson, a.k.a. Carmella Sunday, is stabbed and Rob is found holding the murder weapon. Sam brings Rob to the police station, but Ellie takes custody of the only witness to the murder - Rob's tiny "poohuahua" Bitsy. While Ellie has solved several previous murder cases, Sam thinks she is "inept and a danger" to herself. Even though Ellie thinks she is falling in love with Sam, she refuses to let Rob and Bitsy down. She's soon following up on clues and questioning some of the other dancers in Rob's show and getting much closer to the truth through her investigation than Sam would like to admit. We soon learn that Ellie has a secret weapon in conducting her own investigations - her Yorkipoo partner Rudy. Ellie has a psychic link to dogs and is able to communicate with Rudy and with the dogs she walks for her clients. Unfortunately for Ellie, witness Bitsy is traumatized by what she saw and isn't "talking". Ellie is still determined to prove Rob's innocence if not for his sake then for the sake of Bitsy who misses Rob terribly. Ellie is an extremely likeable character. She's loyal to her human and canine clients and keeps her sense of humor even when put in difficult situations. You may be skeptical of the premise of Ellie and the dogs communicating to solve the murder, but give this mystery a chance! Ellie's conversations with the pets come across as fun and believable, and not forced or corny. In fact, the interaction between Ellie and her wise-cracking dog Rudy is one of the highlights of the book. Rudy sees humans for what they really are, good or bad, and isn't afraid to "speak" his mind. While Ellie is light-hearted and open and easy to like, Sam is a little more gruff and reserved. I like that some of the chapters are told from Sam's point a view, which helps the reader get to know Sam a little better. Although not much information is given about the murder in these chapters, insight is given into how much Sam cares about Ellie. While Ellie is sometimes unsure of Sam's feelings about her, the readers get some inside information through Sam's thoughts and conversations, and this helps make him a more likeable character. The character of Ellie and the author's sense of humor remind me of Joanne Pence's Angie Amalfi series. However, this book is unique due to Ellie's special ability to communicate with dogs. A few cases of strong language and the heat level of some of the romantic scenes between Ellie and Sam are a little unexpected in a cozy, but "Begging for Trouble" is a great choice for dog lovers and others who enjoy a fun, whimsical read. This review was originally written for the "Season for Romance" E-Zine. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.

Still love Ellie!

I enjoyed this fourth installment of the Dog Walker series. I wish I could converse with my dogs the way Ellie does with her furry charges! The dogs provide comic relief...Rudy as always has plenty to say, especially about Detective Doofus (Ellie's man, Sam) but the other dogs chime in with humorous comments as well. Ellie DOES talk to the dogs a lot, but I would, too!

I have to say that wee Bitsy's (she's a poohuahua) adoration of a Great Dane was a hoot. Having Bitsy witness the murder was a great twist, which one would expect would make finding the murderer a piece of cake...Ellie asks, Bitsy tells. But no -- Bitsy's traumatized so it takes time, gentle prodding, a trip to a VERY interesting pet psychic and more to get information from the little one.

I read a review on another site that mentioned Ellie's snooping/butting in the investigation, asking Sam for information; they found it intrusive and disrespectful of Sam. I've read a lot of "cozies" and that "independent investigation" is a big part of the genre, so I didn't have a problem with it. If anything, I was a little surprised Ellie didn't try harder to get info from the cops via Sam.

If I had any problem with the book, it's that I would have loved more about the club and the drag show! I hope we get to see more of "Bobbi-Rob" in future books.

With the little teaser at the end of the book, I can tell that Ellie's weekend in the Hamptons with Rudy, Viv and Mr. T is going to be one fun ride. Bring it on, Judi!

whimsical whodunit

In Manhattan professional dog walker Ellie Engleman loves canines who worship her as she has the uncanny ability to telepathically talk with her animal clients. Her boyfriend NYPD detective Sam Ryder adores her but pleads with her to stay out of homicide investigations; her other skill (see Death in Show).

One of her favorite customers Rob Cheaney (owned by Bitsy the Poodle-Chihuahua) gives tickets to Ellie to attend the opening of his newest transvestite show. She drags Sam with her though he is uncomfortable attending the show. During the performance, a harrowing scream from backstage occurs. Sam rushes to the location of the scream to find Rob holding scissors while kneeling over the corpse of one of the performers. Sam arrests Rob while Ellie takes Bitsy home with her. Knowing she has solved cases before, Rob begs Ellie to investigate while Sam tells her to stay out of the inquiry though he believes she will sniff around. Ellie plans to interrogate gently the mixed-breed eye witness.

Readers will enjoy this magical whodunit as Ellie and her K9 corps work the case together through mental intelligent connections. The whimsical entertaining story line is lighthearted fun with a linear mystery at its anchor yet character driven by the detecting dogs especially the walker's significant other Rudy, the heroine and "Detective Doofus".

Harriet Klausner

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.