2023-08-10
A veterinarian’s keen perceptions may help her solve a slew of murders.
As Valentine’s Day approaches, Dr. Kate Turner is a little bummed that the only Cupid in her life is a Doberman with a bladder infection. But she’s typically too slammed with work for much of a love life, especially since she’s been filling in at the Hudson Valley’s Oak Falls Animal Hospital while Doc Anderson is on a yearlong cruise. Though she’s been happy in Oak Falls, it’s hard for Kate to know what’s next in life. She doesn’t have much going on in the romance department, but she does have the undying affection of her own dog, Buddy, and the begrudging respect of the office’s resident feline, Mr. Katt. As Kate and her assistant, Mari, are driving back from a house call to Maple Grove Farm, they’re flagged down by a man who’s just found someone shot dead in the woods. After the two women rush out to see if they can help, Mari, a lifelong local, follows a path deeper into the forest, and the two discover a second body, a beautiful woman who’s drowned beneath the ice of Lover’s Lake. The apparent murder/suicide becomes the talk of the town, and a third fatality soon after inclines the police to consider all three deaths murders. Kate, who’s used to investigating animal illnesses, may have the eye for detail that could assist officers, even though she’s distracted by her attempt to deepen and define her recent friendship with large-animal vet Dr. Mike.
The copious details on the health of animals great and small sets this apart from similar series.
