In Rosenfelt's excellent seventh legal thriller to feature Paterson, N.J., defense attorney Andy Carpenter (after Play Dead ), Andy takes on another canine client-Waggy, a Bernese mountain puppy, who's somehow connected to the murder of Walter Timmerman, "a semi-titan in the pharmaceutical industry." Andy represents the dog in a custody battle between Diana, Walter's widow, and her stepson, Steven, who's a suspect in his father's shooting. Shortly after Andy picks up Waggy from Diana, she dies in a bomb explosion at her house. When Steven's arrested for Diana's murder, Andy agrees to represent him. After Andy's police chief girlfriend, Laurie Collins, who's visiting from Wisconsin, is shot and wounded while playing with Waggy and Tara, Andy's golden retriever, Andy realizes Waggy was the real target. Rosenfelt injects this clever installment with courtroom twists, a peek into some scary DNA research and a romantic surprise. (Aug.)
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Cohabitating with his golden retriever, Tara, and yearning for his love, Laurie, a Wisconsin sheriff, Patterson, NJ, lawyer Andy Carpenter gets mixed up in a seventh canine crime (after Play Dead ). And what a case it turns out to be. Ordered by a judge to represent Waggy, a Bernese Mountain dog, in a custody battle, Andy becomes entangled in murder, DNA, adultery, spies, explosions, and much more. Andy must figure out who is behind the killings, who is innocent, and why everyone wants Waggy. VERDICT Rosenfelt's newest entry in his Andy Carpenter series is a winner. In the same vein as Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar or Robert Crais's Elvis Cole, Rosenfelt's Andy has some great one-liners that complete his rich-lawyer, dog-loving persona. This hard-to-put-down read will please not just mystery fans (especially those who enjoy canine mysteries like Spencer Quinn's Dog On It ) but others seeking the perfect summer escape. Put on the list of good reads.—Marianne Fitzgerald, Annapolis, MD
Paterson attorney Andy Carpenter's well-attested love for dogs (Play Dead, 2007, etc.) moves him to the edge of a weird case of murder, then to its center. The shooting of pharmaceutical semi-titan Walter Timmerman in a seedy New Jersey neighborhood way outside his orbit has landed the Passaic County justice system with two problems: identifying and convicting his killer, and resolving a custody battle between his wife Diana and his son Steven over Waggy, his Bernese mountain dog. Shortly after Andy's nemesis, Judge Henry "Hatchet" Henderson, appoints him Waggy's custodian and legal representative, the case takes an even more unexpected turn when an explosion kills Diana. The police arrest her stepson, apparently ending the custody battle without removing Waggy from Andy's household or Andy, who volunteers to represent Steven, from the case. As the evidence against Steven mounts-an explosives expert for the Marines who'd been repeatedly disinherited by his father, he was in the neighborhood of both crime scenes minutes before both murders-Andy learns that the custody case won't die either. Walter's friend Charles Robinson, a fellow mogul who raises show dogs, files a suit claiming that Walter would've wanted him to have Waggy, who's the subject of both an ongoing lawsuit (albeit with a revolving cast of claimants) and repeated murder attempts. What's going on here?The motive depends on a great central concept, and Andy and his crew of regulars are as engaging as ever, but the case itself is an unholy mess of coincidences and multiple malefactors.
On PLAY DEAD: "Riveting...alive with reliable Rosenfelt wit and heart."—Publishers Weekly (starred review) Entertainment Weekly Booklist (starred review) People
"A funny, warm-hearted mystery, NEW TRICKS moves quickly and playfully - almost puppylike-through mounting crimes, a long-distance love affair and a secret science project that threatens to thwart [Andy] Carpenter's best efforts. Three Stars."
"A cracking good yarn...Andy's offbeat, outspoken personality shines on every page, and the balance of humor and mystery is dead-on."
Booklist (starred review)
"A taut thriller full of whiplash plot twists and wisecracking dialogue."
A cracking good yarn...Andy's offbeat, outspoken personality shines on every page, and the balance of humor and mystery is dead-on.
