Dog On It - Spencer Quinn

Spencer Quinn - now here's a guy who observes dogs closely!  I just couldn't resist the thought of a dog telling me a story and Chet (the Jet) is such a lovely dog I wouldn't mind meeting him myself.  This is the first in a series of mysteries, where Chet tells the tales of Bernie's adventures as a private eye;  although of course whilst he knows he's Bernie's partner, we see him as a faithful companion who can only bark.  However, there is much more to Chet than barking - he has a delicious sense of humour and a sort of a "Sam Spade" voice too.

The mystery starts when a mother pays Bernie in cash to find her daughter who has disappeared from home, aged 15.  Strangely, the father of the girl insists that she has just gone off somewhere to "find herself".  Making a few mistakes, Chet is soon on the trail, and in fact finds the girl before anyone else does - but he's just a dog, right?  And so he cannot tell anyone where she is and in fact cannot find the place he saw her.  But of course, he's telling the tale, and so we all know where she is and why, and it's for Bernie to struggle on and try to find her.

Better than any cozy - a strong storyline, and told with humour, this is a light read for a cold afternoon in front of the woodburner - add a cup of tea and you'll soon be in there, in Chet's wonderful, smelly, food orientated life.