As this is my last post-dated blog which will appear before I get back from my summer trip, I thought that I would give the dogs in our lives equal time. I know that cats are typically what most of us think of when we think of a "cozy animal"… to go with the white-haired sleuth, no less! Gone are those days! Now we have young sleuths who manage their professions along with their family lives. But… I'm not going to be focusing on the sleuths… rather on their dogs. So, here are the site's authors with dog themes in their mysteries.
I will start out with the White House Pet Detectives: Tales of Crime and Mystery at the White House from a Pet's Eye View. It is an anthology which was edited by Carole Nelson Douglas. In it, you will find stories by some of your favorite mystery authors.
There are some veterinarians and veterinary technicians who have series all of their own! Dr. Nightingale is the veterinarian in the Deirdre Quinn Nightingale series by Lydia Adamson. And Karen Ann Wilson writes the Samantha Holt Mystery series. While Samantha is not a full-fledged veterinarian, she is a veterinary technician.
Cynthia Baxter's series is called Reigning Cats & Dogs. The series name lets you know that this series will have puppies and dogs, galore!
Carol Lea Benjamin knows all about training dogs… and I don't mean just her dog Dash!
Laurien Berenson writes the very popular cozy mystery series that features a Special Education teacher who participates in dog shows.
Michael Bond's Monsieur Pamplemousse series has Pommes Frites, Monsieur's dog. With a dog named French Fries, is it any wonder that Monsieur's business is restaurants!?!
Rita Mae Brown fans know Tucker (the Corgi) in her Mrs. Murphy series. But a lot of us are just becoming aware of Brown's new series about foxhunting… and could you ever "foxhunt" without the horses and hounds?
Nancy Bush writes the Jane Kelly Mystery Series which not only features Jane, but her Pug, The Binkster (aka Binks and Binkster)…
Claudius, a Siberian Husky/German Shepherd mix is Annie O'Hare's sidekick in the mystery series that is written by Ann Campbell. Annie owns an antique shop, and Claudius owns Annie's love and devotion!
The Melissa Cleary cozy mystery series is known as the Dog Lovers Mystery series, and features Jake, with his professor Jackie Walsh.
And no cozy mystery book list featuring dogs would be complete without Susan Conant's Holly Winter mystery series. Holly is a writer for Dog's Life Magazine and also a dog trainer.
Evelyn David is a pseudonym for two authors, one with a degree in Political Science and the other with a degree in Biology. They write the Sullivan Investigations Mystery Series which features an ex-policeman and his Irish Wolfhound (Whiskey) and a divorcée mortician who sleuth together…
Patricia Guiver writes the Pet Detective Mystery Series which features Delilah Doolittle and her Doberman Pinscher, Watson, who helps her solve her cases.
David Handler writes the Stewart Hoag & Lulu Mystery Series. Lulu is Stewart's faithful Basset Hound.
Sue Henry's first cozy series featured Jessie Arnold, a dog sled racer in Anchorage. She now has a new series about a widow in her 60s (Maxine McNab) who travels in her RV, accompanied by her Mini Dachshund, who could only be called "Stretch!"
Gabriella Herkert writes the Animal Instinct Mystery Series, and her second book in that series features dogs.
Lee Charles Kelley is a dog trainer (along with being an author!) who writes the Continuing Adventures of Jack & Jamie Mystery Series which happens to feature a dog trainer/dog kennel owner/ex-NYPD detective.
Judi McCoy writes the Dog Walker Mystery Series which features Ellie and her dog Rudy… and, lest I forget, Ellie's ability to communicate telepathically with her charges.
Leslie O'Kane writes the Allie Babcock Mysteries. Don't all dogs deserve a dog therapist? And, Allie not only solves their problems, but she also solves mysteries!
Dana Stabenow's Kate Shugak mystery series has Mutt, a half-wolf/half Husky playing second fiddle to Kate, an ex-investigator and current sleuth, in Alaska.
Maggie Toussaint writes the Cleopatra Jones Mystery Series which features a golfing-accountant-sleuth and her side-kick, Madonna (a rather huge St. Bernard)…
Peggy Webb writes the Southern Cousins Mystery Series which features a Basset Hound named Elvis.
Nina Wright, who writes the Whiskey Mattimoe Mystery Series which features Whiskey's Afghan Hound, Abra.
There are two authors who feature dog trackers in their mystery series: Donna Ball's series' dog is a Golden Retriever named Cisco. He keeps an eye on Raines Stockton, the North Carolina ex-tracker. Virginia Lanier's series features JoBeth Siddens, who is a Bloodhound trainer and tracker.
While I was working on this Cozy Mystery Dog Theme List, I came across some books about dogs that look like they would be a lot of fun… They are not mysteries, but with titles like they have, if you are a dog lover, you might enjoy checking them out:
Why Do Dogs Drink Out of the Toilet?: 101 of the Most Perplexing Questions Answered About Canine Conundrums, Medical Mysteries and Befuddling Behaviors, by Marty Becker & Gina Spadafori
bowWOW!: Curiously Compelling Facts, True Tales, and Trivia Even Your Dog Won't Know, by D.V.M., Marty Becker, Gina Spadafori, & Molly Pearce (Illustrator)
Dogs For Dummies – A Reference for The Rest Of Us!, by Gina Spadafori; Foreword by Marty Becker
Let's Dance: a Beginner's Guide to Dancing with Your Dog by Donna Ball
♦To access more Cozy Mysteries by Theme click on this link.♦
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I have found a great cozy mystery series by Lee Charles Kelley. He is by profession a dog trainer and that is the profession of his main character….so lots of dog stuff. He has three books out that I know of and I am finishing his last book now. The books are "A Nose for Murder", "Murder Unleashed" and "To Collar a Killer". These books are great fun. His website is leecharleskelley.com
Thank you so much, Sue, for bringing Lee Charles Kelley to our attention. We're always on the lookout for more cozies!
Don't forget Nina Wright's Whiskey Mattimoe series featuring Abra the Afghan Hound…and Victoria Laurie's Psychic Eye series features Eggy the dachshund, so named because of his love for fried eggs!!! =)
Thank you , Melissa, for bringing those two series to my attention!
Please include the Carol Lea Benjamin series about Rachel Alexander and her dog Dashiell.
Thanks
Jill,
I am so glad you caught my oversight! Thanks for letting me know… (I just added her, and wonder how I missed her!)
Lee Charles Kelley has more than the 3 books that Sue mentioned. The books in order are: A Nose for Murder (to be re-released as An Airedale Heiress) Murder Unleashed (to be re-released as Beagle Troubles) To Collar a Killer Twas the Bite before Christmas Dogged Pursuit Like a Dog with a Bone
Leslie,
I am going to make up a page for Lee Charles Kelley very soon… I'm always on the look out for new cozy authors to add to the site. And, since you have listed all of the books, his page should be very easy for me to make!
Thank you!
To add to the books about dogs that aren't cozies, you should think about adding this one:
The Dangerous Book for Dogs: A Parody by Rex and Sparky
Thanks, Leslie. You just did!
It's very difficult to come by, but there is a wonderful British series of mystery novels featuring the training of hunting dogs in Scotland written by Gerald Hammond. They were written in the 80's and 90's. Surprisingly, I found several of them available in this country in Large Print editions.
Thank you, Elizabeth, for telling us about Gerald Hammond's John Cunningham Mystery Series…
Not sure if it fits here or with supernatural, but a new series just started by Judi McCoy, the first book is Hounding the Pavement. The main character is a dog walker and can talk to dogs and her own dog is a reincarnation of her first dog.
Thanks for telling us about her!