Stud Rites (Dog Lover's Mysteries)

Rating:
Summary: one of my favorite Conant mysteries
Review: I'm not a mystery lover. I'm not an Alaskan Malamute lover. But I'm really enjoying these books! So far, this has been my favorite. The author has a great way of making dog-show talk accessible. I admit I'm constantly confused over Best of Winners vs Best Opposite Sex etc etc and avoid the conformation ring myself at all costs (PAY someone else to try to run a straight line down and back). Clever dialogue. Characterization that may be a bit over the top, but amusing. And I keep muttering under my breath that if the author only would admit that Siberian Huskies are 'better' than those hulking, dog-aggressive Malamutes her books would be even better (yeah....I'm biased!).

Rating:
Summary: Good Fight
Review: Never mind the Kirkus review. The dog facts weren't boring and I'm a cat lover who merely likes dogs. I liked the analogies that the author used in order to help those of us who aren't dog fanatics to understand the feelings of those who are. I chuckled and cringed over Holly's reunion with the man who had captured her heart when she was but a girl (and mother was right). Actually, I did a lot of chuckling and cringing during this book. It's a pity that no one thought to enter an unedited version of the final judging video to one of those amateur video shows because it probably would have won a prize. (Heaven knows that the donated lamp probably would have made a worthy entry in the Ugliest Lamp contest.) The bride's father probably would have envied the lucky dad in book/film version(s) of "Father of the Bride." I'm suprised the poor man didn't have a heart attack before it was all over. (Got a good chuckle out of Holly's unspoken appraisal of the groom, not to mention her opinion of a woman who would marry a man who's allergic to dogs.) I would have been more upset about the nasty way two fat characters were depicted if I hadn't already known from the author's e-mail response to my complaint to her publisher [over *Bloodlines* and *Black Ribbon*] that she was horrified when a friend pointed that out to her, apologizes, and hopes that her three latest books are not offensive. I stayed up until 11:30 to finish this book. I could have been in bed an hour earlier if I hadn't kept looking up at the TV to see if Scully and Mulder were doing anything exciting for the "X-Files" 2000 season finale. That was a mistake.

Rating:
Summary: An all-around good read!
Review: Probably my favorite of Susan Conant's Holly Winter novels. Realisticly funny characters that had me snikering ("Women who run with vets?") It was also a good whodunit, having me second gussing who the killer really was. I also am a dog show addict, and the events that take place not far from unrealistic (well, I have never seen anyone hold a dog at gunpoint, but hey, it could be done).

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