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A Matchmaker Mystery #1
The Mutt and the Matchmaker
When private investigator Tom Hanlon agrees to help out his elderly neighbor by taking her Maltese to the dog park, he has no idea he’s about to meet semi-psychic, wanna-be-matchmaker Armani Vasquez.
Or that the pushy woman will insist on setting him up with quirky dog walker Jane Bly – his main suspect in a string of home burglaries -- and her high-strung, foster mutt, Calamity.
Or that he’ll fall head-over-heels for one of them.
Will Tom catch the thief, or will it be his heart that’s stolen?
Or that the pushy woman will insist on setting him up with quirky dog walker Jane Bly – his main suspect in a string of home burglaries -- and her high-strung, foster mutt, Calamity.
Or that he’ll fall head-over-heels for one of them.
Will Tom catch the thief, or will it be his heart that’s stolen?
106 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 15, 2014
133 people are currently reading
382 people want to read
About the author
J.B. Lynn
78 books400 followersAuthor of the series:
Confessions of a Slightly Neurotic Hitwoman
Psychic Consignment Mysteries
Cursed Chick Club
Confessions of a Slightly Neurotic Hitwoman
Psychic Consignment Mysteries
Cursed Chick Club
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
May 17, 2014
The Mutt and the Matchmaker This latest spin-off novella from author JB Lynn's neurotic hitwoman world is short, sweet, and fun. It's a bite-sized read showcasing psychic Armani Vasquez from Lynn's popular hitwoman series branching into the field of matchmaking, putting a PI and his prime suspect on a collision course for love via the local dog park.
January 9, 2021
Mystery and the perfect match in more ways than one--the people and dog kind--my fave! Needs a better edit. Yet another writer confusing home with hone! Happy dog and people endings and a quick read! Now on to the next in the Matchmaker series.
May 31, 2018
This was a cute story, but there wasn't much to it. The mystery was played up to be such a big deal, but in the end it wasn't. The romance was okay, though it moved very quickly...especially on Tom's part when he knew he was investigating Jane. All in all, it was okay for a Kindle freebie but I don't think I'll continue with the series.
May 28, 2014
The Mutt and the Matchmaker by JB Lynn
Jane Bly wanted to find someone who would love her, the kind of love her parents had. When she calls her insurance company and the lady on the other end tells her she can find her the perfect man...Jane decides it’s worth a try. Armani Vasquez ends up to be quite the matchmaker indeed.
Tom Hanlon isn’t hunting for a woman like the matchmaker thinks, he’s hunting for a thief. Someone in Aunt Ruby’s neighborhood has been busy robbing the neighbors. Who is a more likely suspect than the neighborhood pet sitter?
What a great story. I loved Calamity the shy dog and the image of a tough guy with a tiny pampered pooch. The author also did an excellent job of leading the reader from one guilty looking suspect to the next. It looks as if more books may follow in this series of Armani the psychic matchmaker.
**This book will be included in the Must Love Pets bundle
http://justjudysjumbles.blogspot.com/...
Jane Bly wanted to find someone who would love her, the kind of love her parents had. When she calls her insurance company and the lady on the other end tells her she can find her the perfect man...Jane decides it’s worth a try. Armani Vasquez ends up to be quite the matchmaker indeed.
Tom Hanlon isn’t hunting for a woman like the matchmaker thinks, he’s hunting for a thief. Someone in Aunt Ruby’s neighborhood has been busy robbing the neighbors. Who is a more likely suspect than the neighborhood pet sitter?
What a great story. I loved Calamity the shy dog and the image of a tough guy with a tiny pampered pooch. The author also did an excellent job of leading the reader from one guilty looking suspect to the next. It looks as if more books may follow in this series of Armani the psychic matchmaker.
**This book will be included in the Must Love Pets bundle
http://justjudysjumbles.blogspot.com/...
April 9, 2016
I read this book as part of the anthology Must Love Pets: A Romance Box Set.
This Matchmaker Mystery Novella is the first book in its series. It is a cute, rather quick read. It is a rather light story, nothing heavy and fast paced. Tom (a private investigator) and Jane (a professional pet sitter and Tom's prime suspect in a string of residential robberies) are brought together by the mysterious, enigmatic Armani (a psychic matchmaker). The story also features Tom's Aunt Ruby, his best friend, Brady, and Jane's best friend, Alyssa. The characters in the book all have their own distinct personality. Calamity, Jane's foster dog, does play a role in the story, but not nearly as much of one as the pets in the previous 4 books in the anthology. This was an enjoyable book with a HEA ending and no cliffhanger.
This Matchmaker Mystery Novella is the first book in its series. It is a cute, rather quick read. It is a rather light story, nothing heavy and fast paced. Tom (a private investigator) and Jane (a professional pet sitter and Tom's prime suspect in a string of residential robberies) are brought together by the mysterious, enigmatic Armani (a psychic matchmaker). The story also features Tom's Aunt Ruby, his best friend, Brady, and Jane's best friend, Alyssa. The characters in the book all have their own distinct personality. Calamity, Jane's foster dog, does play a role in the story, but not nearly as much of one as the pets in the previous 4 books in the anthology. This was an enjoyable book with a HEA ending and no cliffhanger.
February 8, 2015
I really liked this story.. But then again I am rather partial to storied with animals involved.. It was a very cute story
July 16, 2023
The Mutt and the Matchmaker is a novella by JB Lynn, and the first of the “A Matchmaker Mystery” series. We begin the story by being introduced to Jane Bly. She is making a call to an insurance company, only to find that the customer service representative is also a matchmaker who wants to set her up on a date. At this point in time, we also meet Tom Hanlon who is tasked with walking a dog, but is also a private investigator. Soon enough, we find out that there have been burglaries in the area, and Tom is looking for the culprit.
My first thoughts about the story is that there isn’t much information given to us about the characters. Within the first two pages, I only know a couple of character names and a slight bit about the guy’s personality, and that he’s six foot four. But I can’t mentally visualise either of them. I know more about what the dog looks like than I do about the people. Even moving forward, there’s very little in terms of descriptions towards characters, and there’s very little information about the scenery and settings. It makes it difficult for me to imagine things like the people or the scenes… And the author skips through a lot of scenes quickly, which makes it feel weirdly fast paced for me.
And, if I’m honest, the romance of the book feels somewhat awkward to me… The way the characters talk about each other, and the descriptions of their feelings for each other… It just kind of feels unnatural and forced, and I would not like to be either of them in such scenarios. And he goes on to mentally mock her for wearing oversized t-shirts, jeans and sneakers; he mentally considers that he prefers women who work in offices, with coordinated outfits. What? I would hate to know this guy, honestly. What a weird thing to think about the woman you’re on a date with. He should just be happy if she’s comfortable wearing whatever she wants. And then a lot of his other thoughts about her just get really creepy. Oh, and then later on, when they’re on a later date, she’s talking about her parents’… And then he kisses her a minute later… That just feels really off putting. If she’s just been talking about her dead parents, it just seems really awkward that he then decides to kiss her. It is completely the opposite of romantic, for me.
As for the mystery of the book… I feel like it’s a huge let down. I feel like there’s a huge lack of information about the crimes. Even the bits I do get information about, it’s often just a couple of random sentences at a time. There’s very little real information about the evidence, or actual details. Much of it is just gossip. For a lot of suspects, we only get a few brief mentions of them. And I feel like a lot of it wasn’t well thought out. For example, the investigator rules out one person because they had been doing a charity event during one of the robberies. However… Why, though? Why rule this person out? Just because they have an alibi for one of the robberies, it doesn’t mean they didn’t do another. In theory, robberies could have been done by a group of people. Why does he rule this out? The entire thought process going on with him makes very little sense. And the rest of the investigation makes very little sense; a lot of it is based on assumptions, rather than actual evidence. And the case doesn’t really feel properly solved at the end of it. We get told “you solved the case”, but it just doesn’t feel solved because there’s very little evidence actually pointing towards that person, other than assumptions and hearsay. If this case were in court, with the evidence they currently have, it would likely either get thrown out of court or the person would be found not guilty. Hearsay and assumptions are not evidence.
Overall, I did not like this book, and I don’t like this style of writing. I just don’t like any of the characters, and I don’t like the lack of descriptions about them. The relationship just seems awkward, from my perspective; especially considering the way these characters think and act towards each other. For the mystery portions, I feel like they haven’t been properly thought through. And the author gives us very little information about the mysteries, so it’s definitely not an interesting mystery for me. And it doesn’t feel like it was properly completed. I don’t think I’ll return to this author in future.
My first thoughts about the story is that there isn’t much information given to us about the characters. Within the first two pages, I only know a couple of character names and a slight bit about the guy’s personality, and that he’s six foot four. But I can’t mentally visualise either of them. I know more about what the dog looks like than I do about the people. Even moving forward, there’s very little in terms of descriptions towards characters, and there’s very little information about the scenery and settings. It makes it difficult for me to imagine things like the people or the scenes… And the author skips through a lot of scenes quickly, which makes it feel weirdly fast paced for me.
And, if I’m honest, the romance of the book feels somewhat awkward to me… The way the characters talk about each other, and the descriptions of their feelings for each other… It just kind of feels unnatural and forced, and I would not like to be either of them in such scenarios. And he goes on to mentally mock her for wearing oversized t-shirts, jeans and sneakers; he mentally considers that he prefers women who work in offices, with coordinated outfits. What? I would hate to know this guy, honestly. What a weird thing to think about the woman you’re on a date with. He should just be happy if she’s comfortable wearing whatever she wants. And then a lot of his other thoughts about her just get really creepy. Oh, and then later on, when they’re on a later date, she’s talking about her parents’… And then he kisses her a minute later… That just feels really off putting. If she’s just been talking about her dead parents, it just seems really awkward that he then decides to kiss her. It is completely the opposite of romantic, for me.
As for the mystery of the book… I feel like it’s a huge let down. I feel like there’s a huge lack of information about the crimes. Even the bits I do get information about, it’s often just a couple of random sentences at a time. There’s very little real information about the evidence, or actual details. Much of it is just gossip. For a lot of suspects, we only get a few brief mentions of them. And I feel like a lot of it wasn’t well thought out. For example, the investigator rules out one person because they had been doing a charity event during one of the robberies. However… Why, though? Why rule this person out? Just because they have an alibi for one of the robberies, it doesn’t mean they didn’t do another. In theory, robberies could have been done by a group of people. Why does he rule this out? The entire thought process going on with him makes very little sense. And the rest of the investigation makes very little sense; a lot of it is based on assumptions, rather than actual evidence. And the case doesn’t really feel properly solved at the end of it. We get told “you solved the case”, but it just doesn’t feel solved because there’s very little evidence actually pointing towards that person, other than assumptions and hearsay. If this case were in court, with the evidence they currently have, it would likely either get thrown out of court or the person would be found not guilty. Hearsay and assumptions are not evidence.
Overall, I did not like this book, and I don’t like this style of writing. I just don’t like any of the characters, and I don’t like the lack of descriptions about them. The relationship just seems awkward, from my perspective; especially considering the way these characters think and act towards each other. For the mystery portions, I feel like they haven’t been properly thought through. And the author gives us very little information about the mysteries, so it’s definitely not an interesting mystery for me. And it doesn’t feel like it was properly completed. I don’t think I’ll return to this author in future.
July 12, 2017
Okay I will admit right away ... this book cover totally pulled me in ... I am a sucker for a cute doggie. So precious!! This was a fun quick read for me. I did realize it was a novella ... but apparently every one in the reviews said it is? just a thought in case you care ... I find novellas to be some of the authors best work ... that is just my finding so far .. yet to read a crappy novella from any author so far. KNOCK ON WOOD, please. just saying. Loved it. I will be checking out more from J.B. Lynn soon enough! ( ;
April 7, 2018
This novella launches a new series for this author. While I love her Hitwoman series, and the character Armani Vasquez from it, who is featured in this series... I found I didn't much care for this story. It's a lazily written romance that hints at intertwining a mystery into the story, but doesn't really make any effort in that direction.
Thank goodness this was free. While I'm happy to spend a bit on the reliably fun and hilarious Hitwoman novels, I'm going to have to think long and hard before buying anything from this series.
Thank goodness this was free. While I'm happy to spend a bit on the reliably fun and hilarious Hitwoman novels, I'm going to have to think long and hard before buying anything from this series.
June 15, 2017
Soft romance and a little mystery
Although I'm not a big romance fan I don't mind if there's a bit of mystery involved. This story had a Little bit of both. Jane is a pet sitter and Tom is a P. I. who suspects Jane might be the neighborhood thief. With a little help from a physic insurance adjuster and a few dogs the two just might get together. This is a quick easy read and I enjoyed it.
Although I'm not a big romance fan I don't mind if there's a bit of mystery involved. This story had a Little bit of both. Jane is a pet sitter and Tom is a P. I. who suspects Jane might be the neighborhood thief. With a little help from a physic insurance adjuster and a few dogs the two just might get together. This is a quick easy read and I enjoyed it.
August 16, 2017
Cute short story. Jane is a professional dog walker and lets her insurance agent/psychic talk her into meeting a blind date. Tom isn't sure why he agreed to meet Jane, but thinks it will help his investigation into burglaries in the neighborhood. This of course ends up leading to a conflict, but it has a happy ending.
December 2, 2017
Such a sweet story and book!
This book was wonderful. It was a sweet clean romance that had many side characters in it that could lead to other books (which would be amazing). I quite enjoyed how this author got from one point to the other with such love, misunderstandings and a belief that if you work hard at something you will prevail. Thank you JB Lynn
This book was wonderful. It was a sweet clean romance that had many side characters in it that could lead to other books (which would be amazing). I quite enjoyed how this author got from one point to the other with such love, misunderstandings and a belief that if you work hard at something you will prevail. Thank you JB Lynn
June 2, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. It had everything-romance,mystery and a really good story. The characters were interesting and the story was awesome and it even had a happy ending. What's not to love? I look forward to reading more from this author whom I had never heard of before, but will be on the look out for now.
January 4, 2024
Cute fluff with everyone's favourite almost-psychic from 'Slightly Neurotic Hitwoman'. Meagre stories, not a lot of plot, but due to Armani's persona fun enough to pick up. Ideal beach or last days of the flu-reading.
In this one a burglar mystery with a 'Whodunnit? Will they?- core, lots of dogs and the answer to the question of what happened to Maggie's quadruped.
In this one a burglar mystery with a 'Whodunnit? Will they?- core, lots of dogs and the answer to the question of what happened to Maggie's quadruped.
July 19, 2017
Romance and a poor helpless dog, what more do you need for your heartstrings
To be pulled into a great book? I can only hope to find a dog to bring me the love of life? Read this wonderful book and let me know if your heartstrings aren't pulled tight too.
To be pulled into a great book? I can only hope to find a dog to bring me the love of life? Read this wonderful book and let me know if your heartstrings aren't pulled tight too.
June 22, 2018
A Matchmaker mystery.
Cute story about love and the dog walker. Short story with plenty of zip. The writer is very good at keeping your attention to the point you can’t put it down.
Cute story about love and the dog walker. Short story with plenty of zip. The writer is very good at keeping your attention to the point you can’t put it down.
July 7, 2018
Fun Read
This book was very enjoyable. Nothing too heavy, a little humor, a little bit of mystery, and some romantic angst. The main characters were nice people. Would love to learn more about the matchmaker. She was an interesting character.
This book was very enjoyable. Nothing too heavy, a little humor, a little bit of mystery, and some romantic angst. The main characters were nice people. Would love to learn more about the matchmaker. She was an interesting character.
April 1, 2019
Calamity was misnamed
I enjoyed JB Lynn's story of the two damaged souls who found love in spite of themselves. Getting over their distrusts and finally letting them go, with the matchmaker's help and Calamity, too, was a charming story.
I enjoyed JB Lynn's story of the two damaged souls who found love in spite of themselves. Getting over their distrusts and finally letting them go, with the matchmaker's help and Calamity, too, was a charming story.
September 1, 2023
calamity jane
You just never know who you might meet. I think Jane needs the dog whisperer even though she kicks butt all on her own. Tom needs another profession with him making mistakes.
You just never know who you might meet. I think Jane needs the dog whisperer even though she kicks butt all on her own. Tom needs another profession with him making mistakes.
October 16, 2024
A quick romantic mystery novella
A quick romantic mystery novella. Dog walker Jane and private investigator Tom are paired up by psychic matchmaker Armani in this light hearted story.
A quick romantic mystery novella. Dog walker Jane and private investigator Tom are paired up by psychic matchmaker Armani in this light hearted story.
June 10, 2017
This was a lite fun read. I enjoyed it a great deal. I enjoyed it enough to order more of the Matchmaker Mystery Series.
August 7, 2017
FUN! Fast read!
At first you don't know what the matchmaker is up to and then there's the "rest of the story". Sweet book, you're cheering for a happy ending...
At first you don't know what the matchmaker is up to and then there's the "rest of the story". Sweet book, you're cheering for a happy ending...
August 17, 2017
Dogs and yummy guys
If you love a good romance with characters who fight their doubts from the past..throw in a few puppies, you will love this story.
If you love a good romance with characters who fight their doubts from the past..throw in a few puppies, you will love this story.
October 8, 2017
Thought the story was a quick read. Very interesting and since I already liked any story with animals this captured me from the beginning. Plus I liked the interaction of the two main characters.
July 25, 2018
A light romantic mystery read. A string of robberies, a dog walker and a P I made it a light fun summer read.
August 14, 2018
Good mystery.
I enjoyed this light romantic mystery. This story had wonderful friends, family, mystery and romance. What else could you want?
I enjoyed this light romantic mystery. This story had wonderful friends, family, mystery and romance. What else could you want?
November 2, 2018
A cute story. I enjoyed it and had a smile on my lips when I had finished. Will be reading more in this series.
dnf
August 2, 2019Got through chapter 11. All very predictable.
February 4, 2020
Delightful!
It's such a rarity to find a book when people actually meet over dogs😊💜 the matchmaker is quite a character too! Great TomTom with a little suspense!
It's such a rarity to find a book when people actually meet over dogs😊💜 the matchmaker is quite a character too! Great TomTom with a little suspense!
July 19, 2020
It was cheesy, it was fun. What's not to like?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews