Bone of Contention: The Dog Park Detectives, Book 2

by Blake Mara

Louise and the Pack are back in another pawfully intriguing mystery . . . 

When Yaz and her dog Hercules find a dead man on a bench along the canal with chicken bones lying around him, she immediately calls Louise – and the police.
 
The case is a chicken bone has been forcibly rammed down the victim’s throat, and the last person to see him was their friend – and Pack-mate – Claire. When the police take Claire into custody, the Pack mobilise, determined to find the real killer.
 
The trail leads them to the new Cluckin’ Good Chicken shop, who not only have a gang that loiter outside, smoking weed and harassing passers-by, but have also managed to create issues with the locals. As the Pack's investigation into the chicken shop progresses, establishing links with organised crime that might possibly connect to the local council, Louise and her friends find themselves in mortal danger.
 
Can the Pack sniff out the killer and get to the bones of the mystery? 
 
Praise for The Dog Park Detectives:
 
‘More good dogs than I've ever seen in a single book! Oh, and a grisly, puzzling murder to solve, with lots of twists and red herrings. But really, I'm here for the pooches, and you should be too’ Antony Johnston
 
'Howling good fun, with a plot twisty enough to get any dogged armchair detective barking up the wrong tree. I loved it – just don't tell my cats!' Fiona Leitch

‘Adored The Dog Park Detectives! Brilliantly written, with quirky characters, dogs and a dash of murder, I ripped through this in two sittings. Perfect cosy crime’ Lisa Hall
 
‘A pacy and entertaining murder mystery that’s a must-read for all dog-loving crime fans. Go the Dog Park Detectives!’ A. K. Turner

Genres: Mystery, Detective, Murder Mystery, Audiobook, Crime

480 pages, Paperback

Expected publication March 30, 2027

Reviews

[Helena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! Cannot wait for a part 3.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

While its a fun book, the size of the cast makes it a rather confusing read. Who ARE these people? I also have an issue with how Russian-born Irina is portrayed, frankly.

[Celinnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,5⭐️

Literally one of my favourite books from this past year! I cannot wait for the third part!

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

THIS WAS SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE FIRST

[Abbie Sands · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lighthearted read following on from the first of the series. It was nice to have familiar characters (including the dogs) and get an update on their lives. I didn’t think it was quite as good as the first book, and I still have a few questions left unanswered. So I am hoping there will be a new book coming soon?

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was a little more exhausting with the constant drama that did warrant some eye rolls, but all in all still a fun read that doesn’t need much thinking/attention.

[Kelly Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed but felt there was good build but an abrupt end. Can see it has been left to continue in another instalment but consider the ending of this one left too much unfinished.

[Arthur Valaer · Rating 1 out of 5]

In the author's parlance: Rubbish, mate. Daft, guv. Bit cuntish and that, d'ya know wot I mean? Naff, innit?

Relied on way too many text message threads for exposition dumps, probably composing 2-3 dozen pages of its Dune/some Bibles/The Fountainhead size on account of how wide the spacing and margins were for those exchanges.

Kept mentioning masks, 'the pandemic', and the names of apps they were using. It's like the author knows no one is going to read this 5-15 years from now so they don't care that some readers then won't know what they're talking about. They also kept calling a character Marple. I knew who they were talking about because I'm quite partial to British TV but the average reader may not watch British TV or read Christie and have no clue who she is. The author was too lazy to simply first say something like 'the Agatha Christie character Miss Marple' and then only say 'Marple' from then on or have a character watching Miss Marple, then move on and later get called Marple multiple times.

And I know all books do this, but the spacing between words was noticeably wider from one line to the next. Like someone new to their word processing application would do.

Worst of all, the crime is all about licenses, paperwork, and online chatter and the dogs aren't even that involved. They're just there. Would be way cooler if they led them to clues, alerted their owners to danger, or if a large dog saved the day somehow. But no. It's did this, gave my dog a treat. Met dog park pal, patted their dog's head. That's it.

One half-star for the author loving dogs and another half-star for being a conversation starter with your own dog-walking neighbors down at your local park.

[klubnichka · Rating 4 out of 5]

so cozy!!! and for some reason i felt like i was able to picture the setting so clearly despite this book not even being that descriptive. the end was a bit confusing and ended super abruptly but i still enjoyed it nonetheless.

i do have to mention though, irina's character felt a bit too bitchy and mean and stereotyping the only russian character as the lowkey alcoholic is not fun TT all this character did was drink wine and act ignorant and rude towards all of their friends.

another thing i felt slightly confused about was the ambiguous age of the characters. im not sure it was ever mentioned in the book how old these characters are? is louise in her 30s? how old is jake and why is he getting flirty with a woman in her late 40s? wasn't kate in her late 40s or am i hallucinating? it's just a bit odd to not mention any ages in the book at all. not saying someone in their mid/late 30s is old but it does raise a few questions in my head why this character is acting a certain way when they are a fully grown adult. some actions are kind of giving character in their 20s vibe.

also a loot of characters to memorize and almost all of them are way too similar to each other :( i did love the dogs though!! i think they made this book so much more interesting for me and are the main reason for my 4-star rating. although i would prefer to give this book 3.5 stars instead but goodreads doesn't allow that.

[Rachel Ault · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve only given this book one star more than the last book because the only thing I thought was really improved about it was the fact that there were more chapters dedicated to the detectives and getting actual forensic evidence provided to the reader. The murder was more interesting in this book than the first one because they really laid out the details. Other than that, the same issues reared their head with this book as the last book. My biggest question: why even bother having “romantic attachments” that don’t go anywhere? For two books now, the main character has gone back and forth with a neighbor who’s just moved in, and the book makes it out to seem like a bigger deal than it is in the end. The same goes for Irina and Andy. Beyond that, I still take issue with random details being added that detract from the real purpose of reading the book; for instance, there was a chapter where Louise, the main character, runs into someone from another dog group chat and explains how she doesn’t go to their park much anymore and should get together with them more often…but doesn’t. What’s the purpose behind wasting precious words that have to be read on information that has no relevance to the investigation? It’s too much world building and not enough narrative drive. All I can say is, I enjoy dogs and I enjoy mysteries so it had that going for it.

[Books By Your Bedside · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the first book of this series in a day because it was so much fun and I wondered if she could keep it up with this one. I did worry it was a little long. I prefer books 300-350 pages and this was almost 500 pages, so much longer than I like. But so was the first one and the page count didn't really matter.

We've got the same characters as the first book which gives us some familiarity, but then she introduces new ones to keep it fresh. There are a lot of characters to keep track of which can get confusing, but she's picked a handful of main characters to focus on which helps.

Is it a little repetitive after the first one? Potentially. But I don't really care. I think because I read book 1 and 2 one after the other, the similarities were more obvious than if you'd had a pause between them.

There are twists and turns, some more hidden than others. You can really picture the scene, all the dogs running round the park. It's really vivid.

I think I preferred the first book a tiny bit because it was so new but this was very enjoyable indeed.

Gifted by the publisher for an honest review.

[Sharon Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you’re walking the dog in the morning the last thing you want to find on the path is a bunch of chicken bones. Actually, that’s the second to last. The last would be a dead body. Bone of Contention, Book 2 in the Dog Park Detectives Series has a delightful ensemble cast each with their own dog. Both humans and pets have unforgettable personalities and a common goal of keeping their neighborhood, if not exactly safe, at least corpse free. The series takes place in London’s East End creating a small town feel among the dog owners, but allowing them to tackle big city mysteries. A must read for dog lovers and cozy mystery fans!

[Sarah_books_life · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great book in the The Dog Park Detective series. Louise and friends are back and after they discover a dead man on a bench on the canal, they work together to figure out who the killer is. I love that the story is set in Tower Hamlets as it’s where I’m from too. There are twists and turns during their investigation which keep you guessing. I would say the only thing missing is a long haired chihuahua called Luna (my dog lol) An absolutely brilliant read!

[Cynthia · Rating 4 out of 5]

a book about loving dogs, with a little bit of murder and mystery sprinkled in.
If we're being completely honest, i do wish the characters were all a little less stereotypical. and whats up with changing the tense in which chapters are written in??
but all in all, if you liked the first one, this one is pretty enjoyable too and I'd probably read another one. Cause i do love all the dog characters (they have done nothing wrong).

[Jess King · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a cosy slow paced mystery book!

Loved the focus on the dogs and how they were a main part of the story.

Also had some great mixed media with text messages which helped break up the book a bit

There were a lot of characters and dogs to keep track of but the start of the book has a list of them all you can refer back to if needed!

Quite slow to get started, the main "action" wasn't until around 300 pages

A good book but probably not one I'd rush to re read or recommend

[Sarah Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read in the Dog Park Detectives series featuring the dog-loving residents of Tower Hamlets and their very colourful dogs. As with the first book, plenty of focus is given to the characterisation of the dogs who all have great personalities. A really enjoyable cosy mystery.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating - 3.5.

Huge thanks to the publisher for the finished copy.

[Tess Jerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Fran Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was wonderful, I love this series

[DJ Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐

[Annette O'grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was a great read lots of twist and turns it was not until close to the end that i realised who the culprit was

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars! Liked the story and the characters, already kinda saw the ending coming so that was a bit underwhelming.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed the latest adventure of dog park detectives. This one involves discovery of a body and a dodgy chicken takeaway. Looking forward to the next book.

[Kelias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Throughly enjoyed again, better than the first

[Roseanna Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit of a slog again, I love the local references but I can't get over the dogs being so key to everything.

[Jonna]

3,75 tähteä

[Takealookinsideabook · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was initially worried when I started this that I wouldn't remember much from book 1 as its been a year since I read it!

However, once I started it felt like reuniting with friends you've not seen in ages and I loved it so much!

It doesn't take long before the action starts and we're thrown into another curious crime that had me scratching my head countless times!

I loved being reuinted with these characters and their canine companions. This is a very addictive series that I struggle to put down and this book had me feeling all sorts of emotions.

I really hope there's another adventure soon and definitely think there needs to be a Husky added into the Pack too... just saying 😉 🐾

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Sarah B · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Dog Park Detectives are back with another crime to solve. The gang can't help themselves to involve themselves when a body is found on a bench by the canal with chicken bones around him and one in his throat! Could this be connected to the new chicken takeaway? Who performed the deed? Why? How is everything connected? The Pack are asking the right questions and this leads them on a hunt to find the culprit, even though, they are warned off by the police. The story is full of twists and turns with a few red herrings thrown in and the ending came as a total surprise to me.

[Miki Jacobs · Rating 4 out of 5]

The pack are back! When Yaz stumbles across a dead body whilst walking her dog, she calls Louise for moral support whilst waiting for the Police. This was because Louise had experience of this 6 months before.
They promise that they won't get involved this time. That is until Claire is taken in for questioning as she knew the dead man.
So follows a trail of red herrings and dangerous deeds.
This is a very readable book and a good page turner.

[The Northern Bookworm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another entertaining visit to the Partridge Dog Park gang in this second installment of the Dog Park Detectives series.

Listened to the novel, as I did the first one, and enjoyed the different narrators taking us through another who dunnit or rather multiple who dunnits.

Great to be able to get better acquainted with those characters introduced in book 1 and to meet some others.

Lovely cosy crime series whether you're a dog lover or not.