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A Dog Lover's Mystery #9
Stud Rites
Groomed for a comeback: sixth in the dog lover's series.
After two killings at the Alaskan Malamute National Specialty Show, the one-of-a-kind murder weapon is traced to Holly Winter's ex-boyfriend--and the stakes become more personal than she ever dreamed.
After two killings at the Alaskan Malamute National Specialty Show, the one-of-a-kind murder weapon is traced to Holly Winter's ex-boyfriend--and the stakes become more personal than she ever dreamed.
237 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published June 1, 1996
3 people are currently reading
232 people want to read
About the author
Susan Conant
44 books148 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
(1)mysteries
Mother of author Jessica Park aka Jessica Conant-Park
The photo is of Jessica Conant-Park and Susan Conant, daughter and mother.
(1)mysteries
Mother of author Jessica Park aka Jessica Conant-Park
The photo is of Jessica Conant-Park and Susan Conant, daughter and mother.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
August 15, 2010
The second book of hers I picked up at a yard sale a few weeks ago. Unlike the first one, 'Black Ribbon', I didn't find this one so entrenched in the language and mindset of the dog show world that it bordered on the unreadable. Yes, it's still set at a dog show and understanding a little about dog shows enhances the reading. The mystery part of the book also commences from page 1, though you have to get in a while to connect that scene to the rest of the book.
Conant does use a lot of obscure referencing during the course of the book, something I also noticed in the other book as well as the preview of the next book in the series. I don't really care for it because I often failed to see the connection. At one point, she's referencing Michelangelo and his paintings of Adam and Eve and trying to connect it to dogs, but for me, it was a waste of space.
I've seen her written up as the Lilian Jackson Braun of dog mysteries, but having read all the 'Cat Who...' books, I can tell you that Conant doesn't hold even a small candle to Braun.
Will I read more of her books? Sure, but only if I find them at used book sales or somewhere else cheap as I did these two books. Certainly won't hunt her books out at Barnes and Noble to pay full price for them. They're not worth the expenditure.
Conant does use a lot of obscure referencing during the course of the book, something I also noticed in the other book as well as the preview of the next book in the series. I don't really care for it because I often failed to see the connection. At one point, she's referencing Michelangelo and his paintings of Adam and Eve and trying to connect it to dogs, but for me, it was a waste of space.
I've seen her written up as the Lilian Jackson Braun of dog mysteries, but having read all the 'Cat Who...' books, I can tell you that Conant doesn't hold even a small candle to Braun.
Will I read more of her books? Sure, but only if I find them at used book sales or somewhere else cheap as I did these two books. Certainly won't hunt her books out at Barnes and Noble to pay full price for them. They're not worth the expenditure.
February 15, 2015
In the 9th installment of Susan Conant's Dog Lovers Mystery series, Stud Rites, Holly Winter returned with her two dogs to save the day for the dogs. This time, Holly had entered Rowdy and Kimi at the Alaskan Malamute Specialty Show, when she discovered the world of competitive purebred dog shows. It proved lethal for the judge, who was found bludgeoned to death by a blunt object. And Holly who knew had access to it, when many would've benefited from his death, including her former lover, who now worked in a firm that specialized in canine reproductive technology which placed her on the trail for the killer.
June 11, 2018
This is the 9th book in the series that I have read. I originally picked it up because I like dogs and I like cozy mysteries. However, I am finding this series to be just average. There is a lot of preaching about proper dog care, anti puppy mills, and the glory of dog shows. OK for a book or two, but every one is the same. The mystery aspect is oftentimes thrown away for the sake of the dog info. I keep reading it at this point because at one time I bought a bunch of this series at a used book store and I feel I have to read them.
This one had a pretty decent mystery, wrapped up in tons of dog show intrigue and infighting. A little too much info about show dog lineage for my taste.
This one had a pretty decent mystery, wrapped up in tons of dog show intrigue and infighting. A little too much info about show dog lineage for my taste.
December 27, 2012
I had to read this for a book club. It is horrible. I could not get past how she writes. Not everything has to be compared to a dog. The beginning of the book is just odd. I had no idea what she was talking about. I will never read another of her books again. This one was torturous.
March 29, 2009
Always amusing. Could not put it down.
November 1, 2023
The author failed to connect the dots of the story’s mystery. The book starts with two murders. One is eventually solved. As far as I could tell, the other murder is not mentioned again in the story. The murderer’s motive for the multiple murders did not make sense for all the victims.
January 25, 2018
Yet another that tracks the author's slow progression from show dog people/breeders go from the heroes of the story to ...not so heroic.
November 28, 2018
Not horrible but nothing special. If you have usually enjoyed this writer, you will not be disappointed in spending time with this book, but it is not one of her best efforts.
October 22, 2022
Nice addition to this series. I liked the Hawaiian themed venue for the dog show.
September 26, 2009
MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.
Main character Holly Winter goes to a malamutes show, with her own 2 malamutes in tow (to be handled in ring by others).
Story intertwines both Holly's own sperm donors (present beau, who is Steve the vet, with the unexpected appearance of her long-gone high school boyfriend, Finn, who now works for a showdog-sperm storage co.) with a murder mystery (revolving around malamute sperm-bloodlines-ownership), with a side plot based on a wedding event scheduled for the same motel, same weekend as the dog show (entailing an already inseminated bride who's expecting a litter of twins).
Many funny turns of phrase and/or turns of event that caused me to laugh aloud.
Another clever author device - she relates part of the story by recounting events captured on video at the dog show.
Book started out either a bit slow or a bit too mannered, but author Conant settled in nicely. Only other Conant book I've read ("Animal Appetite") was more natural in its descriptions, flow.
Main character Holly Winter goes to a malamutes show, with her own 2 malamutes in tow (to be handled in ring by others).
Story intertwines both Holly's own sperm donors (present beau, who is Steve the vet, with the unexpected appearance of her long-gone high school boyfriend, Finn, who now works for a showdog-sperm storage co.) with a murder mystery (revolving around malamute sperm-bloodlines-ownership), with a side plot based on a wedding event scheduled for the same motel, same weekend as the dog show (entailing an already inseminated bride who's expecting a litter of twins).
Many funny turns of phrase and/or turns of event that caused me to laugh aloud.
Another clever author device - she relates part of the story by recounting events captured on video at the dog show.
Book started out either a bit slow or a bit too mannered, but author Conant settled in nicely. Only other Conant book I've read ("Animal Appetite") was more natural in its descriptions, flow.
February 18, 2024
Speaking as someone who has read a large number of cosy/mystery novels in the last year or two, Susan Conant's dog lovers mysteries are in a class by themselves. Really well written and absorbing. Even the ones that I find hard to read because of subject matter like puppy mills.
Set during an Alaskan Malamute National Specialty Show, Conant's latest foray into the competitive world of purebred dogs proves lethal for the judge, who is found bludgeoned to death by a blunt object as tasteless as the murder itself. And who might benefit from the judge's death? Many, as it turns out--from the woman who has inherited his job to the organizer of the show, and the handler whose dog now has a good chance of winning.
Dog's Life writer Holly Winter is on the scene with two dogs entered in the show. She know who has access to the murder weapon, but it is a former lover, now working for a firm that specializes in canine reproductive technology, who unwittingly puts her on the trail of the killer.
Set during an Alaskan Malamute National Specialty Show, Conant's latest foray into the competitive world of purebred dogs proves lethal for the judge, who is found bludgeoned to death by a blunt object as tasteless as the murder itself. And who might benefit from the judge's death? Many, as it turns out--from the woman who has inherited his job to the organizer of the show, and the handler whose dog now has a good chance of winning.
Dog's Life writer Holly Winter is on the scene with two dogs entered in the show. She know who has access to the murder weapon, but it is a former lover, now working for a firm that specializes in canine reproductive technology, who unwittingly puts her on the trail of the killer.
May 7, 2009
Reading a little bit out of order because the previous book has a wait list at the library, I made my way through this book fairly easily - if I missed some crucial development in Holly Winter's life, it wasn't a problem with this book!
Set during the national convention for the AKC Malamute club, in this instance two key people are murdered and another is attacked. Holly joins forces with other convention attendees to try to figure out who would have wanted two respected past members of the national breed club.
Like earlier books, this one again addresses the problems with puppy mills and unsuitable dog owners. Unlike other books, this one seemed a bit too full of asides and dog-related inside jokes and comments that I found a bit confusing to follow at times.
Overall, this book was good but not great.
Set during the national convention for the AKC Malamute club, in this instance two key people are murdered and another is attacked. Holly joins forces with other convention attendees to try to figure out who would have wanted two respected past members of the national breed club.
Like earlier books, this one again addresses the problems with puppy mills and unsuitable dog owners. Unlike other books, this one seemed a bit too full of asides and dog-related inside jokes and comments that I found a bit confusing to follow at times.
Overall, this book was good but not great.
October 27, 2014
Love these books.
This one deals with the fact no breeder wishes to acknowledge, the fact dogs in puppy mills very often come from top award winning lines.
It's bitingly sarcastic, and characters are grossly exaggerated. Characters that are well known in the fictional Malmute show world describe rescue dogs as *trash dogs* not realising the poor badly bred Malmute they were discussing, sire was the top winning Mally.
It also goes into the lengths people will go to to achieve the perfect mating, or deny certain dogs don't come from their kennels. It's a sad state of affairs
This one deals with the fact no breeder wishes to acknowledge, the fact dogs in puppy mills very often come from top award winning lines.
It's bitingly sarcastic, and characters are grossly exaggerated. Characters that are well known in the fictional Malmute show world describe rescue dogs as *trash dogs* not realising the poor badly bred Malmute they were discussing, sire was the top winning Mally.
It also goes into the lengths people will go to to achieve the perfect mating, or deny certain dogs don't come from their kennels. It's a sad state of affairs
February 18, 2008
These are all fun, quick reads. Nothing too deep, just quick mysteries. Like candy. If you like the world of dogs, you'll like these, particularly if your breed is Malamutes.
January 18, 2010
For some reason, I did not like this one as much as the others in the series. I found that I had a hard time getting into the story.
Want to read
April 13, 2010F 813.54 CONA
February 4, 2011
Another exceptional novel by Susan Conant including many wonderful tips for dog care-givers.
June 25, 2022
Amoung my favorites in the series! Dog stuff galore!
January 4, 2014
Not her best, but OK.
Takes place at a dog show.
Takes place at a dog show.
March 31, 2011
a little slower-reading than her usual
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews