Wendy Walker is walking dogs…and walking in on dead bodies.
Back home on Sweetwater Island after a decade long absence, Wendy is looking to start anew. Armed with a place to live and her trusty dog, Trixie, all Wendy needs is…well, everything. Money. A job. A plan.
When one of the locals on the island assumes she’s a dog walker, she jumps at the chance to make a little money. But walking dogs leads her directly into the path of Caroline Ford.
Or, rather, the body of Caroline Ford.
An unfriendly police chief soon suspects that Wendy might be involved in the crime and she immediately sets out to prove her innocence. As she works to clear her name, she meets several islanders who already have the wrong impression about her…and who might be the one responsible for Caroline Ford’s murder.
The situation turns dire when Wendy realizes she’s not just a suspect…she might soon be a victim, too.
This was a really cute start for a new series! I've had this for about a year and re-noticed it when it was recently offered free again. I have to say I liked the dogs better than the human characters, mainly because being a little bit shorter book, there just wasn't time to go into much backstory, totally understandable. What little there was of Wendy's dad though, I know I'm not much of a fan of his. And I absolutely love most dad characters and am lukewarm about the moms in cozies (most of the time, not all). But this guy has some real control issues lol.
I think in the coming books we'll probably learn more about Wendy, her old friend Tate and her new friend Asher. I definitely didn't like Poppy, the woman who has the doggie daycare that she's so worried small-time dog walker Wendy will ruin. Wendy was a good person, and I can only imagine how she felt when both of the police officers acted like she was a criminal but had only just arrived in town. I guessed the killer but it was honestly a process of elimination. I liked this well enough to continue and get the next books through my Kindle Unlimited account. I really love those dogs!
A sweet but predictable cozy mystery. Wendy returns to her home town divorced and jobless. When she finds the body of a woman, she becomes a suspect. The mystery is well-written and the characters sweet. There are the usual very handsome men, a bumbling chief of police, meddlesome parents and many suspects. I liked it.
A great plot that is convincing because it is down to earth. The heroine is a divorcee who has returned to live in her Grandmother's house after she lost everything in her divorce. Everything except her dog. When she spots a loose dog she tries to return the dog to his owner only to discover a body. The police are belligerent and whilst she is there, she is asked to walk a local man's dog. This leads to the Chief's wife having a showdown with her as she already runs a doggy daycare. This plus the police efforts to pin the murder on her make her more and more determined to find the real killer. As she stumbles around trying to piece together who was responsible she is shocked to find that two local hunks seem to view her as prospective dates. Will she stumble onto the truth? Will her dog walking business get off the ground? Which man will make her heart beat a little faster? Will the police accept that she is no killer?
Wendy Walker was newly single and on her own for the first time ever. After the divorce, the only thing she kept was her dog.
One day, while walking her dog, she finds a stray dog with a collar, which, thus, leads her to a house with a dead body inside. Being at the wrong place at the wrong time somehow connects her to the crime. Things get only worse when the small-town detectives do everything they can to pin the murder on her. Suddenly, she has no choice but to solve this murder on her own. Sounds pretty RUFF!
Easy to read and easy to relate. A cute, cozy, little mystery.
I love a cozy mystery, especially one featuring dogs. This book was not interesting, there was little character development, and the mystery was not compelling. I think the book had the proper setup for a fun cozy mystery, including a small town, the beach, hunky locals, and small business owners; unfortunately, the book didn’t properly use all the elements to keep me turning the pages
After a nasty divorce and needing some time for herself, Wendy Walker moves back home to Sweetwater Island. She has a place to live now all she needs is a job and a plan. While walking her dog Trixie on the beach she finds another dog running loose. Since the dog has a tag on with an address she decides to return the dog to the owner assuming the dog got out. Instead of returning the dog and continuing her walk she finds a dead body of Carolina Ford, the dog's owner and the police immediately assumes she is the killer. She decides to do some investigating herself before it's too late and she is behind bars. Who would want to kill Carolina who made quilts for a living and why. So many questions, so many suspects and very few clues to go on. Great read, wonderful characters that move the story along. Looking forward to book 2.
The start was a little bland, but that's not unusual for cozy mysteries. Then the police targeted her for the murder, and I thought it was getting stupid, and not in a funny way. When the police made it clear she was basically their only suspect, and instead of going to a lawyer "because she couldn't afford one," she ups her investigation efforts? After she just had her investigating make her look more guilty? Doesn't she know lawyers do pro bono work just for this reason? A good lawyer would have torn apart that police force and their investigation. That's when i surrendered to the book just being dumb. And the ending didn't disappoint. They arrested someone on totally circumstantial evidence.
Wendy has come back home after a divorce and is looking forward to working out what is next in her life. When she is walking her dog on the beach another dog comes running up and Wendy takes the stray back to his owner only to find the owner dead. The police suspect Wendy and she starts trying to work out who would hurt a quilt maker. This is a great book from a new author Ally Roberts. It is fast paced with great characters. This book is just long enough to get you totally engrossed in the mystery and for a good story line to develop without feeling rushed or bored. Throw in a couple of great looking guys and how can you go wrong. I would like to read more of this series.
This was an enjoyable read--it had 2 things I like reading about, crime & doggies. I would've given it 5 stars, but I had the murderer figured out before chapter 25. Might check out this author further for other books in this series, but hoping the proofreading is better, and she gets away from starting a lot of sentences with "because." They may (or may not) be grammatically correct, but the overuse is irksome, in my opinion.
I really enjoyed reading this book and also really loved the characters, including the dogs. The mystery was great and maintained my attention. And there was a generous amount of humor which was icing on the cake. I hope to read more books by Ally.
Very unbelievable characters, a new divorced penniless woman goes to live in her deceased grandmother’s house where she spent a lot of time as a child. Add in an idiotic police department, disapproving parents and every good looking guy in town wanting her. You definitely will not raise your IQ reading this book
I can't wait to see what Wendy gets into next if you love a great cozy with characters you will love right from the first book then this one by Ally Roberts is a must read I can't wait till the next book
Wendy has moved back home after being gone fir 12 years. First thing dhe does is find a dead body. The cops think dhe did it so follow Wendy as she figures out who did. Quick read
This story kept your attention. The dogs were cute and added a lot to the story. Characters were believable. I especially liked the seaside town. Can not wait to read the next book.
This is a good story with interesting characters, playful pets, multiple suspects, bumbling Police, and a main character trying desperately to start her new life over again in her old hometown.
Cute, limke the dogs and hunks. Wendy moves back to Sweetwater island , SC after 12 years away right into a murder. She becomes the suspect and her only way out is to solve the crime.