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Veronica Kildare K-9 #1
Dogged Pursuit
Gold Medal winner in the 2023 Readers' Favorite International Book Award Contest in the Fiction-Animals genre! 18th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards Finalist. The debut book in the Veronica Kildare K-9 Mystery series opens with escalating suspense and intensifies into a resilient fight for survival. With its engaging combination of canine and human personalities, thrilling plot, and gorgeous Colorado backdrop, "Dogged Pursuit" will appeal to dog lovers, outdoors enthusiasts, and mystery lovers alike.
Veronica Kildare cannot believe her luck – being shot at, again, by the bad guys. The sound, the feel of the bullet, and the hatred resonate for more than just the transitory moment of impact. She has relocated to a new state, but brutality has rampaged into this life as well.
As the survivor of a senseless act of violence in her former life, Veronica struggles to recover from the lingering physical and emotional scars by working as a dog handler near Boulder, Colorado. Empowered by her intense bond with her search and rescue and drug detection dog, Leda, she finally begins to shake off the pain of her past. Then Veronica is drawn into the puzzling search for a scientist who has vanished near Rocky Mountain National Park. Dr. Randy Jeffers has inexplicably disappeared on the eve of his testimony in the high profile murder trial of a pro basketball player and the police are baffled.
As Veronica and Leda traverse rugged Roosevelt National Forest in a desperate search testing the limits of their abilities, it is not initially clear who has targeted Dr. Jeffers, or why. But it becomes shockingly obvious that someone will stop at nothing to silence him forever. The kidnappers with murder on their mind have guns, but Veronica has Leda and her own blossoming resilience as her weapons in their struggle for survival.
Veronica Kildare cannot believe her luck – being shot at, again, by the bad guys. The sound, the feel of the bullet, and the hatred resonate for more than just the transitory moment of impact. She has relocated to a new state, but brutality has rampaged into this life as well.
As the survivor of a senseless act of violence in her former life, Veronica struggles to recover from the lingering physical and emotional scars by working as a dog handler near Boulder, Colorado. Empowered by her intense bond with her search and rescue and drug detection dog, Leda, she finally begins to shake off the pain of her past. Then Veronica is drawn into the puzzling search for a scientist who has vanished near Rocky Mountain National Park. Dr. Randy Jeffers has inexplicably disappeared on the eve of his testimony in the high profile murder trial of a pro basketball player and the police are baffled.
As Veronica and Leda traverse rugged Roosevelt National Forest in a desperate search testing the limits of their abilities, it is not initially clear who has targeted Dr. Jeffers, or why. But it becomes shockingly obvious that someone will stop at nothing to silence him forever. The kidnappers with murder on their mind have guns, but Veronica has Leda and her own blossoming resilience as her weapons in their struggle for survival.
341 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 25, 2022
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July 19, 2023
I don’t know if anyone else has fallen prey to this, but I recently got caught up in NetGalley’s library of Listen/Read Now database. Good grief!!! It’s not as if I don’t have plenty to read from my own reading shelves. In this case, it was this little blurb in the book summary that reeled me in
“will appeal to dog lovers, outdoors enthusiasts, and mystery lovers alike.”
Wow!!! They nailed me on that one! How could I resist? In my defense, the book did have the kind of stuff I love in a story: a strong, bad@$$ woman who is a survivor and considers the company of doggies comforting, especially her beloved and trusted, search and rescue doggie, Leda😊
The book summary lays out the primary storyline, so I won’t repeat it here. Early in the story, Veronica rescues a stray doggie that is being attacked by four sadistic teenagers and cements her hero status in my eyes😊 There is also a secondary storyline of Veronica offering a job, along with room and board for another teenager, Michael, who came to Veronica’s assistance in the attack by the four @$$#*!%$ who were attacking the poor stray doggie. Michael has been feeding the stray dog, whenever he can, and has named the timid doggie, Coco.
Veronica owns and runs a dog training and boarding facility with the help of her dad, Bob, on their seven-acre property outside of Boulder, CO. They have their own homes on the property and there is an apartment out in the building with the dog kennels, which is where Michael will live. In addition to Leda, there are several other doggies in the story, with the main ones being Bob’s dog Riley and another doggie, Gemma, that Veronica is training to scent for some citrus farmers down in FL. Veronica also trains dogs to scent track. It’s amazing to learn about the scenting abilities of dogs. There are also a couple of dogs that Veronica is training and boarding, along with Michael’s Coco. Working with Michael in training him to assist Veronica becomes a secondary storyline.
Early in the story, Veronica and Leda are contracted with local PD and search and rescue services to find the missing scientist. The scientist is an expert witness for a local murder trial for a wealthy, celebrity, athlete who is accused of killing his wife. While some may not enjoy learning about the inner workings of a search and rescue team, I love it and have always been fascinated with search and rescue K9 teams. Carter does an excellent job of describing the many facets of a search and rescue K9 team and the work and training that she and Leda have.
By the halfway point, Veronica and the rest of the search team have discovered info that assists in the search for the scientist. Into the second half, Veronica and Leda begin the search and rescue again for the scientist again. It’s a night of some intense scenes trying to get off the mountain alive. I look forward to reading more about Veronica and Leda's Dogged Pursuits.
The story is a solid 3star read. While I love learning about search and rescue K9 teams, I found some of the minute details of some of the background research of the case surrounding the scientist and his work a little much at times. A couple of times I found my mind wandering during some of those passages. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Alyssa Baumann, who did a good job with the narration. I want to thank NetGalley and Books Forward Audiobooks for sending me this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
#NetGalley #BooksForwardAudiobooks #DoggedPursuit
The book summary lays out the primary storyline, so I won’t repeat it here. Early in the story, Veronica rescues a stray doggie that is being attacked by four sadistic teenagers and cements her hero status in my eyes😊 There is also a secondary storyline of Veronica offering a job, along with room and board for another teenager, Michael, who came to Veronica’s assistance in the attack by the four @$$#*!%$ who were attacking the poor stray doggie. Michael has been feeding the stray dog, whenever he can, and has named the timid doggie, Coco.
Veronica owns and runs a dog training and boarding facility with the help of her dad, Bob, on their seven-acre property outside of Boulder, CO. They have their own homes on the property and there is an apartment out in the building with the dog kennels, which is where Michael will live. In addition to Leda, there are several other doggies in the story, with the main ones being Bob’s dog Riley and another doggie, Gemma, that Veronica is training to scent for some citrus farmers down in FL. Veronica also trains dogs to scent track. It’s amazing to learn about the scenting abilities of dogs. There are also a couple of dogs that Veronica is training and boarding, along with Michael’s Coco. Working with Michael in training him to assist Veronica becomes a secondary storyline.
Early in the story, Veronica and Leda are contracted with local PD and search and rescue services to find the missing scientist. The scientist is an expert witness for a local murder trial for a wealthy, celebrity, athlete who is accused of killing his wife. While some may not enjoy learning about the inner workings of a search and rescue team, I love it and have always been fascinated with search and rescue K9 teams. Carter does an excellent job of describing the many facets of a search and rescue K9 team and the work and training that she and Leda have.
By the halfway point, Veronica and the rest of the search team have discovered info that assists in the search for the scientist. Into the second half, Veronica and Leda begin the search and rescue again for the scientist again. It’s a night of some intense scenes trying to get off the mountain alive. I look forward to reading more about Veronica and Leda's Dogged Pursuits.
The story is a solid 3star read. While I love learning about search and rescue K9 teams, I found some of the minute details of some of the background research of the case surrounding the scientist and his work a little much at times. A couple of times I found my mind wandering during some of those passages. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Alyssa Baumann, who did a good job with the narration. I want to thank NetGalley and Books Forward Audiobooks for sending me this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
#NetGalley #BooksForwardAudiobooks #DoggedPursuit
July 10, 2023
[I received a free audiobook copy from Books Forward Audiobooks, BookBaby and Netgalley. This review is done freely, honestly and without payment].
[Ich habe ein kostenloses Hörbuchexemplar von Books Forward Audiobooks, BookBaby und Netgalley erhalten. Die Rezension erfolgt freiwillig, ehrlich und ohne Vergütung.]
(DEUTSCH WEITER UNTEN)
CW:
The protagonist (and also another female character) has a very unhealthy relationship with „unhealthy“ food. (biscuits etc.) This is interspersed throughout the book and accompanied by a certain „compulsion to exercise in order to be allowed to eat sweets“.
Summary
Veronica Kildare cannot believe her luck – being shot at, again, by the bad guys. The sound, the feel of the bullet, and the hatred resonate for more than just the transitory moment of impact. She has relocated to a new state, but brutality has rampaged into this life as well.
As the survivor of a senseless act of violence in her former life, Veronica struggles to recover from the lingering physical and emotional scars by working as a dog handler near Boulder, Colorado. Empowered by her intense bond with her search and rescue and drug detection dog, Leda, she finally begins to shake off the pain of her past. Then Veronica is drawn into the puzzling search for a scientist who has vanished near Rocky Mountain National Park. Dr. Randy Jeffers has inexplicably disappeared on the eve of his testimony in the high profile murder trial of a pro basketball player and the police are baffled.
As Veronica and Leda traverse rugged Roosevelt National Forest in a desperate search testing the limits of their abilities, it is not initially clear who has targeted Dr. Jeffers, or why. But it becomes shockingly obvious that someone will stop at nothing to silence him forever. The kidnappers with murder on their mind have guns, but Veronica has Leda and her own blossoming resilience as her weapons in their struggle for survival.
For me, the audiobook was much more dog comfort than thriller and I mean that in a positive way. Tracy Carter has put an incredible amount of love and detail into this book and takes us on a journey that dog lovers will adore. We learn an endless amount about dogs and different breeds and training. Even little details like „dogs smell so and so good“ were included and add a depth to the book that I loved!
In general, the writing style is very detailed. Tracy Carter takes a lot of time to describe environments, food, people and everything else, so you can perfectly imagine where the characters are.
The book has a very slow pacing, which I personally like. It takes its time so that we can get to know the characters (both humans and dogs) and acclimatise to the environment. Also, the pacing feels very realistic to me and nothing is hyped up too Hollywood-esque.
In fact, I was a little confused at the end because the Netgalley summary didn’t really fit the book for me. As I said at the beginning, it is much more about Veronica’s life with her dogs and her dog school than about the case. (Which is rather hyped up in the English summary).
I really enjoyed the book in terms of the dogs and loved how much info we got about dogs but also tracking equipment. At times it felt like a non-fiction book wrapped up in a novel and that was really great! You can just tell that Tracy Carter has done her research, or just knows her stuff.
The whole story was logically constructed and extremely lovely.
My biggest (and probably only) criticism, and also the reason why the stars went down so far, is the lack of content warning for dealing with food, kcal and body.
First of all, I want to say that it is perfectly fine if a character has an unhealthy relationship with food and their own body. In my opinion, however, this should be indicated beforehand - especially when it comes to bear as it does in this book.
I myself would not have listened to the audiobook if I had known that this theme would be present again and again. This behaviour towards food and body adds nothing to the story or character in my opinion and comes so unpredictably and in such quiet moments that it pulls me out every time. It is also noticeable that only female characters seem to have these problems, our protagonist is not the only one after all.
For many people this may not be a problem, but for people like me with eating disorder backgrounds it can be very problematic. (Like for me, for example)
The protagonist keeps saying / thinking that she can only eat peanut biscuits now, for example, because she had to walk all day, or did sport, etc. Also, it is always an inner monologue and sounds as if she is justifying herself for eating. (And then, of course, she has to do more sport. Once there is a dialogue with another person in which the protagonist and the other character are relieved about their physical exertions during the day and that they can now eat ice cream etc. But of course they are only allowed to do that because they have burned a lot of kcal.)
Also, our protagonist can be in a really good mood and it promptly drops when she eats a biscuit. (I’m sorry, that just makes me so angry because there was never any mention of that in the content description. It just makes you feel like biscuits etc are crap and that you’re not allowed to do that and if you eat them, you’re not allowed to be happy). This is a really unhealthy relationship to food and body and I recommend people who have problems with this not to read / listen to this book!
The English audio book was very good! The narrator read very well, although a little slowly for my taste. But you can just turn up the speed and it’s great. I would have liked a little more creativity in the variety of voices, but that’s complaining at a high level.
If there were content warnings, I would give 4 to 5 stars, because the book itself is really great!
(DEUTSCH)
Inhaltswarnung
Die Protagonistin (und auch ein weiterer weiblicher Charakter) hat ein sehr ungesundes Verhältnis zu „ungesundem“ Essen. (Kekse etc) das wird immer wieder im Buch eingestreut und von einem gewissen „Sportzwang, um Süßigkeiten essen zu dürfen“ begleitet.
Inhalt (Ich bin so mies in Inhaltsangaben omg)
Veronica Kildare ist nach einem Vorfall, bei dem ihr Verlobter und Chef ermordet wurden mit ihrem Vater nach Colorado gezogen. Dort hat sie sich ein Business aufgebaut, indem sie Hunde trainiert. (Es ist alles wie eine ultra intensive Hundeschule, in der die Hunde auch mehrere Wochen mit ihr auf ihrem Gelände sind.)
Auch ist ihr Hund Leda als Spürhund ausgebildet und Veronica und Leda arbeiten mit der örtlichen Polizei zusammen. Als Dr. Randy Jeffers im Roosevelt National Forest verschwindet, sollen Leda und Veronica seine Spur aufnehmen und ihn, wenn möglich, finden.
Für mich war das Hör-(buch) viel mehr Hunde-Comfort als Krimi und das meine ich mehr als nur positiv. Tracy Carter hat unglaublich viel Liebe und Detailreichtum in dieses Buch gesteckt und nimmt uns mit auf eine Reise, die wohl vor allem Hundeliebhaber vergöttern werden. Wir erfahren unendlich viel über Hunde und verschiedene Rassen und Training. Auch so kleine Details wie „Hunde riechen so und so gut“ wurden mit eingebaut und sorgen für eine Tiefe im Buch, die ich geliebt habe!
Generell ist der Schreibstil sehr ausführlich. Tracy Carter nimmt sich viel Zeit dafür Umgebungen, Essen, Menschen und alles Drumherum zu beschreiben, sodass man sich perfekt vorstellen kann, wo die Charaktere sich befinden.
Das Buch hat ein sehr langsames Pacing, was mir persönlich gut gefällt. Es nimmt sich Zeit, sodass wir Charaktere (Menschen wie Hunde) kennenlernen können und uns mit der Umgebung akklimatisieren können. Auch wirkt das Pacing auf mich sehr realistisch und es wird auch nichts zu Hollywood-esk aufgebauscht.
Tatsächlich war ich am Ende ein wenig verwirrt, da die Netgalley Inhaltsbeschreibung für mich nicht wirklich zum Buch gepasst hat. Wie ich bereits zu beginn meinte, geht es viel mehr um Veronicas Leben mit ihren Hunden und ihrer Schule als um den Fall. (Welcher in der englischen Summary doch recht aufgebauscht wird)
Ich habe das Buch in Bezug auf die Hunde sehr genossen und habe es geliebt, wie viele Infos wir über Hunde, aber auch Tracking Ausstattung bekommen haben. Manchmal fühlte es sich wie ein Sachbuch an, welches in einen Roman verpackt wurde und das war richtig toll! Man merkt einfach, das Tracy Carter recherchiert hat, oder sich einfach gut auskennt.
Die ganze Geschichte war logisch aufgebaut und extrem liebevoll.
Mein größter (und wohl einziger) Kritikpunkt und auch der Grund, weshalb die Sterne so weit heruntergegangen sind, ist die fehlende Inhaltswarnung für den Umgang mit Essen, kcal und Körper.
Erst einmal will ich sagen, dass es vollkommen in Ordnung ist, wenn ein Charakter ein ungesundes Verhältnis zu Lebensmitteln und dem eigenen Körper hat. Meiner Meinung nach sollte das aber vorher angezeigt werden – vor allem wenn es so zum tragen kommt, wie in diesem Buch.
Ich selbst hätte das Hörbuch nicht gehört, wenn ich gewusst hätte, dass dieses Thema immer wieder präsent ist. Dieses Verhalten zu Essen und Körper trägt meiner Meinung nach nichts zur Geschichte oder dem Charakter bei und kommt so unvorhersehbar und in solch ruhigen Momenten, dass es mich jedes Mal rausreißt. Auch ist auffällig, dass nur weiblich gelesene Charaktere diese Probleme zu haben scheinen, ist unsere Protagonistin immerhin nicht die einzige.
Für viele Leute mag dies kein Problem sein, für Menschen wie mich mit Essstörungshintergrund kann das aber sehr problematisch sein. (Wie für mich zum Beispiel)
Die Protagonistin sagt / denkt immer wieder, dass sie Erdnusskekse jetzt z.B. nur essen kann, weil sie den ganzen Tag laufen musste, oder Sport gemacht hat etc. Auch ist es immer ein innerer Monolog und klingt so, als würde sie sich selbst dafür rechtfertigen, dass sie isst. (Und dann muss sie natürlich mehr Sport machen. Einmal gibt es einen Dialog mit einer anderen Person, bei der die Protagonistin und der andere Charakter erleichtert über ihre körperlichen Anstrengungen am Tag sind und das sie jetzt Eis etc essen können. Das dürfen sie aber natürlich auch nur, weil sie viele kcal verbrannt haben)
Auch kann unsere Protagonistin richtig gute Laune haben und diese sinkt prompt, wenn sie einen Keks ist. (Es tut mir leid, das macht mich einfach so wütend, weil davon nie die Rede in der Inhaltsbeschreibung war. Das gibt einem einfach so das Gefühl, das Kekse etc so scheiße sind und das man das nicht darf und das man dann auch nicht mehr glücklich sein darf.)
Das ist ein echt ungesundes Verhältnis zu Essen und Körper und ich empfehle Menschen, die damit Probleme haben, dieses Buch nicht zu lesen / hören!
Das englische Hörbuch war sehr gut! Die Sprecherin hat sehr toll vorgelesen, wenn für meinen Geschmack auch ein wenig langsam. Man kann die Geschwindigkeit aber einfach hochstellen und dann ist es super.
In der Varietät der Stimmen hätte ich mir vielleicht noch ein wenig mehr Kreativität gewünscht, aber das ist Meckern auf hohem Niveau.
Wenn Inhaltswarnungen vorhanden wären, würde ich 4 bis 5 Sterne geben, denn an sich ist das Buch richtig toll!
[Ich habe ein kostenloses Hörbuchexemplar von Books Forward Audiobooks, BookBaby und Netgalley erhalten. Die Rezension erfolgt freiwillig, ehrlich und ohne Vergütung.]
(DEUTSCH WEITER UNTEN)
CW:
The protagonist (and also another female character) has a very unhealthy relationship with „unhealthy“ food. (biscuits etc.) This is interspersed throughout the book and accompanied by a certain „compulsion to exercise in order to be allowed to eat sweets“.
Summary
Veronica Kildare cannot believe her luck – being shot at, again, by the bad guys. The sound, the feel of the bullet, and the hatred resonate for more than just the transitory moment of impact. She has relocated to a new state, but brutality has rampaged into this life as well.
As the survivor of a senseless act of violence in her former life, Veronica struggles to recover from the lingering physical and emotional scars by working as a dog handler near Boulder, Colorado. Empowered by her intense bond with her search and rescue and drug detection dog, Leda, she finally begins to shake off the pain of her past. Then Veronica is drawn into the puzzling search for a scientist who has vanished near Rocky Mountain National Park. Dr. Randy Jeffers has inexplicably disappeared on the eve of his testimony in the high profile murder trial of a pro basketball player and the police are baffled.
As Veronica and Leda traverse rugged Roosevelt National Forest in a desperate search testing the limits of their abilities, it is not initially clear who has targeted Dr. Jeffers, or why. But it becomes shockingly obvious that someone will stop at nothing to silence him forever. The kidnappers with murder on their mind have guns, but Veronica has Leda and her own blossoming resilience as her weapons in their struggle for survival.
For me, the audiobook was much more dog comfort than thriller and I mean that in a positive way. Tracy Carter has put an incredible amount of love and detail into this book and takes us on a journey that dog lovers will adore. We learn an endless amount about dogs and different breeds and training. Even little details like „dogs smell so and so good“ were included and add a depth to the book that I loved!
In general, the writing style is very detailed. Tracy Carter takes a lot of time to describe environments, food, people and everything else, so you can perfectly imagine where the characters are.
The book has a very slow pacing, which I personally like. It takes its time so that we can get to know the characters (both humans and dogs) and acclimatise to the environment. Also, the pacing feels very realistic to me and nothing is hyped up too Hollywood-esque.
In fact, I was a little confused at the end because the Netgalley summary didn’t really fit the book for me. As I said at the beginning, it is much more about Veronica’s life with her dogs and her dog school than about the case. (Which is rather hyped up in the English summary).
I really enjoyed the book in terms of the dogs and loved how much info we got about dogs but also tracking equipment. At times it felt like a non-fiction book wrapped up in a novel and that was really great! You can just tell that Tracy Carter has done her research, or just knows her stuff.
The whole story was logically constructed and extremely lovely.
My biggest (and probably only) criticism, and also the reason why the stars went down so far, is the lack of content warning for dealing with food, kcal and body.
First of all, I want to say that it is perfectly fine if a character has an unhealthy relationship with food and their own body. In my opinion, however, this should be indicated beforehand - especially when it comes to bear as it does in this book.
I myself would not have listened to the audiobook if I had known that this theme would be present again and again. This behaviour towards food and body adds nothing to the story or character in my opinion and comes so unpredictably and in such quiet moments that it pulls me out every time. It is also noticeable that only female characters seem to have these problems, our protagonist is not the only one after all.
For many people this may not be a problem, but for people like me with eating disorder backgrounds it can be very problematic. (Like for me, for example)
The protagonist keeps saying / thinking that she can only eat peanut biscuits now, for example, because she had to walk all day, or did sport, etc. Also, it is always an inner monologue and sounds as if she is justifying herself for eating. (And then, of course, she has to do more sport. Once there is a dialogue with another person in which the protagonist and the other character are relieved about their physical exertions during the day and that they can now eat ice cream etc. But of course they are only allowed to do that because they have burned a lot of kcal.)
Also, our protagonist can be in a really good mood and it promptly drops when she eats a biscuit. (I’m sorry, that just makes me so angry because there was never any mention of that in the content description. It just makes you feel like biscuits etc are crap and that you’re not allowed to do that and if you eat them, you’re not allowed to be happy). This is a really unhealthy relationship to food and body and I recommend people who have problems with this not to read / listen to this book!
The English audio book was very good! The narrator read very well, although a little slowly for my taste. But you can just turn up the speed and it’s great. I would have liked a little more creativity in the variety of voices, but that’s complaining at a high level.
If there were content warnings, I would give 4 to 5 stars, because the book itself is really great!
(DEUTSCH)
Inhaltswarnung
Die Protagonistin (und auch ein weiterer weiblicher Charakter) hat ein sehr ungesundes Verhältnis zu „ungesundem“ Essen. (Kekse etc) das wird immer wieder im Buch eingestreut und von einem gewissen „Sportzwang, um Süßigkeiten essen zu dürfen“ begleitet.
Inhalt (Ich bin so mies in Inhaltsangaben omg)
Veronica Kildare ist nach einem Vorfall, bei dem ihr Verlobter und Chef ermordet wurden mit ihrem Vater nach Colorado gezogen. Dort hat sie sich ein Business aufgebaut, indem sie Hunde trainiert. (Es ist alles wie eine ultra intensive Hundeschule, in der die Hunde auch mehrere Wochen mit ihr auf ihrem Gelände sind.)
Auch ist ihr Hund Leda als Spürhund ausgebildet und Veronica und Leda arbeiten mit der örtlichen Polizei zusammen. Als Dr. Randy Jeffers im Roosevelt National Forest verschwindet, sollen Leda und Veronica seine Spur aufnehmen und ihn, wenn möglich, finden.
Für mich war das Hör-(buch) viel mehr Hunde-Comfort als Krimi und das meine ich mehr als nur positiv. Tracy Carter hat unglaublich viel Liebe und Detailreichtum in dieses Buch gesteckt und nimmt uns mit auf eine Reise, die wohl vor allem Hundeliebhaber vergöttern werden. Wir erfahren unendlich viel über Hunde und verschiedene Rassen und Training. Auch so kleine Details wie „Hunde riechen so und so gut“ wurden mit eingebaut und sorgen für eine Tiefe im Buch, die ich geliebt habe!
Generell ist der Schreibstil sehr ausführlich. Tracy Carter nimmt sich viel Zeit dafür Umgebungen, Essen, Menschen und alles Drumherum zu beschreiben, sodass man sich perfekt vorstellen kann, wo die Charaktere sich befinden.
Das Buch hat ein sehr langsames Pacing, was mir persönlich gut gefällt. Es nimmt sich Zeit, sodass wir Charaktere (Menschen wie Hunde) kennenlernen können und uns mit der Umgebung akklimatisieren können. Auch wirkt das Pacing auf mich sehr realistisch und es wird auch nichts zu Hollywood-esk aufgebauscht.
Tatsächlich war ich am Ende ein wenig verwirrt, da die Netgalley Inhaltsbeschreibung für mich nicht wirklich zum Buch gepasst hat. Wie ich bereits zu beginn meinte, geht es viel mehr um Veronicas Leben mit ihren Hunden und ihrer Schule als um den Fall. (Welcher in der englischen Summary doch recht aufgebauscht wird)
Ich habe das Buch in Bezug auf die Hunde sehr genossen und habe es geliebt, wie viele Infos wir über Hunde, aber auch Tracking Ausstattung bekommen haben. Manchmal fühlte es sich wie ein Sachbuch an, welches in einen Roman verpackt wurde und das war richtig toll! Man merkt einfach, das Tracy Carter recherchiert hat, oder sich einfach gut auskennt.
Die ganze Geschichte war logisch aufgebaut und extrem liebevoll.
Mein größter (und wohl einziger) Kritikpunkt und auch der Grund, weshalb die Sterne so weit heruntergegangen sind, ist die fehlende Inhaltswarnung für den Umgang mit Essen, kcal und Körper.
Erst einmal will ich sagen, dass es vollkommen in Ordnung ist, wenn ein Charakter ein ungesundes Verhältnis zu Lebensmitteln und dem eigenen Körper hat. Meiner Meinung nach sollte das aber vorher angezeigt werden – vor allem wenn es so zum tragen kommt, wie in diesem Buch.
Ich selbst hätte das Hörbuch nicht gehört, wenn ich gewusst hätte, dass dieses Thema immer wieder präsent ist. Dieses Verhalten zu Essen und Körper trägt meiner Meinung nach nichts zur Geschichte oder dem Charakter bei und kommt so unvorhersehbar und in solch ruhigen Momenten, dass es mich jedes Mal rausreißt. Auch ist auffällig, dass nur weiblich gelesene Charaktere diese Probleme zu haben scheinen, ist unsere Protagonistin immerhin nicht die einzige.
Für viele Leute mag dies kein Problem sein, für Menschen wie mich mit Essstörungshintergrund kann das aber sehr problematisch sein. (Wie für mich zum Beispiel)
Die Protagonistin sagt / denkt immer wieder, dass sie Erdnusskekse jetzt z.B. nur essen kann, weil sie den ganzen Tag laufen musste, oder Sport gemacht hat etc. Auch ist es immer ein innerer Monolog und klingt so, als würde sie sich selbst dafür rechtfertigen, dass sie isst. (Und dann muss sie natürlich mehr Sport machen. Einmal gibt es einen Dialog mit einer anderen Person, bei der die Protagonistin und der andere Charakter erleichtert über ihre körperlichen Anstrengungen am Tag sind und das sie jetzt Eis etc essen können. Das dürfen sie aber natürlich auch nur, weil sie viele kcal verbrannt haben)
Auch kann unsere Protagonistin richtig gute Laune haben und diese sinkt prompt, wenn sie einen Keks ist. (Es tut mir leid, das macht mich einfach so wütend, weil davon nie die Rede in der Inhaltsbeschreibung war. Das gibt einem einfach so das Gefühl, das Kekse etc so scheiße sind und das man das nicht darf und das man dann auch nicht mehr glücklich sein darf.)
Das ist ein echt ungesundes Verhältnis zu Essen und Körper und ich empfehle Menschen, die damit Probleme haben, dieses Buch nicht zu lesen / hören!
Das englische Hörbuch war sehr gut! Die Sprecherin hat sehr toll vorgelesen, wenn für meinen Geschmack auch ein wenig langsam. Man kann die Geschwindigkeit aber einfach hochstellen und dann ist es super.
In der Varietät der Stimmen hätte ich mir vielleicht noch ein wenig mehr Kreativität gewünscht, aber das ist Meckern auf hohem Niveau.
Wenn Inhaltswarnungen vorhanden wären, würde ich 4 bis 5 Sterne geben, denn an sich ist das Buch richtig toll!
June 29, 2024
Veronica's Haunting Past; A Missing Scientist; And Leda, The Wonder Dog!
"Dogged Pursuit" is Book 1 in A Veronica Mileage K-9 Mystery series, written by Tracy Carter. This book took me quite a bit longer to read than previous books of this length. The essence of the story focuses on Veronica Kildare, a dog trainer who trains dogs for the police, and for various individuals around the country who need a dog for special reasons, such as being trained to sniff out rotting fungi in orange orchards, or simple obedience training for overly hyper dogs, to dogs for Search and Rescue missions. Veronica's own dog that she rescued several years earlier is trained in Search and Rescue, which starts off the story when a hiker goes missing during a Colorado snow storm. Of course, Leda finds the injured woman. Next, Veronica (Ronnie to her dad), is hired to train a couple of Brittney Spaniel puppies, brothers from the same litter named Butter and Scotch. Cute names, huh? She also trains Gemma to detect rotting smells for a family in Florida who have a pretty large orange grove. Ronnie's father, Bob, writes Outdoors magazine articles for different products he tests, such as a GPS system, a really expensive pair of binoculars, desalination water pellets to put in water before drinking, and several other items used in mountain hiking and camping ventures. While in Denver one day, Ronnie saves a puppy from a group of four bullies who are chasing it and trying to hurt it. Michael, an 18 or 19 year old boy, helps stop the bullies. The authorities are called and Ronnie and Michael take the puppy, Cocoa, back to Ronnie and her father's land, where she hires Michael as her assistant with the dogs. She trains Michael on how to teach the dogs on certain commands, such as Down, Stay, Stand, Heel, and so on. Then, a leasing water scientist, who is an expert witness, goes missing, and Veronica and Leda have to find him. They have to go on a search and rescue mission that will either save a very important man, or get him, as well as Veronica and Leda killed.
This book was not just about a woman training dogs, but was also about water desalinization, the uses of many different hiking and camping items, a lot of names of hiking trails in Colorado, from Boulder to Estes Falls, and literally chapter-upon-chapter of explaining all these different things. Some of the explanations seemed to drag on forever, but by the end of the book, it was clear why all these explanations were needed. There are parts of the book that will make you cry, because they are the chapters that tell the story of Veronica and Leda, and the murders of eight people three years ago that she knew in Ohio, which is where she lived and wished before moving to Colorado. Then, there is the really funny, but not so funny scene that the Boulder Police Detective tells Ronnie, her dad, and Michael about why he won't be able to help Ronnie search for the missing scientist: let's just say it has something to do with 20 antique dolls being massacred in Niwot, Colorado's antique shop - a story that had me laughing myself silly, right alongside Ronnie, Michael, and Dad.
Even though I was bored during the lengthy discussions about certain topics, I still gave this book a 5 star rating because the topics wound up being integral to how the story ended. Each character's physicality and psychological personalities, including each human and each dog, was well-developed. I look forward to reading Book 2 soon.
"Dogged Pursuit" is Book 1 in A Veronica Mileage K-9 Mystery series, written by Tracy Carter. This book took me quite a bit longer to read than previous books of this length. The essence of the story focuses on Veronica Kildare, a dog trainer who trains dogs for the police, and for various individuals around the country who need a dog for special reasons, such as being trained to sniff out rotting fungi in orange orchards, or simple obedience training for overly hyper dogs, to dogs for Search and Rescue missions. Veronica's own dog that she rescued several years earlier is trained in Search and Rescue, which starts off the story when a hiker goes missing during a Colorado snow storm. Of course, Leda finds the injured woman. Next, Veronica (Ronnie to her dad), is hired to train a couple of Brittney Spaniel puppies, brothers from the same litter named Butter and Scotch. Cute names, huh? She also trains Gemma to detect rotting smells for a family in Florida who have a pretty large orange grove. Ronnie's father, Bob, writes Outdoors magazine articles for different products he tests, such as a GPS system, a really expensive pair of binoculars, desalination water pellets to put in water before drinking, and several other items used in mountain hiking and camping ventures. While in Denver one day, Ronnie saves a puppy from a group of four bullies who are chasing it and trying to hurt it. Michael, an 18 or 19 year old boy, helps stop the bullies. The authorities are called and Ronnie and Michael take the puppy, Cocoa, back to Ronnie and her father's land, where she hires Michael as her assistant with the dogs. She trains Michael on how to teach the dogs on certain commands, such as Down, Stay, Stand, Heel, and so on. Then, a leasing water scientist, who is an expert witness, goes missing, and Veronica and Leda have to find him. They have to go on a search and rescue mission that will either save a very important man, or get him, as well as Veronica and Leda killed.
This book was not just about a woman training dogs, but was also about water desalinization, the uses of many different hiking and camping items, a lot of names of hiking trails in Colorado, from Boulder to Estes Falls, and literally chapter-upon-chapter of explaining all these different things. Some of the explanations seemed to drag on forever, but by the end of the book, it was clear why all these explanations were needed. There are parts of the book that will make you cry, because they are the chapters that tell the story of Veronica and Leda, and the murders of eight people three years ago that she knew in Ohio, which is where she lived and wished before moving to Colorado. Then, there is the really funny, but not so funny scene that the Boulder Police Detective tells Ronnie, her dad, and Michael about why he won't be able to help Ronnie search for the missing scientist: let's just say it has something to do with 20 antique dolls being massacred in Niwot, Colorado's antique shop - a story that had me laughing myself silly, right alongside Ronnie, Michael, and Dad.
Even though I was bored during the lengthy discussions about certain topics, I still gave this book a 5 star rating because the topics wound up being integral to how the story ended. Each character's physicality and psychological personalities, including each human and each dog, was well-developed. I look forward to reading Book 2 soon.
September 26, 2024
After her life in Ohio falls apart traumatically, Veronica moves west to Colorado with her $95 life saver Leda, a four-year-old Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Starting her own K-9 training facility, Dogged Pursuit, on an acreage and converted day spa, Veronica, her father, and their loyal dogs make quite the crew.
Immediately, readers are introduced to Leda’s talents as she uses her trailing training to follow the scent of a missing hiker. Literally from page one, author Tracy Carter educates her readers on the unique talents and training of K-9s. Unlike tracking, which involves following footprints or other sets of tracks, dogs like Leda are trained in trailing. Using their phenomenal sense of smell and the ability to sniff the air more than 150 times a minute, Leda can trail a target using a scent article such as a piece of clothing, making her invaluable in locating missing hikers in Colorado’s various open spaces.
Like our main character Veronica Kildare, author Tracy Carter is also a professional dog handler and trainer. Combining her personal passions with her talent for writing, Carter has crafted an educational, yet thrilling, exploration through the Colorado wilderness in the hunt to find Dr. Randy Jeffers, a key expert in the high-profile murder trial involving a pro basketball player. Teaming up with Sgt. Tim Donovan of the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Leda and Veronica have their work cut out for them as they take on the case.
With a penchant for Ohio sports teams, but a love of the outdoors and her canine companions, Veronica and her father, Bob, have made an incredible new life for themselves. Working as a professional reviewer and writer, Bob is known affectionately as Mr. Safety, always making sure Veronica is well stocked with the latest gadgets and prepared for a multitude of scenarios when she leaves the house. Whether it be setting off for a trail run, or heading into town, Leda often isn’t far from Veronica’s side, and rightly so as they find themselves called upon at all hours of the day, in a variety of different ways.
Whether you are a dog lover or not, readers will be enamored with the various canine personalities on display within “Dogged Pursuit.” Full of suspense, thrills, and mystery, Carter has so intricately woven the partnership between woman and dog in her debut novel. Instantly falling for the bond each has made, “Dogged Pursuit” offers characters, companions, training tips, and an ending you won’t see coming. As the personalities, talents, and traits of each meld together to find the missing water expert. Carter’s writing will have you enraptured to the plot playing out across the pages.
Immediately, readers are introduced to Leda’s talents as she uses her trailing training to follow the scent of a missing hiker. Literally from page one, author Tracy Carter educates her readers on the unique talents and training of K-9s. Unlike tracking, which involves following footprints or other sets of tracks, dogs like Leda are trained in trailing. Using their phenomenal sense of smell and the ability to sniff the air more than 150 times a minute, Leda can trail a target using a scent article such as a piece of clothing, making her invaluable in locating missing hikers in Colorado’s various open spaces.
Like our main character Veronica Kildare, author Tracy Carter is also a professional dog handler and trainer. Combining her personal passions with her talent for writing, Carter has crafted an educational, yet thrilling, exploration through the Colorado wilderness in the hunt to find Dr. Randy Jeffers, a key expert in the high-profile murder trial involving a pro basketball player. Teaming up with Sgt. Tim Donovan of the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Leda and Veronica have their work cut out for them as they take on the case.
With a penchant for Ohio sports teams, but a love of the outdoors and her canine companions, Veronica and her father, Bob, have made an incredible new life for themselves. Working as a professional reviewer and writer, Bob is known affectionately as Mr. Safety, always making sure Veronica is well stocked with the latest gadgets and prepared for a multitude of scenarios when she leaves the house. Whether it be setting off for a trail run, or heading into town, Leda often isn’t far from Veronica’s side, and rightly so as they find themselves called upon at all hours of the day, in a variety of different ways.
Whether you are a dog lover or not, readers will be enamored with the various canine personalities on display within “Dogged Pursuit.” Full of suspense, thrills, and mystery, Carter has so intricately woven the partnership between woman and dog in her debut novel. Instantly falling for the bond each has made, “Dogged Pursuit” offers characters, companions, training tips, and an ending you won’t see coming. As the personalities, talents, and traits of each meld together to find the missing water expert. Carter’s writing will have you enraptured to the plot playing out across the pages.
August 29, 2023
3.5⭐️
Veronica Kildare cannot believe her luck – being shot at, again, by the bad guys. The sound, the feel of the bullet, and the hatred resonate for more than just the transitory moment of impact. She has relocated to a new state, but brutality has rampaged into this life as well.
As the survivor of a senseless act of violence in her former life, Veronica struggles to recover from the lingering physical and emotional scars by working as a dog handler near Boulder, Colorado. Empowered by her intense bond with her search and rescue and drug detection dog, Leda, she finally begins to shake off the pain of her past. Then Veronica is drawn into the puzzling search for a scientist who has vanished near Rocky Mountain National Park. Dr. Randy Jeffers has inexplicably disappeared on the eve of his testimony in the high profile murder trial of a pro basketball player and the police are baffled.
As Veronica and Leda traverse rugged Roosevelt National Forest in a desperate search testing the limits of their abilities, it is not initially clear who has targeted Dr. Jeffers, or why. But it becomes shockingly obvious that someone will stop at nothing to silence him forever. The kidnappers with murder on their mind have guns, but Veronica has Leda and her own blossoming resilience as her weapons in their struggle for survival.
I really, really wanted to like this book. It had a good premise, and it seemed to start out strong, especially for a fellow petcare pro whose views seemed in-line with the author, but then…. The details. So. Many. Superfluous. Details. It felt at times like I was reading someone’s food log, combined with a dog training instruction manual, with a dash of a detailed resume of every expert in any field mentioned at any point. The M.C. made sure to tell us in detail about every drink, food, or snack she or any other character ate at any point in the narration.
I think there was a decent novella underneath it all, after editing out a good portion of the detail and some of the awkward conversations that were clearly meant to provide us with more background. But I lost track of the story at times, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of detail.
If you like details and descriptions and backgrounds, or are willing to forgive anything for a mystery that includes dogs, then this could be the book for you.
Thank you Tracy Carter, Books Forward Audiobooks, BookBaby, NetGalley for providing this ALC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.
Veronica Kildare cannot believe her luck – being shot at, again, by the bad guys. The sound, the feel of the bullet, and the hatred resonate for more than just the transitory moment of impact. She has relocated to a new state, but brutality has rampaged into this life as well.
As the survivor of a senseless act of violence in her former life, Veronica struggles to recover from the lingering physical and emotional scars by working as a dog handler near Boulder, Colorado. Empowered by her intense bond with her search and rescue and drug detection dog, Leda, she finally begins to shake off the pain of her past. Then Veronica is drawn into the puzzling search for a scientist who has vanished near Rocky Mountain National Park. Dr. Randy Jeffers has inexplicably disappeared on the eve of his testimony in the high profile murder trial of a pro basketball player and the police are baffled.
As Veronica and Leda traverse rugged Roosevelt National Forest in a desperate search testing the limits of their abilities, it is not initially clear who has targeted Dr. Jeffers, or why. But it becomes shockingly obvious that someone will stop at nothing to silence him forever. The kidnappers with murder on their mind have guns, but Veronica has Leda and her own blossoming resilience as her weapons in their struggle for survival.
I really, really wanted to like this book. It had a good premise, and it seemed to start out strong, especially for a fellow petcare pro whose views seemed in-line with the author, but then…. The details. So. Many. Superfluous. Details. It felt at times like I was reading someone’s food log, combined with a dog training instruction manual, with a dash of a detailed resume of every expert in any field mentioned at any point. The M.C. made sure to tell us in detail about every drink, food, or snack she or any other character ate at any point in the narration.
I think there was a decent novella underneath it all, after editing out a good portion of the detail and some of the awkward conversations that were clearly meant to provide us with more background. But I lost track of the story at times, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of detail.
If you like details and descriptions and backgrounds, or are willing to forgive anything for a mystery that includes dogs, then this could be the book for you.
Thank you Tracy Carter, Books Forward Audiobooks, BookBaby, NetGalley for providing this ALC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.
August 22, 2023
Dogged Pursuit is the debut novel by Tracy Carter and the beginning of the Veronica Kildare K-9 Mystery series. Having lived through a violent assault that her fiancé, boss, and many others did not, former legal assistant Veronica Kildare has relocated to Colorado outside of Boulder. Having been trained by an expert dog trainer and having taken over his business, Veronica is now ensconced in the 7 acre Dogged Pursuit compound that she shares with her father Bob, a reviewer for outdoor equipment. She has her trusted Chesapeake Bay retriever Leda, to whom Veronica owes her life, her father and his trusted black lab Ripley, and a training facility where she trains dogs in obedience, service, and for very particular tasks. Her business also includes doing drug sweeps for schools and businesses, as well as doing searches for missing persons.
Having gotten turned around in Denver after one such sweep, Veronica encounters a group of street thugs attacking an innocent puppy in an alley. Before thinking, Veronica approaches feeling she can talk them down, but must physically take down the perpetrators. With two down, the third thug pulls a knife and comes after her. With one call Leda is there to effectively protect, but then the last thug also pulls a knife. At that point, a young, fit, black man comes through an establishment’s back door and comes to Veronica’s aid. When all four thugs are down, and 911 is called, Veronica learns the young man, Michael Fletcher, has aged out of the foster system, has been feeding the stray pup, and is living in the back storeroom of this bodega. After the perpetrators are taken away and statements are given, Veronica invites Michael to join them at the compound. He is conscientious, needs family, and is kind to animals. He is also interested in learning, a natural for her business.
As Veronica is brought into help find missing scientist Dr. Randy Jeffers, who is set to testify as an expert witness in a highly publicized case where a pro basketball player is accused of killing his wife. But no one knew what that search would bring and the danger Veronica would be in.
This is an exceptional debut novel! Extremely well plotted with thoroughly described settings and interesting characters, this book will leave the reader hanging repeatedly just to catch them before they reach bottom. So well done! Kudos to Ms. Carter!! I very much enjoyed this book and do recommend it!
Having gotten turned around in Denver after one such sweep, Veronica encounters a group of street thugs attacking an innocent puppy in an alley. Before thinking, Veronica approaches feeling she can talk them down, but must physically take down the perpetrators. With two down, the third thug pulls a knife and comes after her. With one call Leda is there to effectively protect, but then the last thug also pulls a knife. At that point, a young, fit, black man comes through an establishment’s back door and comes to Veronica’s aid. When all four thugs are down, and 911 is called, Veronica learns the young man, Michael Fletcher, has aged out of the foster system, has been feeding the stray pup, and is living in the back storeroom of this bodega. After the perpetrators are taken away and statements are given, Veronica invites Michael to join them at the compound. He is conscientious, needs family, and is kind to animals. He is also interested in learning, a natural for her business.
As Veronica is brought into help find missing scientist Dr. Randy Jeffers, who is set to testify as an expert witness in a highly publicized case where a pro basketball player is accused of killing his wife. But no one knew what that search would bring and the danger Veronica would be in.
This is an exceptional debut novel! Extremely well plotted with thoroughly described settings and interesting characters, this book will leave the reader hanging repeatedly just to catch them before they reach bottom. So well done! Kudos to Ms. Carter!! I very much enjoyed this book and do recommend it!
January 15, 2024
Dogged Pursuit by Tracy Carter will have readers on the edge of their seats. I very seldom want to jump ahead to the end of the story to see what happens, I like to enjoy everythng the story and author have to give, but boy, was I tested with this story !!!
In Dogged Pursuit readers are introduced to main character Veronica Kildare. Veronica had a very traumatic experience in Ohio so her father moves them to Colorado and helps her set up their new lives. Veronica starts her own dog handling and obedience training business and is doing real well. Her and her dog, Leda, are being called for more and more cases and their latest will test them to their limits !!
Veronica's friend Tim, who works for the Boulder County Sheriff's Department asks Veronica and Leda to assist in a missing person's case. A scientist, Dr. Randy Jeffers, has gone missing after talking to his wife and telling her he is going for a hike in the Rocky Mountain Natonal Park. Dr. Jeffers is scheduled to be a witness in a high profile case regarding a famous basketball player who is accused of murdering his wife. Veronica and Leda are asked to try to locate him in the park.
Not only does Veronica have her own business to run, dogs to train, but she has also taken on a new employee. Michael came into her life when she saw a dog being attacked and he helped save the dog. When Veronica learns that Michael is sleeping in a cot in the back of a business because he aged out of foster care, she immediately takes him home and sets him up in the apartment in the training building. Michael becomes a great asset for Veronica so that she can focus on the Jeffers case.
Readers will fall in love instantly with everything in this book and story !! You will love the relationships, Veronica's business and what she and Leda do. You will also love the suspense of the story and will be shocked at the outcome of parts !!! I highly recommend grabbing your copy and getting lost in this book ... I also recommend having a mug of hot cocoa on the table next to you and a furry companion by your side.
In Dogged Pursuit readers are introduced to main character Veronica Kildare. Veronica had a very traumatic experience in Ohio so her father moves them to Colorado and helps her set up their new lives. Veronica starts her own dog handling and obedience training business and is doing real well. Her and her dog, Leda, are being called for more and more cases and their latest will test them to their limits !!
Veronica's friend Tim, who works for the Boulder County Sheriff's Department asks Veronica and Leda to assist in a missing person's case. A scientist, Dr. Randy Jeffers, has gone missing after talking to his wife and telling her he is going for a hike in the Rocky Mountain Natonal Park. Dr. Jeffers is scheduled to be a witness in a high profile case regarding a famous basketball player who is accused of murdering his wife. Veronica and Leda are asked to try to locate him in the park.
Not only does Veronica have her own business to run, dogs to train, but she has also taken on a new employee. Michael came into her life when she saw a dog being attacked and he helped save the dog. When Veronica learns that Michael is sleeping in a cot in the back of a business because he aged out of foster care, she immediately takes him home and sets him up in the apartment in the training building. Michael becomes a great asset for Veronica so that she can focus on the Jeffers case.
Readers will fall in love instantly with everything in this book and story !! You will love the relationships, Veronica's business and what she and Leda do. You will also love the suspense of the story and will be shocked at the outcome of parts !!! I highly recommend grabbing your copy and getting lost in this book ... I also recommend having a mug of hot cocoa on the table next to you and a furry companion by your side.
March 27, 2023
I want to say I enjoyed this book and for the most I did but the story was too slow and the author gave you to much information on things you didn't need to know. As the story was based around a search and rescue dog I was disappointed that it was only towards the end of the book that escaping through woods and out smarting the bad guys happened, up until then it was more research of where to look and the history of the different locations. I liked the dog training aspects to the story, especially all the dogs but I was looking for more adventure. I liked the characters and the author certainly developed the characters. There was a mystery of who might have kidnapped the scientist and with plenty of suspects it took a number of twist but as I said was just too slow. I would probably give another book in this series ago because I like the idea behind the series and the characters.
After the death of her fiancee Veronica leaves her old life behind and becomes a dog trainer. Where she and her dog Leda quickly become experts at search and rescue, as well as drug detection. When the prosecution lead witness in a high profile case goes missing Veronica and her faithful k9 are called in. With a vague idea of where he was ,the duo with research help from her father set out to find the missing man but it quickly becomes obvious that maybe he had help disappearing. We they find him in time?
I liked the narrator. She had a pleasant voice to listen to.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review,
After the death of her fiancee Veronica leaves her old life behind and becomes a dog trainer. Where she and her dog Leda quickly become experts at search and rescue, as well as drug detection. When the prosecution lead witness in a high profile case goes missing Veronica and her faithful k9 are called in. With a vague idea of where he was ,the duo with research help from her father set out to find the missing man but it quickly becomes obvious that maybe he had help disappearing. We they find him in time?
I liked the narrator. She had a pleasant voice to listen to.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review,
July 14, 2023
Book Title: Dogged Pursuit
Series: Veronica Kildare K-9 Mystery series Book #1
Author: Tracy Carter (Debut Author)
Narrator: Allyssa Baumann
Publisher: Books Forward Audiobooks - BookBaby
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Audiobook Pub Date was:March 22,, 2023
My Rating: 3 Stars
Pages: 258
Story is set in the Rocky Mountains Nat’l Park; Leda an abused rescue now a search and rescue dog is the star of this story!
Story starts when Veronica Kildare a dog handler is shot again. She is still struggling from a blood bath that many innocent people as well as children were killed including her fiancée. At that time Veronica changed old life and became a dog trainer.
She still is recovering from both the physical and emotional scars. Now finds working at a job she loves helps.
I found the story interesting does go into a lot of details regarding the training necessary for a dog to be a search and rescue dog ~ Since we haven’t trained our now fifteen year dog to sit and we just keep giving her treats this seemed amazing to me!
The mystery in this story is to find the kidnapped scientist as well as who did it,
Story is a lot Veronica and her dogs the mystery is more of a side bar.
I am a big mystery fan so was disappointed the mystery part was secondary to the dogs.
Obvious Tracy Carter is very knowledgeable when it comes to this subject.
Want to thank NetGalley and Books Forward Audiobooks – BookBavy for this audiobook.
Publishing Release Date for this audiobook was March 22, 2023.
Series: Veronica Kildare K-9 Mystery series Book #1
Author: Tracy Carter (Debut Author)
Narrator: Allyssa Baumann
Publisher: Books Forward Audiobooks - BookBaby
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Audiobook Pub Date was:March 22,, 2023
My Rating: 3 Stars
Pages: 258
Story is set in the Rocky Mountains Nat’l Park; Leda an abused rescue now a search and rescue dog is the star of this story!
Story starts when Veronica Kildare a dog handler is shot again. She is still struggling from a blood bath that many innocent people as well as children were killed including her fiancée. At that time Veronica changed old life and became a dog trainer.
She still is recovering from both the physical and emotional scars. Now finds working at a job she loves helps.
I found the story interesting does go into a lot of details regarding the training necessary for a dog to be a search and rescue dog ~ Since we haven’t trained our now fifteen year dog to sit and we just keep giving her treats this seemed amazing to me!
The mystery in this story is to find the kidnapped scientist as well as who did it,
Story is a lot Veronica and her dogs the mystery is more of a side bar.
I am a big mystery fan so was disappointed the mystery part was secondary to the dogs.
Obvious Tracy Carter is very knowledgeable when it comes to this subject.
Want to thank NetGalley and Books Forward Audiobooks – BookBavy for this audiobook.
Publishing Release Date for this audiobook was March 22, 2023.
November 30, 2023
Apologies for losing the review I wrote while this was fresh in my memory. I had to look at the synopsis to immediately remember some of the stuff I disliked, but I don't remember what I did like. I think the ending, the pursuit through the woods and the final takedown, was great. Suspenseful; somewhat believable; just plain good stuff. I'll leave it at that--it ends well.
But before all that, I have a vivid memory of a sugary sweet story--she rescues a dog from an unrealistic team of teenage pursuers. She's helped by a young guy who has just aged out of the foster care system, and despite having no decent upbringing or family connections, turns out to be an angel in the raw. He's just way too perfect for any teenager, and he magically turns out to be the helper she needs.
Her father is another unbelievably perfect character. He's very flat and seems to consist of superhuman smarts overlaid on a motherlike love and concern that goes all the way from fixing her meals to cleaning her kennels. (I'm exaggerating a little--but only a little).
And her dog, of course, is freakishly perfect. I think the only time she comes close to committing an infraction is a very brief pause if a search to check out a wild deer or some such trail. But I don't remember if that actually happened or if the author just alluded to it having happened "once."
So, I liked the book and might try a second one in the series, if it happens. But I just need to be in the kind of mood with a high tolerance for frosted sugar cookies.
But before all that, I have a vivid memory of a sugary sweet story--she rescues a dog from an unrealistic team of teenage pursuers. She's helped by a young guy who has just aged out of the foster care system, and despite having no decent upbringing or family connections, turns out to be an angel in the raw. He's just way too perfect for any teenager, and he magically turns out to be the helper she needs.
Her father is another unbelievably perfect character. He's very flat and seems to consist of superhuman smarts overlaid on a motherlike love and concern that goes all the way from fixing her meals to cleaning her kennels. (I'm exaggerating a little--but only a little).
And her dog, of course, is freakishly perfect. I think the only time she comes close to committing an infraction is a very brief pause if a search to check out a wild deer or some such trail. But I don't remember if that actually happened or if the author just alluded to it having happened "once."
So, I liked the book and might try a second one in the series, if it happens. But I just need to be in the kind of mood with a high tolerance for frosted sugar cookies.
June 16, 2024
Why do we read? The reasons are as varied as there are readers: for escape, for drama, for suspense, to learn. All those nuggets are certainly ready to be discovered in Tracy Carter’s engaging and well-researched mystery, Dogged Pursuit. But for me, and I suspect most readers, it’s all about the feeling! This story drew me in through the development of its likeable protagonist, Veronica Kildare. I found myself really rooting for this capable and smart woman. Veronica has established a dog training business in Colorado, finding the bravery to reimagine her life and find meaning after surviving a tragedy. Along the way, she picks up strays (both human and canine), builds friendships, rescues others, and practices self-awareness and self-care to keep herself going. She pushes each day with hikes, runs, dog-training or yoga. I loved how her dad cooks great food and supplies her with superior outdoor gear that he tests for product reviews. I was delighted to find references to things I love – the Chicks, environmental issues, Rocky Mountain National Park – with surprisingly suspenseful outdoor trail sequences as Veronica and her dog Leda pursue a missing scientist in the mountains. Veronica is the type of hero anyone would want on their team. I look forward to seeing where her story will take us next. Congratulations to Tracy Carter for a hip, outdoorsy, informative, and plot-driven mystery, with above all, a kick ass strong female lead character.
August 8, 2023
I was super excited for this book, dogs + mystery sounded right up my alley!
Overall, while it was an interesting story, my mind often wandered during the overly descriptive sections. The reader was kept up to date with the investigation process through the character dialogue which made it feel completely unnatural and tended to include a lot of details that I didn’t feel were required and honestly got a bit boring.
Character wise everyone was just average. No one stood out as super relatable or interesting. I assume Michael will become more involved in the later releases in this series because currently he is just there and provides absolutely nothing.
Finally, I don’t think it was necessary for the MC to have such an unhealthy relationship with food especially without providing a content warning regarding it.
Thanks so much to NetGalley for providing this copy in exchange for an honest review.
Overall, while it was an interesting story, my mind often wandered during the overly descriptive sections. The reader was kept up to date with the investigation process through the character dialogue which made it feel completely unnatural and tended to include a lot of details that I didn’t feel were required and honestly got a bit boring.
Character wise everyone was just average. No one stood out as super relatable or interesting. I assume Michael will become more involved in the later releases in this series because currently he is just there and provides absolutely nothing.
Finally, I don’t think it was necessary for the MC to have such an unhealthy relationship with food especially without providing a content warning regarding it.
Thanks so much to NetGalley for providing this copy in exchange for an honest review.
October 28, 2022
Wow! This is supposed to be a debut book for a new author, but this book read like a polished professional wrote it. The author brought the reader along on a great journey into the world of canine search and rescue. I really enjoyed seeing the inside of what it takes to train dogs for this purpose. The characters (both human and canine), were believable and easy to relate to. I felt like I was with them step by step on their journey, and I LOVED LOVED LOVED the ending! If you are reading this trying to decide to get the book- DO IT!! You can thank me later. I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series. Get busy, Ms Carter- your fans await!
September 5, 2023
4 1/2 stars for me. This was an interesting story. I loved the tracking, clue hunting, bravery and compassion of Veronica Kildare. Her connection to Leda, her main tracking dog, was wonderful. Hunting for a missing professor led to danger, shoot outs, and near misses. The descriptions of the wilderness, mountains, and more had me wishing to be there. There was a lot of research done for this story. I enjoyed this and look forward to the next in the series.
The narration by Alyssa Baumann gave an added dimension to the story. She was clear and wonderful to listen to.
This is my unsolicited review.
The narration by Alyssa Baumann gave an added dimension to the story. She was clear and wonderful to listen to.
This is my unsolicited review.
September 30, 2026
Non mi ricordo come sono inciampata in questo libro, ma sono felice di averlo fatto. Il cast di personaggi (bipedi e a quattro zampe) è davvero interessante e inspirante, per così dire; il giallo è ben congegnato e anche se avevo indirizzato i miei sospetti nella direzione giusta, non avevo capito perfettamente tutto. Infine, ci sono un sacco di informazioni durante la storia sull'addestramento dei cani, sulle zone protette in Colorado (meglio: intorno a Boulder) e sulla vita outdoor, sulla depurazione dell'acqua: molto interessanti, ma a volte forse erano un pochino troppe... Comunque, promuovo il libro a pieni voti.
May 19, 2022
This has it all: a great twisted mystery story, lots of dogs, and other topics of interest
I have been reading a lot of mysteries, and lately, several with K-9 dogs or dog companions. They varied a lot. This one is not JUST a mystery with a dog, but is smooth reading for anyone who wants a story with depth and subplots. I LOVED it! The characters are well developed and the story is well written. I liked all the discussions and tangents to the main plot. They are interesting bits of history, useful information, commentary, all set in the magic of the Rocky Mountains.
I have been reading a lot of mysteries, and lately, several with K-9 dogs or dog companions. They varied a lot. This one is not JUST a mystery with a dog, but is smooth reading for anyone who wants a story with depth and subplots. I LOVED it! The characters are well developed and the story is well written. I liked all the discussions and tangents to the main plot. They are interesting bits of history, useful information, commentary, all set in the magic of the Rocky Mountains.
April 14, 2023
Dogged Pursuit is a mystery must read. What a tremendous debut in the Veronica Kildare K-9 Mystery Series! The characters have heart and tenacity and the dogs are absolutely wonderful, and essential to the action. The plot is full of twists and turns with shocking revelations and heart pounding suspense. I really liked the great writing and interesting details I learned along the way. Any lover of dogs and the outdoors will surely enjoy this mystery set in the beautiful Colorado wilderness. I can't wait for the second book in the series!
April 26, 2025
I really enjoyed how Tracy described the locales and how Veronica
Saw them.
Sadly, some of the despositive sections were dragging down the narrative. I hurried through those sections.
I did come to really like Veronica, and her father (who transcended her hero worship, but it was close).
Loved, Loved, the dogs. I have been binge reading books with military trained working dogs, and SARs.
Saw them.
Sadly, some of the despositive sections were dragging down the narrative. I hurried through those sections.
I did come to really like Veronica, and her father (who transcended her hero worship, but it was close).
Loved, Loved, the dogs. I have been binge reading books with military trained working dogs, and SARs.
July 7, 2022
Just finished it. Lots of scenery, being set in and around Rocky Mountains Nat’l Park and lots of smart, well-trained dogs or lively dogs becoming well-trained. The book is narrated in first person present tense which was difficult for me to adapt to, but then the story took over and it was fun reading from there on out. On to her next book in the series. Go, Leda; canine star of the series!
April 16, 2023
You will enjoy this book! Not only a mystery but includes one of my favorite topics - DOGS. I enjoyed the details about the life of the main character, Veronica Kildare. I could just picture her dog working and saving lives in the beautiful Rocky Mountain National Park. Great start to your new series Tracy Carter. I will be looking forward to your next book!
October 24, 2023
This had it all, a unique plot and interesting characters along with a mystery that kept the reader on the edge of their seat.
Tracy Carter gives the reader enough of a breadcrumb trail so you aren’t completely lost, but also throws in things completely unexpected.
The narrator did a wonderful job of setting the scene and bringing life to the story.
Tracy Carter gives the reader enough of a breadcrumb trail so you aren’t completely lost, but also throws in things completely unexpected.
The narrator did a wonderful job of setting the scene and bringing life to the story.
January 7, 2024
I enjoyed the characters and the mystery. Tracy’s descriptions of Colorado make it come alive for someone who has never been there. I really enjoyed the history and science/nature tie-ins and feel like I learned a lot. I’m looking forward to reading the next book and seeing how Veronica’s journey continues.
July 25, 2025
wordy
I liked the story line, but I think it was slow for me. There were parts where long descriptions detracted from the story as in the discussion re: water. Some of it was interesting but it was too much for me. There was a little more action when she found Randy and towards the end of the book. In general I thought the book was written at a teen level.
I liked the story line, but I think it was slow for me. There were parts where long descriptions detracted from the story as in the discussion re: water. Some of it was interesting but it was too much for me. There was a little more action when she found Randy and towards the end of the book. In general I thought the book was written at a teen level.
May 5, 2022
A Doggone Good Read!
Lovers of dogs, the outdoors and adventure...you will enjoy this book. I enjoyed the mystery, suspense, and the stories of survival and second chances. Keep writing Tracy!
Lovers of dogs, the outdoors and adventure...you will enjoy this book. I enjoyed the mystery, suspense, and the stories of survival and second chances. Keep writing Tracy!
June 15, 2022
Dogged Pursuit a very well-written Goodread
I enjoyed the mystery and the suspense. You will enjoy this book, and really will not want to stop reading it. Congratulations on a job well done. Keep writing Tracy.
I enjoyed the mystery and the suspense. You will enjoy this book, and really will not want to stop reading it. Congratulations on a job well done. Keep writing Tracy.
October 15, 2022
Really very good!
Good characters, a solid story that kept me on edge, marvelous dogs that are a strong part of the action, and to top it all, a beautiful poetic description of the landscape. I put this book at the top level of the genre.
Good characters, a solid story that kept me on edge, marvelous dogs that are a strong part of the action, and to top it all, a beautiful poetic description of the landscape. I put this book at the top level of the genre.
November 5, 2022
Exciting
Loved the story. Some places were a bit long winded. Kept me reading right from page one to the end. Anyone who loves dogs, outdoors and mystery should really like it. I did.
Loved the story. Some places were a bit long winded. Kept me reading right from page one to the end. Anyone who loves dogs, outdoors and mystery should really like it. I did.
May 29, 2023
Really enjoyable read
I liked the .pace always moving forward
The conclusion was exciting
Recommend this read for any dog lover the author has good things to say about dog training
I liked the .pace always moving forward
The conclusion was exciting
Recommend this read for any dog lover the author has good things to say about dog training
January 11, 2026
Wonderful book!
Really interesting characters, including Leda the dog. Couldn't put the book down. I'm going to read the next book in the series, because I really want to see what happens next.
Really interesting characters, including Leda the dog. Couldn't put the book down. I'm going to read the next book in the series, because I really want to see what happens next.
July 22, 2026
An engaging story that kept me interested to the end
I liked the flow of this story. It may have started just a tad wordy but then had me totally engaged with the characters and story line. I will definitely keep reading these books.
I liked the flow of this story. It may have started just a tad wordy but then had me totally engaged with the characters and story line. I will definitely keep reading these books.
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