Customer Reviews

To Collar a Killer

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Jack Field is a dog genius. Any questions you may have, he has the answers. He thought, when he retired as a NYC cop and bought a kennel in Maine, that the rough life was gone. He is proven wrong when a man is found dead. Worse yet, Jack is the prime suspect!

The person framing Jack is doing a good job too. For this case goes from Maine to a San Diego drug lord. But they apparently did not know who they were messing with.

***** Very clever! The author had me guessing for a long while. Dog lovers (the tips really do work!) or not, if you like mysteries, you will love this one. *****

Reviewed by K. Blair.

I do not like the cutesy titles, I do not like the cutesy artwork, but I love the novels of Mr. Lee Charles Kelley. My only problem is I gave five stars to one of his previous books, and now I don't have room to give this one the kind of stellar accolades it deserves.

It's a great mystery, but more than that, you care about the characters' lives, you laugh yourself silly at times, and you find yourself crying your eyes out at others, all while being kept in suspense about how the hero (and his lovely lady friend) are going to "Collar a Killer".

Six and a half stars, at least . . .

So what is it that is so very appealing about this series? Maybe for me it is the setting- my own adopted state of Maine. Or could it be the characters? Jack Field, ex New York detective, is the owner of a dog kennel/ training business. He is usually in the company of or thinking about Jamie Cutter, the Medical Examiner. Living with Jack is his foster son, 'Duke" a crime victim from NYC. A steady, well written cast of characters traveling from one book to another to make this a cohesive, fun group of books to read. The starring roles though are assigned to the various dogs that populate the scenes. Much space is also given to dog training tips- a system based on play and praise.
Kelley writes with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek. He seems to understand that Jack makes Sherlock Holmes seem dense and plots are more interesting when they appear impossible. The asides and comments to the reader draw the casual reader into his world. He cleverly admits that these are just good mystery stories that are enjoyable to read- and what more can we ask from a cozy?
(Next step would be a top rated tv show! Anyone out there know any producers..but remember it was my idea first!)

Three Hints for reading this series:
1. It is not neccesary to read them in the order written but would be more enjoyable to follow the continuing plot lines in order.
2. Just remember- the dog is always innocent ! (oops- is that a spoiler?)
3. If you do not have a dog when you start the series you probably will by the end!

To Collar a Killer
Tipper, a corgi, and Jack are playing fetch at the July 4th picnic when they discover a dead body.
Whan all the clues point to Jack as the murderer he must put all the pieces together to
figure out who is trying to frame him.

Jack Field does not believe in training dogs the same way as other trainers. And because of that, he seems to get hard to handle dogs eating out of his hand with what appears to be not much work. He's now showing his training techniques on the TV.

When Jack discovers a murdered man on his fiancee's aunt's island, he finds himself the prime suspect for the murder. His buddy comes down to help him out since his lawyer is in the hospital with another bout of her cancer.

The evidence points to Jack at first, but his fianc?e Dr. Jamie Cutter, assistant state medical examiner, starts getting to the bottom of the evidence.

In the meantime, Jack and Kelso, his buddy and new lawyer, do some investigating of their own. They find a possible art forgery scheme, and Maori hit men from San Diego. Plus, the man that was murdered was the helicopter pilot of a billionaire inventor from another private island off the coast of Maine.

Can Jack and Kelso, with the help of Jamie, get to the bottom of things without Jack ending up in jail or any of them ending up dead?

I love the way these books are written. They are so much fun. I wish Jack Field would come and train my dog. He has such a wonderful way with them. But he's also a great investigator, and Jack and Jamie have a terrific relationship, too. I especially appreciate that the sex doesn't have to be spelled out!

Kelso is a fun new character. I hope he'll be back in future books.

I highly recommend this book and the whole series.

[...]

A terrific story. I am a dog lover and have read most of Charles Lee Kelley's books ... I also live in Maine!

I've enjoyed all the books in this series.
His dog training tips are really interesting.
Now if only he would train my dog!!!

An unlikable protagonist and ridiculous scenarios of police "procedures" mar what could have been a good mystery/dog training tips book. What a waste.

Henry James, in THE ART OF THE NOVEL, categorized the detective story as "fantasy." (This, as opposed to the realistic novels he wrote.) He wasn't being derogatory, just precise. And there's a lot of truth to his point, even a hundred years later. We're all used to dramatic car chases and shoot-outs in crime novels, movies, and TV, and I'd venture to say that very few of us question how much of this is grounded in reality or is pure fantasy. The fact is, few police officers or real private detectives ever draw their weapons or engage in high-speed pursuits with bad guys. Real-life detective work is mostly drudgery and seldom presents situations that could be fodder for an adventure story.

But I love adventure stories! I loved the Hardy Boys as a kid. And Sherlock Holmes. And Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn (they were detectives, in a way, weren't they?).

Personally, of the first three novels in the Jack and Jamie series, this is my favorite. There aren't any shoot-outs or chase scenes (well, there is one scene where a couple of people, including my main character, Jack, are shot at, and there's a helicopter chase at the end, although it happens "off-screen"), but TO COLLAR A KILLER certainly IS an adventure.

There are a couple of ex-college football playing Maori hit-men from San Diego, a possible art forgery scheme, an FBI cover-up, a billionaire inventor with his own private island off the coast of Maine, and at the end there's a trap for the killer caught on live TV with international satellite feeds. It's kind of far out, I suppose, but I think I kept it grounded in just enough reality to make it work. Plus, it's funny as hell and there's one chapter, as Jack and his friend Lou Kelso wait outside the San Diego drug lord's hacienda, that is some of the best pure writing I've ever done.

So is this novel pure sensationalism or just downright sensational? I'll let you decide.

This is to balance out the 5 star rating that the author gives to his own book.