Dog Day [Paperback]

Alicia Gimenez-Bartlett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2006

"Gimnez-Bartlett has discovered a world full of dark corners and hidden elements." ABC

In this hardboiled fiction for dog lovers and lovers of dog mysteries, detective Petra Delicado and her maladroit sidekick, Garzon, investigate the murder of a tramp whose only friend is a mongrel dog named "Fright." One murder leads to another and Delicado finds herself involved in the sordid, dangerous world of fight dogs. Dog Day is first-rate entertainment.

Alicia Gimnez-Bartlett was awarded the Feminino Lumen prize for the best female writer in Spain in 1997. She subsequently launched her Petra Delicado series, quickly turning her into one of Spain's most popular and best-loved crime writers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

American readers will welcome Giménez-Bartlett's detective duo of Insp. Petra Delicado and Sgt. Fermín Garzón in this sharply honed tale of dog trafficking in Barcelona. Delicado and Garzón investigate the near-fatal beating of a derelict whose sole possession seems to be a peculiar-looking dog. As the partners piece together the last few days of the victim's life, they learn his name, Lucena, and that he sold dogs to local universities and pharmaceutical companies for experiments. When a huge stash of cash turns up in Lucena's barren apartment, the detectives know their man was caught up in something far more lucrative than selling dogs for research. Both the case and the personal lives of Delicado and Garzón become more complicated, as the inspector gets involved with a local veterinarian and Garzón finds himself in a love triangle with a bookstore owner and dog trainer. Giménez-Bartlett, who in 1997 won the Feminino Lumen prize for the best female writer in Spain, has produced a dark, distinctive and surprisingly funny novel sure to appeal not just to dog lovers. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Barcelona police detective Petra Delicado and her quirky partner, Fermin Garzon, return for another entertaining adventure. A homeless man is murdered, leaving no one behind but his dog. What should be a relatively speedy investigation--dead homeless people usually don't rate much attention--turns into a complicated case that plunges Delicado and Garzon into the disreputable world of dog fighting. Fans of the Delicado series will enjoy the author's nimble writing style (well translated from the Spanish) and the banter between the two leads. Lovers of canine-related mysteries will be entertained, too, although they should be warned that some of the book's passages may cause distress. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Europa Editions (June 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933372141
• ISBN-13: 978-1933372143
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,645 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, quality mystery from a Spanish writer, July 27, 2008

By 

JengaJ (Bethesda, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dog Day (Paperback)

I picked this novel up in an aiport bookstore before a long flight, and was very glad that I did. This is a fresh voice for American mystery readers. I've read enough police procedurals and "mystery thrillers" taking place in the familiar U.S. locations, peopled by the usual suspects - hard boiled American detectives and cops, crooks, killers, psychopaths, and the like. For fans of the genre who want a change of pace, I strongly recommend books that are recently hitting the stores, like Ann Cleeve's Raven Black (Shetland, England), or Miyuke Miyabe's All She Was Worth (Japan), or this great read by Gimenez-Bartlett, about a tough Spanish detective in Barcelona and her food-loving partner, investigating a mystery revolving around dogs.

This is a well-written novel with good characters and a fresh perspective, though the plotting is not the strongest I've encountered in the genre. For animal lovers, the descriptions are disappointing - the author has obviously not done her research. I won't give the plot away, but it does take the detectives awhile to catch on to what's afoot (modern readers will be a step ahead- the novel was written years ago and only recently translated). And again, the dog-related descriptions are off the mark, and for readers who know about dogs, that can be a distraction. This is not a unique problem to this author, however - I've read several books featuring dogs that have gotten basic facts about breeds or dog behavior wrong.

However, that did not take away from my enjoyment of this book. This is a strong, fresh voice for American mystery fans, and I have already ordered the next installment in this series. I'm also eagerly looking for other mysteries/procedurals written by non-American authors - it really does make for a terrific change of pace.

A final note - DO NOT READ the book jacket- it contains a major plot spoiler.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Doggie crimes and misdemeanors in Barcelona, May 22, 2009

By 

Patto (Vermont) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

I love this detective. Inspector Petra Delicado is a wielder of barbed metaphors, a lusty heartbreaker, a crusty friend, and a woman with a brutally logical mind. Her sidekick-subordinate Fermin Garzón is exactly calculated to make her act out: an old-fashioned cop with vigilante impulses and a sentimental streak.

If you like your stories in chronological order, read Death Rites first. It tells how Delicado and Garzón got to be friends on their first case. But Dog Day can stand on its own, too.

Once again, these two unlikely teammates are given a case because it doesn't interest their colleagues, who are too busy anyway. A man from the dregs of society is found horribly beaten up and in a coma. He dies, and they have a murder case.

Identifying the victim, who has no papers and no friends or family, is a challenge. He is survived only by an ugly little dog, who Petra decides will help them track the killer.

As it turns out, the whole mystery revolves around dogs, dog thieves, experiments on dogs and other crimes against dogs.

The two detectives stay focused on the case despite their romantic adventures, which are pathetic and hilarious by turns. Alicia Giminéz-Bartlett is an extremely funny writer.

Incidentally, Europa Editions, publishers of Giminéz-Bartlett, produce really lovely paperbacks. I'll read any good book, no matter how cheesy the printing, but it's an added pleasure to handle a book of such fine quality.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Barcelona Crime Fiction, August 15, 2006

By 

Kevin Lane (Norfolk, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dog Day (Paperback)

Gimemez-Bartlett is one of Spain's premier crime writers. This is one of her books centered around Barcelona police inspector Petra Delicado. She is a strong, smooth character well-matched with her slightly rotund and bachelor partner. A cast of quirky characters, a glimpse of the underside of Barcelona through the investigation of a murder linked to a dog theft ring. What makes foreign fiction tough sometimes is the quality of the translation, and in this case the translation is solid and gives the text a sparse, noir quality. This book is 10 years old and just came out in English, and I hope we see more of her work in English in the future.