Customer Reviews

Double Dog Dare (Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter Mystery, No. 6)

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

 

 

I wasn't all that impressed with this installment of the series.

I really hate stories where the main character comes up with an idea or does something and all we're given is evasive comments about it. Such was the case with Kendra solving the mystery -- out of nowhere, she came up with the solution and managed to wrangle a group of strangers together to present it. I had no idea where any of this came from.

I also thought the whole Poop Scoop thing was silly and blatantly obvious right from the start. It added nothing to the story, other than to make me roll my eyes.

Kendra is also a lousy pet-sitter -- hugging and giving treats doesn't compare with showing up late to tend to her charges or pawning them off on the assumption her assistant is readily available to take over for her or bringing hers and Jeff's dogs with her to either meet strange animals or leave them sitting in her car. If my pet-sitter showed up with strange dogs, she wouldn't be pet-sitting for me anymore.

The author has such potential with this series, and I don't understand why she's not able to run with it.

First off this one was not as well thought out and written as well as the others.
Kendra was just obnoxious to her friends and others and whining about her Financial state got old.Some of the plots were very forced and unbelievable, and i got real tired of the continuing fighting between her and Jeff.
Either poop or got off the pot.

Jeff Hubbard, Kendra Ballantine's boyfriend, is missing. Jeff had gone out of town like normal related to his work with his security and private investigation business. But when he ends up incommunicado and his Escalade is found in the aqueduct, there is concern he isn't coming back.

Kendra is a lawyer and pet sitter. She's also done some investigating in the past and helped solve some murders. Lois Terrone, a surrogate mother to Jeff Kendra had never heard of, enlists her aid. She had gone to The Clone Arranger to try to have her dog cloned. She feels they did something that caused her dog to die. Kendra visits The Clone Arranger to see what she can find out under the guise of wanting to have a dog cloned. Lois also tells Kendra that Jeff had come back to town to look into The Clone Arranger for her before his Escalade was found. Could he have found something that caused him harm? Is he alive?

Plus Kendra has her law practice and pet sitting to keep up with. These keep her plenty busy. She ends up working with a couple that run a business that trains animals for the movies. Some of their unhappy customers are suing them because their pets never got any parts. They never promised results. Can Kendra come up with an agreeable outcome to everyone?

This was a great installment in this series. I devoured it in two days. I thought the author did a great job of presenting the cloning aspect without too much controversy. I like how she intertwined the stories so seamlessly. She also did a great job of having Kendra having to go on with her life and yet showing her devastation at not knowing Jeff's fate. I really like Kendra, Jeff, their two dogs, and the other regulars in this series. Having Kendra working as a lawyer and a pet sitter gives so many great storylines in this series.

I hope this series will go on for years. I can't wait to read the next book! Please write fast!

I highly recommend this book.

I hold Linda Johnston in high esteem as a writer. Her characters well developed. Kendra is witty as well as funny to read about. Her misadventures keep you wanting the book series to never end. I highly suggest this book to anyone wishing for a well written book.

I've read and enjoyed the previous Pet-Sitter mysteries but this one was terrible--and terribly written. Although the styles of Ms. Johnson's first chapters are usually slightyl bumping, halting, this book recovers from that only ocassionally. Kendra is constantly going back and forth, from place to place with no forward movement. She goes the the cloning site, then back again with someone else, then back again and doesn't learn much. Seems the author mistakes motion for plot. She also brings back characters frmo other books and tells us about them--we don't care. There is very little plot. As for her lover--what a jerk. Surely the writer could have figured out some explanation for his character without making him sound like sure an unsympathetic person. His actions are completely unmotivated and he USED to be nice to Kendra.

Ms. Johnson obviously needed to spend more time on this book. Even one more edit would have helped. And where was her editor? Didn't the editor notice how unmotivated and poorly written the book is?

These used to be automatic buys for me. No longer.

I read all of the books in this series and was very disappointed in this one. As others have said, the poop scoop clue was obvious, and the murder magnet reference was cloying, but the thing that alienated me from this book was that the fundamental character of Jeff changed so radically. I understood the explanation given for it but I did not buy it. If there is so much love and intimacy between these two people, it does not ring true that his behavior would play out in this manner. Even through the end, it was depressing.She risked her life for someone she loved and he remained distant and emotionally disconnected. He was simply a totally different Jeff. There was nothing in common from his character as developed in any of the other books. I am hoping the purpose of this was to bring Kendra closer to the detective as there always seemed to be chemistry between them. I will try the next one before giving up on the series.

There is no point in repeating the premise as most of the other reviews give a synopsis. I found the book a fun read with lots of twists and turns. Just when you thought you knew who did it, there was more to the story.

I liked the way Linda brought readers up to speed with characters that had been in previous books. The plot was interesting, but not so convulted that it was hard to follow. I wonder if Ned Noralles is going to become a romantic interest. I'll just have to read the next book to find out.

I am usually a huge fan of this series but this installment fell short in my opinion. Kendra we know you are a murder magnet...we get it. We know you are a great attorney...we get it. We know how you've solved many murders ahead of the cops...we get it. We know Jeff hurt you...we get it. Page after page of the same ramblings get old.

Like another reviewer mentioned the "scooper" was so obvious you could see it a mile away. All of the characters that I have come to know and love had completely different personalities that I felt like I was reading a new series. Not to mention her resolutions just seem to come out of thin air. One second she is baffled and in danger, the next she has everything solved.

I'm hopeful this installment was a one time thing and the old Kendra will be back.

I have all of Ms. Johnston's Pet Sitter mysteries. Some of them are better than others. This one has a great premise, which is a strong departure from the usual mystery faire. It has to do with the controversy of cloning and while it is a bit predictable, the book is still worth reading.

Kendra's reference to herself as a murder magnet, as she does in each and every mystery, can get obnoxious after awhile and Ms. Johnston appears to have a limited vocabulary when it comes to big words as they tend to stand out in her simple mysteries and she likes to repeat herself, which I find annoying.

However, if you overlook the above (and you're not a total grammar nerd like me) the books are entertaining and often keep me guessing. There is nothing worse than figuring out whodunit in the middle of the story.

Overall, the series is charming and cute but if you're looking for learning something I would suggest Cleo Coyle's coffee series or the chocoholic mysteries for something, for lack of a better pun, that you can sink your teeth into.

Double Dog Dare
by Linda O. Johnston

Berkley, 2008. ISBN 978-0-425-22232-4.
Reviewed by Judith Helburn
Posted on 06/10/2008
Fiction: Mystery



Double Dog Dare is a mystery for dog lovers, as well as lovers of pets in general. Not only are there lots of dogs in this tale, but cats and a sweet pet pig. Kendra Ballantyne is an attorney who attracts clients with pet issues. However, she seems to enjoy her time as pet-sitter/walker more than sitting at a desk. Double Dog Dare is the sixth in this cozy, humorous series.

In this story, Kendra is distraught because her boyfriend has disappeared just after he and she had agreed to move in together. Was it something she said? Or might it have something to do with his car being discovered submerged in a canal with a window broken and blood on the seat? Naturally, Kendra begins an investigation into his disappearance which leads her to The Clone Arranger, a company advertising that it will clone your beloved dog so you can have the one you love around for several dog lifetimes. The opportunity for humor abounds. Kendra finds unattractive physical characteristics in most of the humans she meets while most of the animals are delightful. Then again, one of her new acquaintances is a murderer. It is no wonder she likes the company of pets.

Double Dog Dare is a good travel or beach book. It includes an aging actress, a retired pole dancer, an adversarial cop, a handsome veterinarian, the owner of a dog day care spa and various other intriguing characters.

by Judith Helburn
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women