Evil Breeding (Dog Lover's Mystery) [Mass Market Paperback]

Susan Conant (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2000 | Series: Dog Lover's Mystery

Dog's Life columnist Holly Winter has just landed a plum contract to write a book on Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge's legendary pre-World War II dog shows. Holly arranges to interview one of the last living participants in those fabulously opulent and exclusive shows: canine fancier B. Robert Motherway.

But there's something decidedly unsettling about the gracious old gent's imposing home with its acres of kennels. His dying wife wails piteously in an upstairs room, his servants are his sullen son and his downtrodden daughter-in-law, and his favorite German shepherd dog has an ill-bred snarl. Meanwhile, Holly's mail is laced with anonymous packages-old photographs, letters in German, and a brochure on pills for listless pooches.

Nothing makes sense until a garroted body is found in a nearby cemetery. Suddenly Holly and her Alaskan malamutes, Rowdy and Kimi, are on a seventy-year-old trail of deception, decadence, and death. And either they unearth the skeletons or join them.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Few readers, other than Conant's most devoted fans, will yap happily at her latest Dog Lover's mystery (after The Barker Street Regulars). Canine-crusading sleuth Holly Winter has signed a contract for a book of photographs about the famous Morris and Essex Dog Shows. In researching the events, she encounters an elderly man, B. Robert Motherway, who attended the shows as a youth. Interviewing him, Holly is introduced to his disquieting household: a son and daughter-in-law who are treated like servants, an unseen and deathly ill wife and a haughty grandson. When seemingly natural death and then outright murder visit Motherway family members, Holly pokes her nose in to scent out the truth. With the help of some anonymous letters and her shrewd friend Althea, Holly pieces together the dangerous secrets behind the Motherways' facade of patrician privilege. Canine lore and Conant's proselytizing against evil dog-breeding practices tend to swamp the meager but melodramatic plot, and her villains are so hazily sketched that readers might wonder how they engender any fear. The Barker Street Regulars was a much more accomplished story than this; hopefully Conant's next will be, too. Agent, Deborah Schneider.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Holly Winter, a Boston dog trainer, writer, and sleuth, has a contract to write a book about Rockefeller heiress Geraldine R. Dodge and her pre^-World War II Morris and Essex dog shows. In researching the book, Holly is drawn into a murder, a case of domestic abuse, and evidence of a Nazi spy ring. This twelfth Holly Winter mystery is filled with facts about dog breeding as well as training how-tos. Conant continues to develop her human and canine characters and to reveal the wonderful museums, parks and cemeteries of Boston. Unfortunately, this work is not as strong as The Barker Street Irregulars ; Conant has trouble weaving together the disparate story lines. Recommend it to devoted fans of Conant and other dog mysteries, but Lanier's Ten Little Bloodhounds (see review, p.1481) is a better example of the canine crime subgenre. John Rowen --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (February 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553580523
• ISBN-13: 978-0553580525
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.6 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #350,412 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in the Merrimack Valley of Massachusetts. The best friends of my childhood were pointers named Stuffy and Nonny. I had imaginary companions as well: a cat named Thirsty Melirsty Medrinkable, a family of dogs, and parents called Mommy and Daddy Suh. Thirsty and the dog family slowly faded away. The Suhs, however, perished suddenly; they ate fish guts and died. My career as a mystery writer thus began in early childhood: I invented animals, and I killed off fictional human beings.

Now, many decades later, I live just outside Boston. My husband is a clinical psychologist with a private practice in Cambridge. Our daughter, Jessica, who is also my coauthor, lives in New Hampshire with her husband and their young son. My husband and I have an Alaskan malamute, Django (pronounced 'Jango') and two Chartreux cats, Kansas City (K.C.) and Shadow Celeste. The malamutes in my Holly Winter books are composites, but the cats in Scratch the Surface, Edith and Brigitte, are portraits of my own Chartreux.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing!, April 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Evil Breeding: A Dog Lover's Mystery (Hardcover)

The latest entry into Susan Conant's series of Dog Lover's Mysteries is an engrossing novel that sweeps the reader back in time to learn about the dog world during World War II, and to learn more about Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge. The book leads the reader in new directions. It's nice to see a writer who doesn't dwell on one note because that's the easy way out. Conant has the courage and talent to explore her protagonist's interests and take the reader on Holly Winter's journey through the dog world, wherever that road may lead.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good read for amateur detetcive and dog lovers, March 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Evil Breeding: A Dog Lover's Mystery (Hardcover)

During the decades between the World Wars, the earth was a place of extremes. Millions lived in poverty while a few individuals possessed great wealth. The Morris and Essex dog shows exemplified a level of indulgence not seen since their demise. The prime patron and hostess to the shows was multi-millionaire Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge. She would fly in European dogs, trainers, and owners, setting up small cities on her vast estates to house the canines and their guests.

Modern day dog lover Holly Winters, owner of two champion Alaskan Malamutes (Rowdy and Kiwi), is enamoured with the historical persona of Geraldine. She is thrilled to be commissioned to write a book on the Morris and Essex dog shows. Holly interviews B. Robert Motherwood, a classmate of Geraldine's deceased son, who attended the shows. Holly learns more than she ever needed to know. She soon finds herself investigating murder inside of the Motherwood home.

Anyone who has read the Barker Street Regulars will be elated over the fact that some of the characters appears in EVIL BREEDING. Canine lovers will also adore this novel because of the obsessive behavior of the heroine when it comes to pampering her dogs. The gothic-like story line centers on the ugly secrets of a prominent family who will kill to keep skeletons inside the closet. Thus Susan Conant ahs written a cross appeal tale that fans of gothic, amateur detectives, and pet lovers will cherish.

Harriet Klausner

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful writer gets even better, March 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Evil Breeding: A Dog Lover's Mystery (Hardcover)

Susan Conant has once again provided her fans with a wonderful book and has written a wonderful book that ought to gain her some new fans. Her characterizations of the humans are vivid and convey the kind of understanding of human nature most of us think but rarely give voice to (e.g., upon meeting the kennel keeper, Holly describes his expression as indicating that he'd never found much about people to like and that she shouldn't bother to try to change his beliefs). Ms. Conant's characterizations of the animals and the relationships between people and animals (what hooked me in the first place) continue to delight and strike familiar chords. The plot moves well and continues to show the greater complexity of her more recent books, although the title probably pretty well gives away the ending, especially if the reader has much knowledge of eugenics. My only complaint (and this reflects my pro-dog bias) is that I'd like more on Rowdy and Kimi (and Tracker, too). Ever since Holly took the bet from Rita about writing about humans rather than dogs, Ms. Conant seems to have gone in that direction, too. Altogether - Love it and can't wait 'til the next one. Isn't it about time for Buck to resume showing his Golden puppy, have a competitor (who has been a competitor to the family for a long time and maybe was close at one time to Holly's mom) get murdered and Buck be accused? Perhaps Rowdy should have his services sold only to have a battle erupt with the dam's owner over a possible genetic flaw in the puppies due to Rowdy (not that Holly would knowingly breed if there were such a flaw). The puppies are puppy-napped, the dam's owner winds up dead and Holly winds up accused.