Jingle Bell Bark (Melanie Travis Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Laurien Berenson (Author)

Book Description

Series: Melanie Travis Mysteries | Publication Date: September 1, 2004

hardcover with dust cover with a sticker good binding, clean pages

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Berenson's delightful holiday romp, the 11th entry in her popular canine cozy series (Best in Show, etc.), trainer Melanie Travis investigates the suspicious death of her eight-year-old son's school-bus driver, the personable and reliable Henry Pruitt. Melanie rescues the victim's two golden retrievers and takes them to the kennel run by her bossy Aunt Peg, who's keen to learn what really happened to Henry. As Melanie delves into Henry's background, his two disagreeable and greedy daughters arrive on the scene with the outrageous idea of selling the pair of aging dogs on eBay. Preparing for an important dog show, trying to find time for her fiancé and dealing with her ex-husband further complicate Melanie's busy life. Oh, and then there's Christmas. Despite all the demands, Melanie manages to hang the wreath, decorate the tree, finish the shopping and collar a murderer. As ever, the author provides a captivating behind-the-scenes look at the world of show dogs.
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Kensington (September 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1575667584
• ISBN-13: 978-1575667584
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,840,013 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Strong writing, great character, March 12, 2005

By 

booksforabuck "BooksForABuck" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Jingle Bell Bark (Melanie Travis Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Melanie Travis has enough to do over the holiday season without worrying about murder. She has a son to shop for, an expecting sister-in-law, a poodle to prepare for all-important showings, a girlfriend to straighten out on buying a respectable dog, and a relationship to get right. When the favorite schoolbus driver is found dead, all Melanie intends to do is make sure his dogs get a proper home. But getting the dogs the right home gets complicated when the driver's daughters roll into town--intent on putting the dogs up for auction (because one of their parents' was a champion, the daughters assumes that the dogs must be highly valuable). The only way Melanie's Aunt Peg figures to get rid of the daughters is to solve the mystery herself. Of course, Aunt Peg's way of solving mysteries turns out to involve a lot of sending Melanie out to do the work.

Author Laurien Berenson does an excellent job combining an interesting character with humor and mystery. Melanie, with her relationship issues, and her obsession with her standard poodles draws the reader in largely because she is a typical suburban mom--caught between a job, her child, and a hobby that demands so much of her time. In Berenson books, the mystery plays second fiddle--it isn't that it isn't being worked on, it's just that the mystery has to come after Melanie takes care of her son and her poodles.

In JINGLE BELL BARK, Berenson makes the combination click. I've enjoyed a number of other novels in this series, but BARK seems to put togther the combination of character, humor, and strong writing even better than the earlier novels. Berenson's writing hooks the reader early and keeps us involved with the story.

I have no hesitation in recommending JINGLE BELL BARK to anyone looking for a light mystery.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Yet!, September 13, 2004

By 

Poodleland "Poodle Mom" (Colorado Springs, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jingle Bell Bark (Melanie Travis Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I have read all of the Melanie Travis mysteries, and this is definitely the best one yet! It's written with Ms Berenson's usual humor and knowledge of her subject matter. Those who love showing dogs, especially Poodles, and a good light-hearted mystery will enjoy this book immensely. Can't wait for the next addition to the series.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars delightful amateur sleuth, September 1, 2004

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Jingle Bell Bark (Melanie Travis Mysteries) (Hardcover)

In Greenwich, Connecticut, Melanie Travis is a special needs tutor at the posh private Howard Academy. She enjoys her work there, but her passion is showing and breeding French Poodles. Her son Davy enthusiastically helps her with the canines when he can. When she takes her son to the school bus, Melanie is surprised that Henry the long time driver has been replaced by Annie. She visits Henry to see if he is okay only to learn that he recently died from a heart attack.

Melanie sees Golden Retrievers inside of Henry's home so feeling compassion and not wanting the dogs to mourn alone, she takes them to her Aunt Peg, a professional breeder and canine lover. The two female relatives learn through the grapevine that Henry was poisoned. His two daughters arrive planning to sell their father's animal companions on E-bay. They also refuse to leave town until their father's killer is caught. Peg wants these coldhearted adult children be gone so she investigates the homicide to expedite their departure, not realizing the danger her decision poses to her and her niece.

JINGLE BELL BARK is a delightful tale that amateur sleuth fans will enjoy especially the canine caper crowd. Laurien Berenson enables readers to glimpse inside the world of dogs through the loving way aunt and niece nurture their beloved barking family members. The audience, like Peg, will find it impossible to determine who the killer is because suspects abound with motives and opportunities. This leads to a surprising climax as Peg and Melanie try to take a bite out of crime before they are nipped permanently.

Harriet Klausner