Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs: A Dixie Hemingway Mystery (Dixie Hemingway Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Blaize Clement (Author)

Book Description

Series: Dixie Hemingway Mysteries | Publication Date: January 19, 2010

“A knockout read. For anyone who loves mysteries, animals, or just plain great writing, this is a book to savor.”—Laurien Berenson, author of Doggie Day Care Murder on Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter

 

In this fifth installment of the wildly popular Dixie Hemingway mystery series, a mysterious young girl is missing. Lieutenant Guidry, the hunky homicide detective with whom Dixie has an on-again, off-again relationship, is trying to find the girl because she may be a material witness to a murder. Finally Dixie must go it alone to confront criminals who will stop at nothing to get what they want.

 

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

At the start of Clement's sprightly fifth Dixie Hemingway mystery (after 2009's Cat Sitter on a Hot Tin Roof), the Siesta Key, Fla., pet sitter and former cop takes an instant liking to Jaz, a mixed-race pubescent girl she first meets at the vet, where Jaz has brought an injured wild rabbit. A nervous man claiming to be Jaz's stepfather (he looked like a junior high school principal who had learned too late that he hated kids) admits he accidentally hit the rabbit in his car. Later, three young thugs looking for Jaz confront Dixie at the home of one of Dixie's clients. Dixie's homicide detective love interest, Lt. Jean-Pierre Guidry, suspects the three are connected to the knifing murder of a local elderly man, and the chase is on to find the thugs before they get to Jaz. Smooth prose, a lush background, and engaging animals—in particular, Big Bubba, a talkative African gray parrot who loves to watch police shows on TV—make for a fine-feathered read. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

The latest Dixie Hemingway mystery finds the Florida pet sitter caring for a chatty parrot and giving medication to a cranky cat. Meanwhile, Dixie can’t get a mysterious, animal-loving teenage girl named Jaz out of her mind. Turns out Jaz is the only witness to a West Coast gang shooting, and she is being sequestered on Siesta Key until the trial. Certainly, the location should be safe enough, except for the unfortunate fact that a meeting of top-level drug dealers from around the country just happens to be taking place at a nearby hotel. Dixie can’t leave the mystery of Jaz alone, especially after the teen disappears (despite her new career as a pet sitter, Dixie has never really lost the instincts she honed as a Sarasota cop). This continues to be a solid cozy series with a well-realized Florida setting and plenty of animal elements to satisfy pet-loving mystery readers. --Jessica Moyer

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (January 19, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312369565
• ISBN-13: 978-0312369569
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #841,160 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Blaize Clement is the author of Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter, Duplicity Dogged the Dachshund, Even Cat Sitters Get the Blues, Cat Sitter on a Hot Tin Roof, Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs, and Cat Sitter Among the Pigeons, all published by St. Martin's Press/Minotaur. She has been a stay at home Mom, a caterer, and a psychologist, some of them all at the same time. She has never been a pet sitter, but has shared her life with several pets. She lives in Sarasota, Florida. Visit her Web site at www.blaizeclement.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars DID YOU MISS ME??, January 24, 2010

By 

ITZME "JEANNE" (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs: A Dixie Hemingway Mystery (Dixie Hemingway Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I really like Blaize Clement's "Dixie Hemingway Mysteries". She has good main characters: Dixie, the pet sitter; Michael, Dixie's firefighter brother; Paco, Michael's soul mate and undercover cop. This time we get into Dixie's past and her feelings. Jaz is a waif that Dixie happens upon and Mo is an old high school "friend". Fun and adventure are had by all.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Blaize back on track, March 4, 2010

By 

Snowbird - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs: A Dixie Hemingway Mystery (Dixie Hemingway Mysteries) (Hardcover)

After the fourth Dixie Hemmingway mystery faltered a bit in plot and mystery, this latest of the series is back on track as a great read. For the lovers of Siesta Key and Sarasota, there is just enough of the local flavor to keep up interest. The plot and action are up to the standards of the early novels in the series.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful pet sitter mystery, December 31, 2010

By 

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

This review is from: Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs (Dixie Hemingway Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

In Siesta Key, Florida, former police officer turned pet sitter Dixie Hemingway goes to the vet to pick up Big Bubba, a fan of TV police dramas who shouts at the screen. While in the reception area Dixie meets hysterical teenager Jaz who brought in an injured wild rabbit. A man with her claiming to be her stepfather says he accidently hit the rabbit with his car.

Dixie's gut screams at her that something is not right with this pair. Soon afterward three punks assault Dixie demanding she tells them where Jaz is. Dixie consults with her boyfriend homicide detective Jean-Pierre Guidry, who says the trio is the prime suspects in the murder of an elderly man. The pair now fears for Jaz's life and begin a search for the girl before the street thugs find her.

The fifth Dixie Hemingway pet sitter mystery (see Even Cat Sitters Gets the Blues and Cat Sitter on a Hot Tin Roof) is a wonderful tale as Dixie knows Jaz is not her responsibility but once a cop always a cop. The story line engages the audience from the moment Big Bubba the African parrot gives Dixie and others a mouth full. Combining humor with a serious missing person's search, Blaize Clement provides a strong tale.

Harriet Klausner