From Kirkus Reviews
The ninth in a series (Black Ribbon, 1995, etc.) directed toward passionate dog fanciers--and if the audience seems a narrow one, meditate on the number nine. Detective/journalist Holly Winter covers the Alaskan Malamute National Specialty Show at a Hawaiian- theme hotel in Danville, Conn. She hangs out with her two canine contenders, Rowdy and Kimi; her cousin Leah, a handler; her boyfriend, a vet; her ex-boyfriend, a traveler in dog sex aids; oodles of her girlfriends, all fighting over dogs--and, as it turns out, a murderer. An elderly judge is killed, and the prize lamp bearing the fur of an ex-champion seems to have been the weapon. Though Conant is capable of a decent quip (``their noisy, smelly wedding was going to ruin our lovely dog show''), she specializes in ironic metaphors teased through run-on sentences of indecent length. She belabors her jokes, in other words, while revealing a steely-eyed and humorless determination to pack her prose with more dog lore than it can gracefully accommodate. The murderer was not a good dog person and is no loss. But, meanwhile, Conant risks losing mystery readers who might like warm puppies okay but who think happiness requires a wider worldview and a lighter wit. --
Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
From the Publisher
Like the previous books in her popular Dog Lover's series, Susan Conant's
Stud Rites is "highly recommended for lovers of dogs, people, and all-around good story-telling." (
Mystery News) Set during an Alaskan Malamute National Specialty show, Conant's latest foray into the competetive world of purebred dogs proves lethal for the judge, who is found bludgeoned to death by a blunt object as tasteless as the murder itself. And who might benefit from the judge's death? Many, as it turns out--from the woman who has inherited his job to the organizer of the show, and including the handler whose dog now has a good chance of winning.
Dog's Life writer Holly Winter is on the scene with two dogs entered in the show. She knows who had access to murder weapon, but it is a former lover, now working for a firm that specializes in canine reproductive technology, who unwittingly puts her on the trail of the killer.Once again Susan Conant combines an insider's knowledge of the world of purebred dog fanciers with an intricately plotted and wittily told mystery that is certain to earn a rousing "Paws up!" (
Publishers Weekly) from her many loyal fans. "Come. Sit. Stay...Conant's readers--with ears up and alert eye--eagerly await her next." (
Kirkus Reviews).
