Back Against the Wall

Dog-sitting her son's pooch should be a walk in the park for Marianne Putnam—but then she meets Solomon Ridgedale and his golden retriever, Daisy, who's as excitable as he is. Daisy needs a dog park, and Solomon tries to recruit Marianne to his campaign to bring one to Serendipity Springs. But his fetching proposal to convert a city-owned field sparks a dogfight at the city council meeting.

Two council members support the funeral home director next door, who says a park will be too noisy. With the proposal's fate in doubt, the mortician is murdered in his own mortuary. Solomon, worried he's the chief suspect, appeals to Marianne and her friends to clear his name.

Working with former sheriff Rick Formero in his new private eye enterprise, the eclectic senior sleuths probe city hall politics, hidden agendas and the victim's well-kept secrets. With every twist in the case, they wonder if they're barking up the wrong tree. Can Marianne and company dig up the truth before one of them ends up in a coffin, too?