Murder and the Missing Dog
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
"The quirky village residents make this an appealing series debut" Library Journal on Murder Visits a French Village
Ariel Shepard has spent the last year renovating her beautiful French ch�teau, while also ingratiating herself into the lives and hearts of the quirky locals of Noyers-sur-Serein. The shocking business of the murder of the local historian is behind her and she is finally feeling at home.
However, it's not long before murder and mystery once again seek Ariel out, when she and her friend Katherine find the body of the elderly Madame Toussaint in the doorway of Katherine's flea market shop.
Who would want to harm this lonely soul? Where is the bag the woman never leaves home without? And more importantly, where is her loyal, loving dog who never leaves her side? Could Raoul, Ariel's stoic gardener, really have something to do with it? And could Madame Toussaint have been mixed up with the robberies increasing around the idyllic villages of France?
Despite warnings from the rather handsome Brigadier Allard, Ariel, with help from Katherine and Pippa, once again dons her sleuthing hat . . .
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Shea's rote second cozy featuring American expat Ariel Shepard (after 2023's Murder Visits a French Village) sees the series showing early signs of fatigue. After the sudden death of Ariel's husband, Dan, she's spent the last three years restoring the rundown property he gave her in France's Burgundy region. Her quiet work is again interrupted by homicide when she finds a bloodied corpse on the ground outside of her friend's secondhand shop in Noyes-sur-Serein. The victim is the poverty-stricken Madame Touissant, who was preparing to sell her possessions for cash; in the wake of her death, her beloved dog has also disappeared. Ariel believes that Touissant's head wounds are evidence of foul play, despite the lack of any obvious motives or suspects. She resolves to investigate, and occasionally runs afoul of the official inquiry headed by hunky potential love interest Monsieur Legrand. Along the way, Ariel raises questions about a string of local robberies and casts suspicion on her own gardener, all while keeping her home renovation afloat. Shea sticks steadfastly to formula here, failing to deliver many notable twists or memorable characters. It makes for pleasant enough reading, but in the crowded cozy field, this fails to stand out.
