( 8 reviews )
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Posted: May 8 2009
How can a woman write a continuing series of mysteries about dogs/dog shows without repeating herself, yet always remain fresh and a real page-turner? THAT is the mystery behind all of the Laurien Berenson books and this is no exception. "Once Bitten" is a wonderful book by a truly talented writer. (I find it rather fun to try keeping them in chronological order, by how old Melanie Travis's son is in each book...I'm kind of curious in that way!) At any rate, "Once Bitten," you'll find it hard to stop at just one Berenson book until you have them all and excitedly await her next mystery.
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( 1 of 3 found this review helpful ) Posted: Dec 28 2008
If books were dogs, then some weighty political and historical tomes would be hard-working police and security breeds like German Shepherds--very worthy, but sometimes one is in the mood for the kind of dog that does amusing tricks and then cuddles up afterward. This charming book seems like an engaging Toy Poodle--light, frothy and absolutely entertaining--but it keeps a bulldog grip on the reader until one reaches the end. Melanie Travis is a single mom, a teacher and she shows her Standard Poodle, Faith, without the services of a professional handler. In this book, Melanie is blue because her fiance, Sam, has gone off to "find himself" and she's trying to help her brother Frank and his beautiful fiancee "Bertie" find their wedding planner, the frivolous and unreliable Sara who goes off for the weekend and vanishes. Things become complicated when Sara's cottage burns down and the body of a woman is found inside. Melanie's peace of mind is further upset when her ex-husband Bob bounces back into town and starts trying to act like a good father. When he actually cleans out the garage, Melanie realizes he seriously wants to get back with her. She starts remembering why she married him... Light entertainment with a bite! There are dark undertones to this mystery that suggest this author could invest a little more depth into her characters, but this has to be characterized as doggone entertaining!
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Posted: Jul 23 2008
Bob is back in town and there are wedding bells a'ringin! The only negative part of this is that the wedding bells are not for Melanie and Sam - they are for Frank and Bertie. Sam, as a matter of fact, has disappeared: he decided that he needed to go "find himself". So, Melanie is unsure of what to do and where to go with her life. Which is when Bob decides to come back from Texas after divorcing his 20 year old wife and try to rekindle the romance with Melanie. Part of this book deals with these complications in the love life of Melanie Travis and the turmoil caused by all of this. The other parts of the book deal with the mystery. You see, one of Bertie's friends is a bit of a flighty person whom Bertie decides to help by hiring her to be the wedding coordinator for Bertie's wedding. Almost immediately following the beginning of the work - and with only six weeks remaining until the wedding itself - Sara Bentley disappears. Then, a woman's body is found in Sara's home which had just burned down. Bertie is frantic, she asks Melanie to help, and off to the races we go! The third part of this book has to do with Melanie's dog Faith and her quest to win enough points in the dog show circuit to become a Champion. As is usual with these mysteries featuring Melanie Travis, the dog show circuit and the people and personalities involved with it provide the background story to a lot of the action. Faith and the other dogs are very key contributors to the mayhem. So, how do these three story lines mesh together in one book? Very well. This is a very readable, very enjoyable, member of the series with all the puzzles and interaction well thought out and logical. All that is, but for one last one. The last puzzle in this book is solved in a very thematic way for the series, but in a way that is completely out of character for one of the main characters of the story. That is why I gave this book only 4 stars. Nonetheless, I think that all of Laurien Berenson's fans will really enjoy this book and be looking forward to the next installment. I certainly will be!
