Drop Dead on Recall

by Sheila Webster Boneham

Series: An Animals in Focus Mystery (1)

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
32	2	749,105	(3.14)	2
The passions aroused by canine competition can inspire violent fantasies. But when a talented handler falls flat on her face during the obedience trials, Australian Shepherd lover Janet MacPhail can hardly believe someone would actually resort to murder. As she takes care of her mother and falls for a hunky black Lab owner, the last thing Janet needs is to find out she's become a "person of interest." Nosing around for clues that might clear her good name, Janet and her friends--Australian Shepherd Jay, tabby cat Leo, and eccentric neighbor Goldie Sunshine--discover the hard way that killers don't like snoops. And it soon becomes apparent that the next victim might just be Janet herself. Praise: "Boneham packs a punch in her series debut."--RT Book Reviews "A smart first mystery. Fans of Laurien Berenson or Susan Conant will especially enjoy this pet-centered mystery."--Booklist "Boneham's debut will delight dog fanciers."--Kirkus Reviews "[A] delightful debut. Right up there with the likes of Sue Grafton (Kinsey Millhone novels) and Janet Evanovich (Stephanie Plum novels), without the profanity. An intriguing whodunit."--The Australian Shepherd Journal "With a sense of humor, a light touch of romance and a solid base of dog training experience under her collar, Sheila Boneham's first novel is worthy of honorable mention."--The Free Lance-Star "Sheila Webster Boneham's mystery, Drop Dead on Recall,is drop dead good. The writing sparkles and the dog-obedience competition setting unleashes a surprising hotbed of motives and opportunities for multiple murder. Animal photographer Janet MacPhail makes a, yes, dogged amateur investigator, dealing with her mother's Alzheimer's and maybe a new midlife beau between finding a vicious killer. The dogs, Labs and Aussies, and cat, Leo, are of course key players in the proceedings. Five enthusiastic arfs."--Carole Nelsom Douglas, bestselling author of the Midnight Louie Mysteries "Sheila Webster Boneham's delightful debut mystery combines a likeable sleuth, a keep-'em-guessing plot, and wonderfully authentic portrayals of the human and canine denizens of dogdom. First place with a perfect score!"--Susan Conant, author of Brute Strength and other novels in The Dog Lover Mysteries… (more)

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This is a really fun mystery, set in the AKC dog world--in this case, the dog obedience circuit.It captures in a fun way both the nutty obsessiveness and the genuine love of animals that so often characterize the competitive dog world.

Janet McPhail is a professional photographer who competes, for fun, in dog obedience with her Aussie (Australian shepherd), Jay. On one fine, sunny morning, they're at a competition, and a far more serious competitor, Abigail Dorn, falls to the ground, in obvious distress--and dies in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. As one of the first to Abigail's side, along with her husband Greg Dorn, and the person who takes home her dog, Pip, and cleans up the food at the Dorns' crate set-up, Janet becomes at least officially a "person of interest" for the police, when they determine that Abigail was poisoned.

Of course Janet can't keep from poking around, talking to people, asking questions. There are a lot of potential suspects, because Abigail Dorn had a rather abrasive manner and didn't suffer fools gladly, but the more she learns about her, the more Janet regrets that she didn't know the woman better. As she learns about natural plant poisons from her eccentric neighbor, Goldie Sunshine, gets to know major hunk Tom Saunders--who turns out to be Abigail's cousin and a possible suspect, and wonders over the unpredictably prickly behavior of her friend Connie, all while trying to move her increasingly senile mother into a nursing home, Janet gets more and more alarmed. When the Dorns' dogs disappear and Jay is threatened, she's terrified--and still not ready to back off.

This is a nicely done mystery, with very real dogs and dog people, and I'm looking forward to more.

Becki's Rule Note: No animals die in the course of this book.

Recommended. (

)

LisCarey | Sep 19, 2018 |

Long-time nonfiction author Boneham, who specializes in animal-related topics, turns her talents to fiction in this first book in a planned series. The book focuses on the world of competitive obedience trials, demonstrating just how out-of-balance the sporting world sometimes seems. Set in Fort Wayne, Indiana, this book starts with a death on page one, which was a plus for this mystery reader who does not like to have to read through half a book before a crime occurs, no matter how charming the characters. A fierce competitor, who has a great border collie, drops dead in the obedience ring while competing. Animal photographer and fellow obedience competitor Janet MacPhail takes her dog home with her, returning him to the grieving husband a day or two later. Not completely satisfied with the police detective's handling of the investigation, Janet begins asking questions of her own. The book features death, romance, dog training lore, and a senile mother along with numerous red herrings. It'a a fun read, and its sequel has been penned, due out in late 2013. As someone who shows dogs in the Ft. wayne area, I found the book to be great fun. It will be enjoyable for any lover of animals and mysteries. (

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khiemstra631 | Oct 20, 2012 |

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The passions aroused by canine competition can inspire violent fantasies. But when a talented handler falls flat on her face during the obedience trials, Australian Shepherd lover Janet MacPhail can hardly believe someone would actually resort to murder. As she takes care of her mother and falls for a hunky black Lab owner, the last thing Janet needs is to find out she's become a "person of interest." Nosing around for clues that might clear her good name, Janet and her friends--Australian Shepherd Jay, tabby cat Leo, and eccentric neighbor Goldie Sunshine--discover the hard way that killers don't like snoops. And it soon becomes apparent that the next victim might just be Janet herself. Praise: "Boneham packs a punch in her series debut."--RT Book Reviews "A smart first mystery. Fans of Laurien Berenson or Susan Conant will especially enjoy this pet-centered mystery."--Booklist "Boneham's debut will delight dog fanciers."--Kirkus Reviews "[A] delightful debut. Right up there with the likes of Sue Grafton (Kinsey Millhone novels) and Janet Evanovich (Stephanie Plum novels), without the profanity. An intriguing whodunit."--The Australian Shepherd Journal "With a sense of humor, a light touch of romance and a solid base of dog training experience under her collar, Sheila Boneham's first novel is worthy of honorable mention."--The Free Lance-Star "Sheila Webster Boneham's mystery, Drop Dead on Recall,is drop dead good. The writing sparkles and the dog-obedience competition setting unleashes a surprising hotbed of motives and opportunities for multiple murder. Animal photographer Janet MacPhail makes a, yes, dogged amateur investigator, dealing with her mother's Alzheimer's and maybe a new midlife beau between finding a vicious killer. The dogs, Labs and Aussies, and cat, Leo, are of course key players in the proceedings. Five enthusiastic arfs."--Carole Nelsom Douglas, bestselling author of the Midnight Louie Mysteries "Sheila Webster Boneham's delightful debut mystery combines a likeable sleuth, a keep-'em-guessing plot, and wonderfully authentic portrayals of the human and canine denizens of dogdom. First place with a perfect score!"--Susan Conant, author of Brute Strength and other novels in The Dog Lover Mysteries

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