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mrsbear's review
5.0
I picked this book from netgalley on a whim. I usually do not read animal books but something about this caught my eye and I am glad I gave it a chance.
The mystery is of course who killed Charles and why. Pru is trying to come to terms with her "gift" of hearing the animals, the gift that caused her to run from the big city home to small town of Berkshire where everyone knows your name and your business.
I found Pru to be an adorable main character who is able to communicate with animals. Pru is working with a pit bull who is blamed for her human's murder but Pru knows otherwise. Lilly is traumatized by what she's witnessed and is not able to give Pru the answers she needs to clear her and save her life. Clearing Lily also means pointing the finger towards herself as the murderer! That doesn't stop her from investigating on her own.
Add to this Pru's narcissistic cat, Wallis, who has an opinion on everything but is not always willing to share. She is also not a fan of dogs saying that they are not as smart as cats and she doesn't understand why Pru would waste her time on one! Wallis was good for more than a few laughs with her interaction with Pru and her definite catitude!
Dogs Don't Lie is a fun cozy that was a nice break from the heavy thrillers that I normally read. I loved the "voices" of the animals and seeing things the way they do. Wallis reminds me of my quirky cat Molly in so many ways. Listening to her complain about the "infant" that Pru brought home was like reliving our experience with Molly when we added a kitten to the family. Of course I could not hear Molly's comments and maybe that was for the best.
I have to say Wallis was my favorite character. The book kept me guessing and even though I did figure it out it was still fun watching Pru figure it out. I look forward to more in this series.
This book was free from Netgalley in the hopes of a reveiw.
The mystery is of course who killed Charles and why. Pru is trying to come to terms with her "gift" of hearing the animals, the gift that caused her to run from the big city home to small town of Berkshire where everyone knows your name and your business.
I found Pru to be an adorable main character who is able to communicate with animals. Pru is working with a pit bull who is blamed for her human's murder but Pru knows otherwise. Lilly is traumatized by what she's witnessed and is not able to give Pru the answers she needs to clear her and save her life. Clearing Lily also means pointing the finger towards herself as the murderer! That doesn't stop her from investigating on her own.
Add to this Pru's narcissistic cat, Wallis, who has an opinion on everything but is not always willing to share. She is also not a fan of dogs saying that they are not as smart as cats and she doesn't understand why Pru would waste her time on one! Wallis was good for more than a few laughs with her interaction with Pru and her definite catitude!
Dogs Don't Lie is a fun cozy that was a nice break from the heavy thrillers that I normally read. I loved the "voices" of the animals and seeing things the way they do. Wallis reminds me of my quirky cat Molly in so many ways. Listening to her complain about the "infant" that Pru brought home was like reliving our experience with Molly when we added a kitten to the family. Of course I could not hear Molly's comments and maybe that was for the best.
I have to say Wallis was my favorite character. The book kept me guessing and even though I did figure it out it was still fun watching Pru figure it out. I look forward to more in this series.
This book was free from Netgalley in the hopes of a reveiw.
asherlock99's review
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
books4biana's review
I honestly don't know how this ended up in my collection of books. The blurb starts "Pru Marlowe isn't your ordinary animal psychic."
Well, why not!? It's a mystery that this small town girl attempts to unravel, knowing she has information that the police do not. She hears what's going on in the mind of pets, but in the language of pets. Scent memory for dogs, simple and repetitive comments from the birds, etc.
Light, entertaining, and a good mystery. I wanted to know what wandered thru my pets mind, but I'm not sure I really want to know now!
Well, why not!? It's a mystery that this small town girl attempts to unravel, knowing she has information that the police do not. She hears what's going on in the mind of pets, but in the language of pets. Scent memory for dogs, simple and repetitive comments from the birds, etc.
Light, entertaining, and a good mystery. I wanted to know what wandered thru my pets mind, but I'm not sure I really want to know now!
j_j_catcrazydragon's review
2.0
Maybe it's just me, but I really didn't like the majority of personalities.
Makes getting involved with the story very difficult!
Makes getting involved with the story very difficult!
ianmcnamara's review
5.0
I found this in very good and interesting story, a very different way for somebody to solve a mystery. I like the way the author brought the animals to life and give them their own voices and personalities.
menniemenace's review
2.0
We have a protagonist who can communicate with animals and see their memories. This is the best cozy mystery premise ever. Why, pray tell, is this book so bad?
1) The line between human and animal is so blurry. Reading about how to manipulate humans to submission is sort of... Yikes! Who let Christian Grey in? The way she thought about people was really unhealthy
2) The way Pru oversexualized her interactions with every male in her vicinity. A man talks to her for the first time and in his second sentence she can detect his jealousy that the cop interrogating her is a man. How about no?
The gay guy must've had a thing for her. She's like James Bond when he made both ladies in the lesbian couple fall for him.
The cop? Yeah, totally smitten, head over heels for Pru.
Guy who hasn't seen her since high-school? He's been in love with her ever since.
3) The story dragged. It couldn't use its charming protagonist as a crutch since she ain't charming. Even the talking animals didn't help, and they're talking animals!
I did like the whodunit part, though. I felt it was really clever. Don't know if it's enough to revisit the series.
1) The line between human and animal is so blurry. Reading about how to manipulate humans to submission is sort of... Yikes! Who let Christian Grey in? The way she thought about people was really unhealthy
2) The way Pru oversexualized her interactions with every male in her vicinity. A man talks to her for the first time and in his second sentence she can detect his jealousy that the cop interrogating her is a man. How about no?
The gay guy must've had a thing for her. She's like James Bond when he made both ladies in the lesbian couple fall for him.
The cop? Yeah, totally smitten, head over heels for Pru.
Guy who hasn't seen her since high-school? He's been in love with her ever since.
3) The story dragged. It couldn't use its charming protagonist as a crutch since she ain't charming. Even the talking animals didn't help, and they're talking animals!
I did like the whodunit part, though. I felt it was really clever. Don't know if it's enough to revisit the series.
themangosteen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
missyjmatthews's review
3.0
The ending was unexpected but the book as a whole could have been better.
mayarelmahdy's review
2.0
We have a protagonist who can communicate with animals and see their memories. This is the best cozy mystery premise ever. Why, pray tell, is this book so bad?
1) The line between human and animal is so blurry. Reading about how to manipulate humans to submission is sort of... Yikes! Who let Christian Grey in? The way she thought about people was really unhealthy
2) The way Pru oversexualized her interactions with every male in her vicinity. A man talks to her for the first time and in his second sentence she can detect his jealousy that the cop interrogating her is a man. How about no?
The gay guy must've had a thing for her. She's like James Bond when he made both ladies in the lesbian couple fall for him.
The cop? Yeah, totally smitten, head over heels for Pru.
Guy who hasn't seen her since high-school? He's been in love with her ever since.
3) The story dragged. It couldn't use its charming protagonist as a crutch since she ain't charming. Even the talking animals didn't help, and they're talking animals!
I did like the whodunit part, though. I felt it was really clever. Don't know if it's enough to revisit the series.
1) The line between human and animal is so blurry. Reading about how to manipulate humans to submission is sort of... Yikes! Who let Christian Grey in? The way she thought about people was really unhealthy
2) The way Pru oversexualized her interactions with every male in her vicinity. A man talks to her for the first time and in his second sentence she can detect his jealousy that the cop interrogating her is a man. How about no?
The gay guy must've had a thing for her. She's like James Bond when he made both ladies in the lesbian couple fall for him.
The cop? Yeah, totally smitten, head over heels for Pru.
Guy who hasn't seen her since high-school? He's been in love with her ever since.
3) The story dragged. It couldn't use its charming protagonist as a crutch since she ain't charming. Even the talking animals didn't help, and they're talking animals!
I did like the whodunit part, though. I felt it was really clever. Don't know if it's enough to revisit the series.
shelleyrae's review
3.0
Dog's Don't Lie wasn't the lighthearted paranormal mystery I was expecting. The first in a new series, Simon introduces Pru Marlowe, who develops a psychic sensitivity to animals after a physical collapse, just weeks shy of graduating as an animal behavourist. Overwhelmed, Pru returns to her hometown, ostensibly to care for her ailing mother, but desperately needing to adjust to her new ability. With her mother's death, Pru decides to put her training to use and is hired by Charles to train the traumatised pitbull he has rescued from a dog fighting ring. When Charles is discovered with his throat torn out, Pru is determined to prove that Tetris/Lily is innocent, drawing her a murder investigation where she is both a suspect and potentially the next victim.
The story has a noir edge that is a little dark and subdued. Simon has an unsentimental style of writing, the prose is lean and the tone is deliberate. The mystery is well thought out with multiple suspects, but I thought the pace was a bit slow, particularly given that the novel is on the short side, and the plot didn't really gain momentum until the second half of the book.
Simon develops believable motivation for her characters actions but with only Pru's narrow perspective it's hard to develop a rounded sense of them.
I am personally uncomfortable with the first person point of view, and I found it difficult to relate to Pru because of it, yet I found her character intriguing. She is genuinely struggling with returning home, establishing her credibility and accepting her ability which I respect but she takes herself quite seriously and I thought she could have benefited with from a bit more warmth in her personality.
I thought Simon portrayed Pru's interaction with the animals in a fascinating manner, particularly as Pru considers the accuracy of her translations. Simon shares an unique perspective of the animal's thoughts and impressions. The animals in the story have their own personalities but are not anthropomorphosised, only Wallis is capable of cogent thought but she also has the aloof attitude ascribed to her species. Lily's with Pru is less intentional and while other animals such as the kitten, Floyd and Frank the ferret can share images and sensations their vocabulary is limited.
Dog's Don't Lie is an original series debut, to be honest I'm not sure if I will follow up on it, but I think it will find a place with mystery readers looking for something unusual to peruse
The story has a noir edge that is a little dark and subdued. Simon has an unsentimental style of writing, the prose is lean and the tone is deliberate. The mystery is well thought out with multiple suspects, but I thought the pace was a bit slow, particularly given that the novel is on the short side, and the plot didn't really gain momentum until the second half of the book.
Simon develops believable motivation for her characters actions but with only Pru's narrow perspective it's hard to develop a rounded sense of them.
I am personally uncomfortable with the first person point of view, and I found it difficult to relate to Pru because of it, yet I found her character intriguing. She is genuinely struggling with returning home, establishing her credibility and accepting her ability which I respect but she takes herself quite seriously and I thought she could have benefited with from a bit more warmth in her personality.
I thought Simon portrayed Pru's interaction with the animals in a fascinating manner, particularly as Pru considers the accuracy of her translations. Simon shares an unique perspective of the animal's thoughts and impressions. The animals in the story have their own personalities but are not anthropomorphosised, only Wallis is capable of cogent thought but she also has the aloof attitude ascribed to her species. Lily's with Pru is less intentional and while other animals such as the kitten, Floyd and Frank the ferret can share images and sensations their vocabulary is limited.
Dog's Don't Lie is an original series debut, to be honest I'm not sure if I will follow up on it, but I think it will find a place with mystery readers looking for something unusual to peruse