A Dog and His Girl Mysteries #1: Play Dead
When local tycoon Verdel Ward mysteriously drowns and his body disappears, suddenly people far and wide want a piece of Ward’s coastal estate. Spunky 12-year-old Cassie, the police chief’s daughter, and Dodge, a German shepherd formerly on the K-9 squad, just want answers. As the duo goes undercover to solve the mystery, alternating chapters tell the story from both the girl’s and the dog’s perspectives. While Cassie must contend with the school bully and sneaking past the chief of police (aka Mom), Dodge observes his family’s dynamics and rounds up his neighborhood pooch pals to help him dig up clues. Perilous encounters with suspects and criminals and hints of Dodge’s former life as a working dog provide the right amount of suspense to this easy-to-solve mystery. Cassie’s after-school job at an animal shelter, working with an abused dog, emphasizes the powerful relationship between humans and their pets. Dog lovers will no doubt enjoy this first book in the A Dog and His Girl Mysteries series. Grades 3-5. --Angela Leeper