Faux Pas

October 19, 2015
In this amiable series opener from Esposito (Karma’s a Bitch), pampered pooches and their owners meet at the Pampered Pup Spa & Resort, on the Florida Gulf Coast island of Moon Key, where “doga” instructor Elle Pressley leads dogs and women in simple yoga exercises, until murder upsets their cozy routine. The victim, Celeste Green, is found face down on the floor of the mud-bath room and appears to have traced the letters B and O in the mud—clues that possibly point to plastic surgeon Ira Craft, whose Botox treatments are a popular option on the island. Elle, the best friend of Ira’s wife, Hope, is keen to prove Ira’s innocence. She goes in search of other suspects, starting with Celeste’s ex-husband, Robert, and Robert’s new girlfriend, Zebina. Handsome PI Devon Burke provides romantic tension as well as detection. An exotic setting compensates only in part for a routine mystery.

October 15, 2015
A doggie-yoga instructor gets help in solving the death of a wealthy student from a private eye who's part detective and all dreamboat. Although she and her pup, Buddha, are living with her mother and just scraping by, Elle Pressley is thankful that her job at the posh Pampered Pup Spa & Resort gives her the opportunity to be the Gulf Coast island of Moon Key's premiere (and only) doga instructor. The doga classes Elle leads allow rich women to come in and do yoga alongside their dogs, even if the doga classes provide more chances for the women to posture for one another than to work on their postures. Elle doesn't mind until the fighting between two of her students interrupts the class's inner peace. It's not Celeste's fault that Zebina stole her husband--at least that's one side of the story. And when Celeste is found dead in a mud bath the following day, Zebina has her own story: Celeste's death is completely unrelated to their feud. Elle figures that she should've known something would go wrong when the ghost of her childhood dog, Angel, appeared to her, since Angel's appearances have always been warnings to watch out. The one who really needs to watch out is Elle's best friend, Hope, whose husband, Dr. Ira Craft, is accused of the murder. It only makes sense, since Celeste was killed by Botox to the neck right after her Botox appointment with Dr. Craft. Certain that meticulous Ira had nothing to do with Celeste's death, Elle turns to interloping Irish PI Devon Burke for help solving the crime, though it seems the hunky helper wants something more. More romance than whodunit, this series debut from the author of the Pet Psychic mysteries (Karma's a Bitch, 2013, etc.) embraces the absurd and has fun poking at the wealthy characters in a way one hopes is intentional.

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December 1, 2015

Elle Presley teaches "doga" (yoga with your dog) at Moon Key's Pampered Pet Spa & Resort. Accompanying her in her class is her 80-pound bulldog mix, Buddha. When client Cecilia Green is murdered by an injection of Botox to her neck, Elle is drawn into the investigation to help her best friend Hope, whose plastic surgeon husband was the last person to see Cecilia alive. Throw in a sexy Irish private investigator and an adorable doggy ghost, and presto, a fresh cozy series is born. VERDICT The author of the self-published "Pet Psychic Mystery" series makes her hardcover debut with this tale of a distinctly downscale yoga instructor working in a decidedly upscale resort near Miami. Elle is an absorbing, amusing character with a lot of love for her rescue dog. A strong pick for fans of cozies set in Florida such as Elaine Viets's "Dead End Job" mysteries or any of the plethora of canine-related series.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2016
Elle Pressley teaches doggie yoga at a posh pet spa on Moon Key island. The humans are not as well behaved as the canines, and she intervenes often among quarrels. When one of her students, Celeste, is found murdered in the mud-bath room, with the letters B O etched near the victim's hand, Elle is determined to find the killer. It turns out that Celeste died from an injection of Botox to the neck, and Elle's best friend's husband, a plastic surgeon, is the prime suspect. Elle attends a Botox party, a ritzy fund-raiser, and other unusual events in her attempt to clear the doctor's name in this humorous, well-paced story. She also enlists hunky PI Devon, reminiscent of J. D. Robb's Roarke, to help her, with flirtation between the two sparkling off the page. Devon raises the heat, but Elle has reasons from her past for keeping things slow. The killer may be readily apparent, but the motive and red herrings will keep fans of both light mysteries and romance interested in this fun new addition to the pet cozy genre.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)