Scent of Murder

April 27, 2015
Dog-lovers will welcome Born's intriguing crime novel, which introduces Palm Beach County, Fla., sheriff's deputy Tim Hallett and his K-9 companion, Rocky. Hallett was a detective until his illegal handling of a criminal suspect, Arnold Ludner, got him fired, even though he probably saved a girl's life. Ludner, now out of jail, is a suspect in an escalating series of attacks, and Hallett, now in the K-9 unit, would love to see him caught. Handlers and dogsâHallett and his Belgian Malinois, dedicated Claire Perkins and her German Shepherd, Darren Mori (who envies Claire and her attack dog) and his Golden Retrieverâall play important roles in the department's search for the perpetrator. In a separate story line, the attacks of a man called Junior increase as the compulsion that drives him intensifies. Born (Burn Zone) does a fine job of detailing the skills of dogs and handlers, though his attribution of thoughts and motives to the dogs may not be to every reader's taste. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency.

February 1, 2015
A sheriff's deputy in Palm Beach County fights for the respect due his unit and their canine colleagues as they go after the creep who's been kidnapping and assaulting local teenagers.Tim Hallett was bounced from the detective squad to the Canine Assist Team after punching out child molester Arnold Ludner in a desperate attempt to make him reveal where he'd left his latest victim. Detective John Fusco, who kicked Hallett to the curb, has never let him forget it, and Hallett's face still burns every time the two run into each other. But now Hallett's redemption may be at hand thanks to Junior, the lowlife who's snatched three girls from the street and molested them. The only clue, a face-mopping rag Junior left behind when the sheriff's department, with special help from the CAT, rescued Katie Ziegler from his clutches, is useless to the human members of the department. But Rocky, the Belgian Malinois who's Hallett's partner, may just be able to trace the rag to its owner-though it remains to be seen whether that owner is actually Arnold Ludner, as Hallett would dearly love to believe. While single dad Hallett is pursued by crime-scene tech Lori Tate, his CAT counterparts Darren Mori and Claire Perkins also flirt with new partners, and for a while it seems as if the entire team will find romance. Don't be fooled. However banged up they get, Rocky, Brutus and Smarty emerge from the fray in a lot better shape than their humans, who clearly seem bound for a series. Born (Burn Zone, 2008, etc.) pitches this one at readers who like law enforcement infighting better than detection and who love dogs most of all.

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