Doggie Day Care Murder: A Melanie Travis Mystery

At the start of Berenson's warm and fuzzy 15th dog mystery (after 2007's Hounded to Death ), Melanie Travis, standard poodle lover and dedicated amateur sleuth, checks out the Pine Ridge Canine Care Center in Stamford, Conn., on behalf of Alice Brickman, a mom recently returned to the work force who needs a place to park her golden retriever. On Melanie's second tour of the posh doggie day care center, she discovers the corpse of “seriously cute” Steve Pine, who co-owned Pine Ridge with his sister, Candy. On Alice's wacky recommendation (“She's like Nancy Drew. Melanie finds murderers and makes them confess”), Candy asks Melanie to catch the killer. Who cares if Melanie isn't a licensed PI or the local police department doesn't appear to investigate anything? With winning pluck and lots of luck, Berenson's cluehound pursues another cute tail-wagging puzzler. (Sept.)