ENFORCING THE PAW – Diane Kelly
A Paw Enforcement Novel , Book 6
St. Martin's Paperbacks
ISBN: 978-1-250-09486-5
July 2017
Cozy Mystery

Present Day in Fort Worth, Texas

When Megan Luz joined the Fort Worth Police Department, she wanted to be a detective, but one doesn't just become a detective immediately. One must earn the post by starting as a patrol officer. Megan was assigned a cruiser and a partner, a mostly shepherd K-9 officer named Brigit. While out on patrol one night, a call comes over the radio to investigate a woman's complaint about a brick through her window. Luz and Brigit answer the call to find the frightened woman is sure the person responsible is her ex-boyfriend who wants to kill her. Luz sets Brigit to following the trail. At the boyfriend's door, they find shoes that smell right and bricks like the one that broke the window. But the ex-lover tells a different story. He says his ex is the crazy and dangerous one, not he.

So, who is lying, Adriana Valdez, a dietician at a rehab center, or Ryan Downey, a techie with a darling nephew named Toby?

The tale begins with a short chapter from the point of view of the one breaking the window. The culprit is unidentified; we only know him or her as The Devoted One. The next, much longer chapter, is Megan's. That's followed by Brigit's turn where we are treated to a very doggy point of view. (Lots of fun!)

ENFORCING THE PAW follows that pattern as the plot unfolds and other characters are introduced . . . mostly human. The major exception to that is Blast, a yellow Lab K-9 bomb sniffer in the Fort Worth Fire Department. Blast's handler is Seth, firefighter and member of the bomb squad. Seth and Blast are very good friends of Megan's and Brigit's.

This is a cleverly crafted mystery that holds the suspense throughout. Even when the identity of The Devoted One begins to be revealed, there is still the matter of proof to be found. The serious question of who is and who isn't the stalker is relieved by the fun of Brigit's sections.

ENFORCING THE PAW is an altogether grand read from beginning to end.

Jane Bowers