Welcome Linda O. Johnston, author of Beaglemania! A mystery with bite!

Today I welcome Linda O. Johnston, author of the new doggie mystery, Beaglemania (A Pet Rescue Mystery).

About the Book:
Lauren Vancouver is the head of HotRescues, a no-kill animal shelter north of Los Angeles, but it's often human nature that puts her in the path of danger. Just like when she helps rescue four adorable beagle puppies that were dumped down a drainpipe at a nasty puppy mill. One of the mill's employees has a history of dog abuse-and a bone to pick with Lauren. And when he's found dead at HotRescues after threatening her, Lauren will have to sniff out the real killer to keep herself out of a cage...

Review:
Having received an arc of the book, I have to say that the first thing that struck me was the book's cover picture. Wow! This has to be not only one of the prettiest, but the cutest book covers I've seen! Who can resist a bunch of puppies?

The inside is just as good. Lauren is a likable, strong investigator who will stop at nothing to solve the crime and protect animals. What's neat is that the author also works in pet rescue, bringing an air of reality to the series. Definitely something to bark about!

Dogs, Mysteries and More
By Linda O. Johnston

As you probably can see while reading this, The Candid Canine blog says it’s about "All the Dog, Book and Minis News Fit To Bark About."

I’m here to bark about my new Pet Rescue Mystery series. It combines two of those topics--dogs and books! The series debuted this month with BEAGLEMANIA. It starts off at a puppy mill rescue where, yes, beagle puppies and others are saved.

The series is a spin-off from my Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter mysteries. Both are from Berkley Prime Crime. You can read one without reading the other, but I of course suggest you read both.

I consider Kendra an alter-ego of mine. She’s a lawyer who lives in the Hollywood Hills with her Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Lexie. I’ve been a lawyer, and I live in the Hollywood Hills with my two Cavaliers, Lexie and Mystie, as well as my husband. I’ve fortunately never become a murder magnet, though.

The protagonist of my new Pet Rescue Mystery series is Lauren Vancouver, the director of HotRescues, a no-kill animal shelter. She was introduced in HOWL DEADLY, the eighth Kendra mystery, and also appeared in FELINE FATALE, the ninth. I adore Lauren and her obsession with saving animals, but I didn’t think she’d become an alter ego of mine, too.

But that was before I started researching her stories. I met with pet rescuers of many kinds. I visited shelters, both public and private. I talked to people. Met animals.

Now I volunteer at a private shelter, Pet Orphans of Southern California. I’m a dog adoption counselor, which means I both screen potential adopters and introduce them to dogs they might fall in love with. It’s always such a thrill when a match works and the people I’ve first screened bring a dog to its new forever home. I’m also the Los Angeles Pet Rescue Examiner for the Examiner.com website.

Lauren’s way of dealing with animals is different from mine. She’s in charge at HotRescues, her private, no-kill shelter, and does a great job of helping the animals with whom she comes in contact. As I mentioned, BEAGLEMANIA begins with a rescue from a puppy mill. Some of Lauren’s later adventures will involve an animal hoarder and a shelter that takes in unadoptable pets.

I can still identify with her and her obsession. Check her out, and let me know what you think. Maybe you’ll identify with her, too. And I most certainly hope you find her fun enough to bark about.

By the way, in the Pet Rescue Mysteries, “no-kill” means pets, not people....

Please come visit me at http://www.lindaojohnston.com/ and at http://www.killerhobbies.blogspot.com/ on Wednesdays. Friend me on Facebook. I’d love to hear what you think of pet rescue--and BEAGLEMANIA!