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Though the third Molly Madison Dog Wrangler Mystery came out in December 2023, I still love the cover design by the talented artist Farjana Yasmin…

The cover gives a taste of what happens next in Molly’s life.

Here’s an excerpt from the opening pages…

A crow cawed overhead. I eyed the trail. Still no sign of other hikers or their dogs. Turning, I stared downslope towards the grassy bowl of the park. No one was coming up after us either. “Okay, pups. Time to let you off-leash. Sit.” My golden retriever, Harlow, was the first to obey. Noodle, the Saint Berdoodle, followed her lead. Thor, my newest adoptee, remained standing, wagging his tail. From everything I could glean–talking to fellow agility participants and friends of the border collie’s former handler–Thor had always been quick to respond. But losing two owners in a row seemed to have affected his desire to cooperate.

“Thor, sit.” When the collie continued standing, I walked to his side, told him to sit again and pushed down his hand quarters. “Good boy.” I gave him a treat, then did the same with the other two. I unleashed Harlow, then Noodle. Thor whined as the Golden raced ahead. “Okay, boy. But you mind me, right?”

This would be the first hill walk where I let him loose. Hoping I was doing the right thing, I leaned down and unhooked his leash. Thor scampered after his new best friend. Noodle looked up from sniffing a coyote bush, drool trailing from his flews. “Guess it’s just you and me for the moment.” I continued up the trail, the big dog as my side. A hawk keened as a second crow entered his territory. Noodle sat and barked as the raptor soared above us.

Fifteen minutes later, we reached the crest, and I called the other two dogs back. The tip of Harlow’s tail poked above some chaparral, then her head popped into view. I pulled the nested water bowls from my knapsack and filled them. While the Saint Berdoodle and Golden lapped, I eyed the trail. “Thor! Come!”

No jingling tags announced his approach. “Thor!” Cursing my foolishness, I leashed Harlow and Noodle. When they’d drunk their fill, I dumped the remaining water and returned the bowls and water to my pack. Though Noodle had an excellent nose for tracking, I’d never trained him to track another dog. But it was worth a shot. I placed Thor’s leash beneath the big dog’s nose. “Search.”

The Saint Berdoodle stood and moved forward, Harlow and I following. His curly head bobbed and weaved as he tracked a scent. Hopefully Thor’s. We continued down the other side of the hill as I periodically called for the border collie. The brushy terrain above Hillside Park, along with the meandering route, made it tough to see more than the next ten feet of trail.

Being December, the sun was already moving toward the horizon. Worry sent a shiver down my spine. The area was home to coyotes, bobcats, and mountain lions. I needed to find Thor fast.

Noodle raced forward. This was a dog who rarely trotted voluntarily. I ran behind him with Harlow. We rounded the bend. No sign of the border collie. I’d lost count of the turns we’d taken when Noodle began to bark. I charged after the Saint Berdoodle around another bend in the trail.

Noodle stood beside the border collie and barked again. When Thor looked up from the hole he was digging, his white muzzle was coated with dirt. I snapped on his leash and peered into the hole.

He’d carved out a six-by-sic bowl in the dry soil, but all I saw inside was more dirt. Praising Noodle for a job well done, I pulled out three treats. Rewarding Thor fordisobedience wasn’t a great idea, but I didn’t want to make him feel like an outcast either. “Okay, pups. Let’s get out of here.”

I turned and paused. I’d been so busy following Noodle, I hadn’t paid attention to where we were in relation to our usual trail. We started back along the dirt track as I eyed the surrounding scrub. When we reached a fork, I hesitated, then took the one heading right. I spied some dried scat and was fairly certain it was the same pile I’d pulled Harlow away from earlier. About twenty yards on, the trail split again. “Uh oh.” I only remembered passing one fork on the way up.

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PLAYING DEAD, Molly’s latest adventure with her adorable pups, is out!

ABOUT PLAYING DEAD

Molly Madison is back to solve another doggone difficult murder in her California community in this mystery from the author of A Deadly Bone to Pick.

Molly Madison has barely had a moment to catch her breath after moving to the sleepy beach town she now calls home. But as a former PI, she can’t help but notice the odd chemistry between members of Playtime Academy on the first day she and her loyal Saint Berdoodle, Noodle, and golden retriever, Harlow, visit. When a trainer’s body is found on-site, Molly knows it’s her duty to put her ex-police skills to use. She can’t say no to temporarily taking in the deceased woman’s dog, either—not with those puppy dog eyes.

Relationships at the training facility are not as clean as the prize-winning agility runs, making it difficult for Molly to get a leash on potential suspects. And her personal life is just as messy—her boyfriend is hiding something, her agoraphobic neighbor needs help, and her number of four-legged friends keep growing as she agrees to dogsit a wriggly local French bulldog.

When Molly’s friend is arrested for the murder, she’s not sure who to believe anymore. Is the case as simple as the local cops make it seem, or is something more devious afoot?

Order at: Penguin Random House | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | and more stores coming soon!

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Chapter 1

“Please be careful with that.” I winced as the two muscle-bound men, dressed in matching navy-blue uniforms, wrestled the antique ship captain’s desk through the front door. “It was my great-grandfather’s.” In reality, it had belonged to something like my great-great-great-great-grandfather. But why would they care? Nor would they care that Mom insisted I take the desk—part of a misguided effort to show she believed I’d move back to Massachusetts one day.

My golden retriever, Harlow, tail waving, practically vibrated with her desire to meet these potential new friends.

“Stay.” As much as I expected every person to love my dog, this was not the time. Ever obedient, she settled onto the travertine tile.

“Where do you want it?” Muscle Man Number One said.

“On the second floor. Here, I’ll show you.” The front door stood wide open. I looked back at Harlow and told her to stay again, then led the way up the broad staircase. I hoped my few possessions all made it safely inside. But, even if they didn’t, nothing here was irreplaceable.

I wanted this move to work out. No, not wanted. Needed. I needed this move to work out. My gaze blurred. I wiped my eyes and hustled to the landing.

When I reached the hall, I hesitated. Was I sure I wanted to use the ocean-facing room for my office? The alley-facing room to the left would offer morning light. Shaking my head, I entered the first door on the right side of the hall. It didn’t matter where I put the antique desk. My work life was effectively over.

Ruined. Destroyed. Finito. Just like my personal life.

A DEADLY BONE TO PICK is the first in a mystery series featuring former investigator turned dog trainer, Molly Madison.

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