Great Escapes Book Tours Book Review: The Money Bird

Author: Sheila Webster Boneham
Title: The Money Bird
Publisher: Midnight Ink
Publish Date: Sept 8, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Review Copy Provided By: Great Escapes Book Tours & the author
Book Blurb: 

For Janet MacPhail, photographing retrievers in training is the perfect way to spend an evening. But a photo session at Twisted Lake takes a peculiar turn as Drake, her friend Tom’s Labrador, fetches a blood-soaked bag holding an exotic feather and a torn one-hundred-dollar bill.

When one of her photography students turns up dead at the lake, Janet investigates a secretive retreat center with help from Australian Shepherd Jay and her quirky neighbor Goldie. Between dog-training classes, photo assignments, and romantic interludes with Tom, Janet is determined to get to the bottom of things before another victim’s wings are clipped for good.

Review: This is the second book in Sheila's Animals in Focus Series. Since it is early on, it is safe to say you can jump into this one without having read the first book Drop Dead On Recall.

It has all the cozy elements that make for great reading, a spunky heroine, her love interest, some awesome pets and a really quirky murder to solve.

The book starts with Drake finding a blood soaked bag with a feather and a torn hundred dollar bill and from there it just gets more interesting. When a body turns up in the lake, and is identified as one of her students, she's determined to get to the bottom of things.

 Janet MacPhail is a photographer and an animal lover. This book is as much about her and her furry friends as it is a mystery and Janet gets up to a lot of things while trying to figure out what's going on at "Treasures On Earth" a cultish retreat on the lake.

There's a lot of humor in this book as well. Early on someone takes a bite out of Janet while she's photographing "A Day In The Life" of their local vet, and that's not the only place you'll find giggles. Another favorite involves her dog and a high school crush of Janets.

Toss in some exotic birds that shouldn't be in her neck of the woods and you have quite a mystery.

There's a lot of attention to detail here, especially with the animals and animal trafficking, which is a crime most of us don't think of on a day to day basis.

I also love Janet and Tom's love for animals. Books with animals are always among my favorite reads, especially when they are cozies and I have to say this is one couple I really love. There's really a great chemistry between the two. I also like that they are both older...erm...more mature. They also don't really go off half cocked while trying to solve the crime.

This is definitely a must read book and a must read series to follow.

Rating: 5 flowers

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