TO FETCH A FELON

A life-changing move morphs into a life-threatening one.

Emma Reed spent many happy childhood holidays in the charming Cornish town of Trevena. Now that she’s decided to leave her job in finance and open a tea shop in Cornwall, she’s exploring options in the company of her corgi, Oliver. But then Oliver's pursuit of a fox in a rose garden upsets the garden's prizewinning owner, Victoria Roberts, who has title to most of the property in the area, including the defunct bakery Emma had hoped to rent. Emma, who can understand Oliver’s speech perfectly, is naturally more forgiving than Victoria. The town is split over allowing a development that could mean new opportunities. Emma’s real estate agent, Maggie Trenwith, is for it and Victoria, decidedly against. Secretly, Victoria’s nephew Jimmy and even her friends Louise and Ruth think the development’s a good idea. Aiming to appease her, Emma brings Victoria scones only to find her dead under suspicious circumstances. Enter disgraced reporter Parker Taite and his Yorkie, Percy, who pals up with Oliver to join in the hunt for the killer. Emma makes quite a few friends and picks up a lot of town gossip, including the fact that Victoria was once suspected of murdering the much-despised bakery owner. Taite plans to write a book on past crimes, and the current one spurs his interest. But he misses his big chance when he’s the next to die. Meanwhile, Emma’s acumen and Oliver’s nose turn up clues that put them in the killer’s crosshairs.

A promising debut for dog lovers, who’ll delight in the clever talking corgi and his charming owner.