DOG ON IT

A hard-bitten private eye and his loyal pooch refuse to give up on a tricky case.

Short on cash, Bernie Little, in his debut appearance, hesitates to take on the case of a missing teen. When Madison Chambliss turns up, Bernie doesn’t buy her story, but it doesn’t matter; he’s off the case. One of his hated divorce assignments, however, looks much more promising when Bernie develops a crush on reporter Suzie Sanchez, who joins him and his dog Chet on a stakeout. After Madison disappears a second time, Chet and Bernie follow her trail. Soon they fall victim to some nasty attacks. Madison’s father, a developer in major financial trouble, may be involved with the Russian mafia. Was Madison kidnapped to put pressure on him? When Chet is dognapped and spirited away, he sees Madison held prisoner. Chet escapes, only to end up at a shelter where he’s marked for death until Suzie, who luckily happens to be writing a story on shelters, rescues him. Unfortunately, he can’t tell Bernie what he saw. The police think Madison has run away, but Bernie, who has a hunch she’s in trouble, refuses to let go even when he’s fired. The invaluable Chet has to pull him out of trouble repeatedly before the case is solved.

Stalwart, often mischievous narrator Chet’s amusing, perceptive canine take on the human characters should appeal to hard-boiled fans and canine fanciers alike.