Publication Date: July 1, 2015
I
n Dog Gone by Mike Faricy, P.I. Dev Haskell finds himself pet-sitting his new girlfriend’s dog, a golden retriever named Morton when she has to leave town for a family emergency. Through Morton, Dev meets Princess Anastasia, a standard poodle show dog looking to take top honors. When it becomes clear that someone is angling to keep Princess out of the contest, Dev goes to work to keep his canine friend’s love interest safe and healthy for her bid to win the crown. Dog Gone is the twelfth book in the Dev Haskell Private Inspector series.
I love a good dog story. Dog Gone features a dog that goes from the center of the universe and a structured life of regulated food and a strict schedule to fast living, fast food eating, beer-swilling buddy comedy lifestyle. Morton is simply delighted no matter his circumstances. Dog Gone is a super-fast read bringing readers into the world of dog shows and gambling. In my review of the fifth installment, I praised Faircy for tightening up his writing game and making Dev less of a douche. Alas, Dog Gone is a throwback in that respect with Dev hearkening back to his Stephanie Plum and Jim Rockford cross (or an exceptionally self-absorbed person who gets beat up a lot) origins.
Let me first say that the Kindle version of Dog Gone is riddled with typos. I’m not sure that I’ve ever read a book with as many errors. To be clear, the copious errors don’t hamper the flow of the narrative, but the reader able to ignore them will be the one with superpowers. This reader is a creepy dog owner so feels that she’s qualified to say that Dev’s lady friend, Maddie, is the epitome of a really over-enthusiastic dog owner. Dev and Maddie are having sex and she’s hanging over the bed. Not only is Morton in the room but he’s licking her face and while it creeps Dev out, it’s another day at home for Maddie. She doesn’t really seem to notice her dog’s participation in their bedroom hi-jinks.
Faircy’s story in Dog Gone is interesting. Dog shows and gambling tie together. Dev has his police department nemesis, as all good PIs do. Dev falls into information and gets knocked around a bit but comes out the other side shining. A lot of the characters are straight from central casting. We don’t see much of Maddie but she’s a sexpot who is also a bit of a control freak and, true to Faircy, she works her control through her sexuality. These are characters that one reads and never thinks about again or they’ll be disappointed with the experience. Though the twelfth book in a series, Dog Gone is an easy stand-alone read.
As a whole, if you like fast, fun and slightly off-kilter reads, Dog Gone is the book for you.
Check out our reviews of Bite Me (Dev Haskell – Private Investigator, Book 3) and Tutti Frutti (Dev Haskell – Private Investigator, Book 5).
Read an excerpt and buy Dog Gone by Mike Faricy on
Amazon U.S. Amazon U.K. Amazon CA