Chow Down

by Laurien Berenson

Book Overview

If Melanie Travis was planning on a quiet family summer with her standard poodle Faith, son Davey and new husband Sam, her plans are about to turn upside down. An unexpected competition, a trip to New York, and a murder later, Melanie finds herself in a choke collar of deceit and corruption.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0758208162
• ISBN13: 9780758208163
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.8" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Wonderful!

Ms. Berensen has found a way to bring a new twist to the mystery genre. Melanie is a normal person who finds herself in extraordinary situations, all made probable through her activities showing poodles. Unlike Jessica Fletcher, a woman whose acquaintances were likely to die, Melanie has a broader range of contact. I have enjoyed, and expect to enjoy for many years, all of her books.

Another Good Romp With Melanie and Company

Each of the Melanie Travis books takes you to her delightful life in Greenwich. The author quickly gets the reader involved in the world of dog shows and sleuthing. Unfortunately, the books are such quick reads that you are left out in the cold again, and craving the next in her series. Hurry up and write more, Ms. Berenson.

Charming characters make this mystery really enjoyable

Melanie Travers can't quite bear to disappoint her son when he enters her poodle in a pet food competition and she becomes a finalist, but she doesn't really want to win. Which makes her completely unlike the other finalists. Every one of them seems intent on winning at any cost. When one of the contestants (the owner, not the pet) falls to his death on the stairs of the pet food company, Melanie finds herself in the familiar position of having to investigate what might be an accident but certainly looks like--murder. Investigating crime is far from Melanie's major job, however. Although school may be out for the summer, she's still getting adjusted to her recent marriage, putting up with relatives urging her to start producing more children, showing her standard poodle at dog shows, and jumping through the many hoops that the contest judges have set up. Author Laurien Berenson continues her Melanie Travis series with another look into the world of dog shows, and the unusual and colorful people who make these shows their life. These characters, especially Melanie, her aunt Peg, and gay groomer Terry bring the story to life and keep the reader interested as Melanie puts herself in dangerous situations to discover exactly what happened to the unpleasant Larry--and whether she just might be the next to fall victim.

Loved this book!

Everybody needs to laugh and everybody needs to think and this book makes you pee your pants laughing while trying to solve a mystery. My hats off to Ms Berenson for making me turn the pages of this book faster than the last 4 books that I've recently read. I highly recommend any of the entertaining Melanie Travis Mysteries. My sincere hope is that the author is working on the next installment as I type this!

charming who-done-it

It is summer vacation and Melanie Travis has the season off since she works at a school in Connecticut. She intends to relax and spend time with her husband of four months Sam in their new home that used to belong to her ex-husband. They're trying for a baby which has become news to family and friends and makes Melanie feel pressured. The real pressure comes in the form of a letter stating that her poodle Faith is one of five contestants in the Chow Down contests sponsored by Champions Food Dog Company. She finds out that her son Davy entered Faith in the contest and by the terms of the contest Melanie can't withdraw Faith. During the first meeting of the contestants, one of them falls down the stairs, his dog, Yoda, a Yorkshire terrier falling into Melanie's arms. She hears yelling on the staircase but nobody is there and the police believe the death was an accident. Melanie is sure it is murder and between events dealing with the competition, she questions the contestants and the company people, hoping to find a clue that will point to the killer. A Laurien Berenson mystery is always fun to read because the characters add something special to the storyline. This mystery is difficult to solve because nobody has a clear cut motive and Melanie has no idea who was on the steps with the victim. CHOW DOWN is a charming who-done-it and the glimpse into the heroine's personal life is just icing on the cake. Harriet Klausner