Dog on It: A Chet and Bernie Mystery

by Spencer Quinn

Book Overview

The first book of the New York Times bestselling Chet and Bernie mystery series, an "enchanting one-of-a-kind novel" (Stephen King) that is "nothing short of masterful" (Los Angeles Times).

Chet, the wise and lovable canine narrator of Dog on It, and Bernie, a down-on-his-luck private investigator, are quick to take a new case involving a frantic mother searching for her teenage daughter. This well-behaved and gifted...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1416585842
• ISBN13: 9781416585848
• Release Date: September 2009
• Publisher: Atria Books
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.4" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

Could not put the book down !

It was a good story and well written. Had a hard time putting it down till I was through. A good read for teens and grownups, especially those who like dogs.

fun and entertaining

Loved this series from the moment I started reading it. This makes me wonder if this is what my dog thinks about. It's told from the dog "Chet's" point of view.

First book of the Chet & Bernie Series

Mystery lovers along with dog lovers will enjoy this book. Very suspenseful but also "Chet" can be very funny. When reading this book you will relate to what goes on in a dogs mind for sure!

Dog On It by Spencer Quinn Disappointed

I was really disappointed with the f...... bombs that were so unnecessary. A little too much of the dog talking about himself. I can't say that I would recommend this book to anyone.

Spencer Quinn books on Bernie and Chet are amazing. After reading the first one, I ordered all of them. The kind of book you do not want to put down. With Chet doing the talking, you feel like your right there with them.

Love It

All of these books in the Chet & Bernie series are AMAZING amazing books! Bernie, a private detective and Chet, his K-9 dog, solve crimes and their adventures are narrated by the dog, Chet! It is SO fun to see what Spencer Quinn thinks dogs think about! Chet will CRACK you up from cover to cover and keep you enthralled with the storyline and plot. After I read the first book in the series "Dog On It," I read the whole series in succession. You'll laugh and smile through this entire book. I like to read books in order but it is not a necessity; I started the series with the 2nd book and went back and read the 1st. So if you pick up this or any book in this series & read them out of order you won't be lost. Happy reading!

entertaining

I read this book within 24 hours because I didn't want to put it down- it was thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish, and I was actually disappointed when I didn't have any more story to read! It is so much fun to hear the story from the dog's perspective. I can't wait to purchase the sequel.

Fantastic audio book

I first heard of 'Dog On It' as part of a summer book recommendation list, and since I have a very long commute to work, I decided to get in (from the library) in audiobook format. What a fantastic way to commute! A terrific, hilarious story, very well read in a way that had me laughing out loud in the middle of bumper-to-bumper traffic. Chet had an 'authentic' canine voice, telling us his take on the mystery until he is overtaken by distractions in the form of rabbits, cats, Cap'n Crunch the evil parrot, and food. Especially slim jims. Ah, riding shotgun in the car and eating slim jims...oops? Where was he? Barking with Iggy the neighbor dog who liked to yip? "Iggy barked. I barked back. Iggy barked. I barked back. We had a nice rhythm going. Iggy barked. I barked." It was like a canine version of a Marx Brothers film scene. I highly, highly recommend this audiobook (or read the actual book, if you prefer, I'm sure it is great fun) to anyone seeking to lighten the mood over large stretches of terrain---oooh! Rabbit!

Incredibly creative and fun to read!!!

Incredibly creative and fun to read!!! I love that the book is written from the dogs perspective. Absoultely ingenious. I couldn't stop laughing. If you love dogs, you will love this book.

A Great New Shaggy Gumshoe

This is great new voice in detective fiction. And in detective fiction, voice is critical. At the end of the day, we come back to Kinsey Milhone or Stephanie Plum or Marcus Didius Falco because we want to spend more time with the character. Chet is a great central voice. Quinn doesn't play cute and he doesn't gimmick up the story. There are many ways that the notion of a canine main character could go horribly wrong, and Quinn avoids them all. Chet is out of the gumshoe tradition, looking out for his down-on-his-luck partner Bernie: "She got out of the car, a tall woman with long fair hair and a smell of flowers and lemons, plus a trace of another smell that reminded me of hat happens only sometimes to the females in my world. What would that be like, having it turned on all the time? Probably drive you crazy. I glanced at Bernie, watching her, patting his hair into place. Oh, Bernie." Chet has the hard-boiled nerve, the observational skills, the running internal commentary of a classic detective, but he has his appropriately dog-like qualities as well-- an occasional attention span issue, as well a tendency to act, now and then, literally before he realizes he has done it. The set-up of the mystery is interesting, the solution interesting but not entirely surprising. And Quinn does fall back on one whopper of a coincidence to save the day at one point. But Chet and Bernie are a fun and entertaining team, and Quinn is a prose master. If you read detective fiction for the main character or because you believe it's where much of the best writing is done, this one is for you. It probably adds a bit if you have a dog of your own, but that's not a requirement to enjoy this excellent first outing.

A doggone delight

Full discloure: I am an unabashed dog lover currently own by three dogs. That being said, I loved "Dog On It". This is the story of Bernie, a private eye and Chet, his K-9 dog school flunkie. The story is told from Chet's perspective. The mystery involved Madison Chambliss, a fifteen year old girl who has gone missing. Chet is hired by Madison's mother, and then by her father (the couple is divorced). Along the way they meet several interesting characters, many of who come to Chet's aid. The mystery itself was a bit thin. I figured out how it was going to end very early on. However, that did not detract from the story at all as Chet the dog was so darn funny. I laughed out loud at least once, usually more, during each chapter. An example would be Chet meeting someone he didn't take a fancy to by saying he smelled of the worst thing ever: cat. If you love dogs and are convinced they understand everything we are talking about, you will love this book. Even you you don't love dogs, this is a wonderful, funny book that most would enjoy. If you are a cat person, well, that might be a different story. Highly recommended.