Publisher's Weekly Review
Ex-deputy Dixie Hemingway still mourns the loss of her young daughter and cop husband in a freak accident three years earlier, but takes solace in her pet-sitting job in Siesta Key, Fla., in Clement's thoughtful and at times somber fourth animal-themed cozy (after 2008's Even Cat Sitters Get the Blues). Eager for friendship, Dixie forms an immediate bond with an attractive new neighbor, Laura Halston, who has a cat named Leo. When someone stabs Laura to death in the shower, Dixie suspects Laura's soon-to-be ex-husband, "a sadistic surgeon" skilled with a scalpel. As Dixie's new sweetie, sexy homicide detective Lt. Jean-Pierre Guidry, investigates, surprising information comes to light that will challenge everything she knows about Laura. Some readers may find the subplot involving Maizie, a seizure assistance dog for a boy undergoing brain surgery, more compelling than the somewhat predictable murder story. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
A sleuthing pet sitter's new friend spells trouble. Dixie Hemingway has hired retired clown Pete Madeira to housesit and care for Mazie, a service dog whose young charge is going into the hospital for a tricky operation that could cure his seizure disorder. While visiting Mazie, she runs into next-door neighbor Laura Halston, a stunning gal who tells Dixie about her troubles at the hands of an abusive husband. As the two women bond, Dixie, who's slowly getting over the tragedy of her husband and child's death, feels that she's found a good friend. Even her love life seems to be looking up when handsome police Lt. Guidry invites her to a party. Her contentment is shattered when Laura's Havana Brown cat leads Dixie to her new friend's body. Guidry, who catches the case, reluctantly reveals that just about everything Laura told Dixie was a lie. Hardly has Dixie caught her breath when Laura's obnoxious sister shows up with the news that Laura was a lifelong slut who had stolen money from her boss and lover, a Texas banker laundering drug money. Threatened by a weird former nurse who'd been stalking Laura, and saddled with the job of cheering up a severely depressed Mazie, Dixie won't give up on her friend's murder. Dixie's fourth (Even Cat Sitters Get the Blues, 2008, etc.) provides a showcase for its likable, complex heroine. It will appeal to more than just pet lovers. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
The latest entry in Clement's pet-sitter series, starring former Sarasota, Florida, deputy Dixie Hemingway, remains on the darker side of the rather light animal-mystery spectrum. This time, while caring for a seizure-assistance dog whose young charge is undergoing surgery, Dixie befriends Laura, owner of an escape-prone Havana Brown cat. Laura tells Dixie she is getting divorced from her sadistic husband and being stalked by a man she met at the hospital. But when Laura is murdered, Dixie discovers her new friend was both a liar and a bank robber. Even so, Dixie feels responsible for finding her killer, even if it means putting herself in danger. Recommend this one for readers who liked the southern setting and animal characters in Joyce and Jim Lavene's The Telltale Turtle (2008), although Dixie, burdened by the accidental death of her husband and young daughter, is not as fun and carefree a lead character as the Lavenes' Mary Catherine. Two possible love interests do provide a feel-good secondary plot here, offering a nice counterpoint to the darkness of the main mystery.--Moyer, Jessica Copyright 2008 Booklist
Library Journal Review
In this fourth Dixie Hemingway mystery, the pet sitter befriends Laura, a secretive woman who has escaped her abusive husband but starts receiving anonymous threats. Clement lives in Sarasota, FL. Library marketing campaign. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
