This is a series I don’t follow in order. I’m not really that much of a dog person and too much of Rosenfelt’s humor will do me no good.  Once in awhile though … so I’m reading his Christmas books from the Andy Carpenter series.  I don’t know if I’ll do another one this season or not – maybe. I know I’ll do another one at some point.

*******
Deck the Hounds
By David Rosenfelt/ 2018
Read by Grover Gardner 7h 19m Rating: B+ / legal mystery 
*******

“Deck the Hounds” is just what I needed. It’s a light murder mystery set in a medium sized New Jersey town during Christmas time.  Our protagonist, Andy Carpenter, is a multi-millionaire attorney who loves dogs.  This is book #18 so the background story arc has progressed quite a ways but I had no problem keeping up with the little fact that Andy   married Laurie who was in a couple priors at some point,  and they have a child, a boy age 6.  Andy still has his beloved retriever, Tara.  These characters don’t play much part in the plot. 

From Audible: Reluctant lawyer Andy Carpenter doesn’t usually stop to help others, but seeing a dog next to a homeless man inspires him to give the pair some money to help. It’s just Andy’s luck that things don’t end there. Soon after Andy’s encounter with them, man and dog are attacked in the middle of the night on the street. The dog defends its new owner, and the erstwhile attacker is bitten but escapes. But the dog is quarantined, and the man, Don Carrigan, is heartbroken.   

Andy’s wife, Laurie, can’t resist helping the duo after learning Andy has met them before…it’s the Christmas season, after all. In a matter of days, Don and his dog, Zoey, are living above Andy’s garage and become two new additions to the family. It’s not until Andy accidentally gives away his guest’s name during an interview that things go awry; turns out Don is wanted for a murder that happened two years ago. Don not only claims he’s innocent, but that he had no idea he was wanted for a crime he has no knowledge of in the first place. It’s up to Andy to exonerate his new friend, if he doesn’t get pulled into the quagmire first.   

David Rosenfelt’s signature wit, charm, and cleverness are back again in this most exciting installment yet.