Of Mutts and Men

Written by Spencer Quinn

Narrated by Jim Frangione

Spencer Quinn’s Of Mutts and Men is the latest in the New York Times and USA Today bestselling series that
the Los Angeles Times called “nothing short of masterful” …

When Chet the dog, “the most lovable narrator in all of crime fiction” (Boston Globe), and his partner, PI Bernie
Little of the desert-based Little Detective Agency, arrive to a meeting with hydrologist Wendell Nero, they are in for a
shocking sight—Wendell has come to a violent and mysterious end. What did the hydrologist want to see them about?
Is his death a random robbery, or something more? Chet and Bernie, working for nothing more than an eight-pack
of Slim Jims, are on the case.

Bernie might be the only one who thinks the police have arrested the wrong man, including the perp’s own defense
attorney. Chet and Bernie begin to look into Wendell’s work, a search that leads to a struggling winemaker who has
received an offer he can’t refuse. Meanwhile, Chet is smelling water where there is no water, and soon Chet and Bernie
are in danger like never before.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 7, 2020
• ISBN: 9781501998850

Spencer Quinn

Spencer Quinn is the bestselling author of eight Chet and Bernie mystery series, as well as the #1 New York Times bestselling Bowser and Birdie series for middle-grade readers. He lives on Cape Cod with his wife Diana—and dogs Audrey and Pearl. Keep up with him by visiting SpenceQuinn.com.

Reviews for Of Mutts and Men

[jen henderson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

These are my favorite books ever! I want to pet Chet. The writing is so clever and endearing. The plots are always so intricately designed, and they're always fresh and new. I hope the series never ends

[montzaleew · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Of Mutts and Men(Chet and Bernie Mystery #10)by Spencer QuinnThis is another terrific mystery with Chet the dog telling the story. It has plenty of action, suspense, wit and humor, and plot twists. Love the characters and series! Clean, great fun!

[maydacat_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

According to the police, Bernie and Chet have solved the murder and caught the perp. But Bernie thinks the cops have arrested the wrong man for the murder. And he is determined to find the right one. It’s a twisty and slippery path to justice, one that leads to more deaths and means danger for Bernie and Chet. The appeal of this book, like the others in the series, is that it is told from Chet’s point of view, and being a dog, his thinking is often skewed in the wrong direction. This gives the book a delightful mix of suspense flavored with humor. It can’t be easy to think like a smart dog, but author Spencer Quinn sure makes it seem that way. He has captured the canine brain flawlessly, and delivered another wonderful tale.

[eyes92c · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Crime detection from the canine perspective--Great fun!What a rollicking, at times hilarious read featuring Private Investigators, Bernie Little and his dog Chet. (Failed K-9 school are the hints I get--but that's another story and one I dearly need to read!) BTW I haven't read any of this series before. Starting at #10 really posed no problem and I've already lined up to begin from the beginning!In this story we have a dead hydrologist, an ex girlfriend, various bit players including other friends and some unforgiving baddies.Bernie and Chet track down the person who appears to have committed the murder. The police are satisfied, but Bernie isn't. And that's where the story gets interesting.The plot wends its way along at a reasonable pace, but the one who steals the show is Chet (Chester). The story is told from his viewpoint--and what a totally enjoyable, and often wickedly funny that filter is!Bernie is a PI always looking for a case. Chet is a gumshoe type detective dog character somewhere between Snoopy and Sam Spade with a philosophical bent that made me do double takes from time to time. Chet's an innocent abroad who has insightful flashes. He's so doggy and so Sesame Street all at once. I underlined so many fabulous Chet musings that the pages started to look like they belonged to redacted official secrets papers.And those moments when Chet starts to put things together, and then at the last minute is distracted by the smell of another animal or some other canine interest, are priceless. Like his being ok with a fly in his drinking water. "I was sipping water from a bowl with a dead fly lying on the bottom, or, on second look, maybe not quite dead. No complaints. You toughen up in a job like mine." (Maybe he's really a Steven Wright avatar?)Chet interpreting what he thinks prayer might be is fabulous. His discovery of pastrami on rye sandwiches is just too much.Bernie is quite a character too--a rangy, laconic type of guy, hard hitting, with his own brand of integrity, and determined.Deftly told, clever and funny. I was sold from the first line.This hard boiled when he needs to be, PI overlapping with his furry friend, sort of puts this story close to cozy mystery genre. But this is so much more!What a treasure!A Macmillan-Tor/Forge ARC via NetGalley

[hcnewton · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Bernie meets the man destined to his new best friend—a hydrologist who seems to share many of the same opinions as Bernie when it comes to water usage in Phoenix. I don't think we've managed to get a novel where Bernie hasn't complained about the waste of water in the area (except maybe those two when they were back East), "we only have one aquifer." It appears that Wendell has need of a P.I., too—the two make arrangements to meet the next day to discuss it.But when our dynamic duo shows up at Wendell's worksite office, they find him murdered. Which puts the kibosh on the bromance. Bernie naturally begins investigating—spurred to action after meeting the Sheriff's Deputy in charge of this case, if nothing else—who is one of the sorriest excuses for a law enforcement officer that I've read this year. Some quick detective work leads Bernie to a suspect—not one that he believes really did it, but he still feels compelled to hand him over to Deputy Beasley.This was a mistake as Beasley locks in on the suspect and ignores any other possibilities. But the more that Bernie looks into things—if only to find out why Wendell wanted to hire him—the more he's convinced the suspect is innocent. Only no one—including the deputy, and the suspect's own defense attorney—will listen to him.WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT CHETWhat is there to say about Chet the Jet? He's the same loveable, heroic champ we've come to know and love. For those who don't know—Chet's our narrator, Bernie's partner, and a 100+ pound dog. Other than a couple of sentences showing a more libidinous side to Chet than we're used to seeing, he's exactly what we've come to expect. Don't read anything into me not having a lot to say about him—he's the best dog in fiction (for my money), but there are only so many ways you can say that.BUT WE CAN'T FORGET BERNIE (OR ANYONE ELSE)On the other hand, I think I've given Bernie short shrift over the years—it's easy to focus on Chet. But Bernie's more than just the guy who complains about wasting water while making horrible investment choices. He's a top-notch P.I., but like most fictional P.I.'s, his principles, independence, and lousy business sense keep him from being much of a success. His residence and devotion to Chet are most of what separates him from Elvis Cole, for example (sure, Elvis has his cat, but he doesn't take the cat with him on cases).I felt more connected to Bernie in this novel than usual—I'm not sure if that's a reflection on me or Quinn's writing. Bernie's outrage at the treatment of the suspect (some directed at himself for getting the Deputy looking at him) drives him more than any desire for a fee or to discover what Wendell wanted.In addition to the case and the machinations of the principles involved, there's a lot going on in Bernie's private life. He doesn't deal well with most of it, which isn't a surprise, dealing well with personal relationships isn't his trademark. It seems to affect him more in this novel than I'm used to seeing him—both positively and negatively (although, there's a lot of negative in this novel—all around).In case you can't tell, I can't put my finger on what's different this time—but Bernie seems more human, more real, less "merely the guy who Chet is devoted to" (although he absolutely is that). Quinn puts him through the wringer in many ways here, and the novel is better for it.It's not just with Bernie, I think that this novel has some of the most subtle and rich character work in the series (last year's Heart of Barkness ) headed in this direction (growth prompted by The Right Side ?). The villain of this novel is the most complex and compelling foe for these two. Beyond that, there were so many characters that showed up for a scene or two—five or six pages total—that were just dynamic. Even Malcolm, the husband of Bernie's ex-wife, Leda makes a couple of positive contributions! He's rarely been much beyond an antagonist for Bernie, a competitor for the paternal role for Bernie's son—and here he's in such a better way, I almost liked him.DON'T FORGET THE KLEENEXThere are three—maybe four—scenes in this book that "hit you in the feels." One only took two or three sentences to deliver the punch, and could easily be missed. But the emotional core of this novel is shown in a couple of others (some readers will be torn up by them, others will be satisfied—either reaction is warranted).But there's one scene—it has only the most tangential tie to the plot—that will (or ought to) devastate you. I'm honestly not sure why Quinn included it, but I am so glad he did. You'll know it when you read it, I'm not going to say anything else about it. Chet was still his goofy self, but even he came across differently in it. The book is worth the purchase price for it alone.SO WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT OF MUTTS AND MEN?I've said it before, I'll say it again, I've been a fan of this series since maybe the third chapter of the first book eleven years ago. And I'll be a fan until Quinn moves on. But there's something different about this book. Still, I'm going to try to thread the needle here—this is not my favorite book in the series. However, I think it's unquestionably the best book so far. I'm not crazy about some of the longer-term arc events here—hey're the smart move by Quinn, I'll defend them, but I didn't like them.Still, there's a good mystery, you get the wonderful partnership of Chet and Bernie, probably the best use of Bernie yet, and a new depth to Quinn's writing—it's precisely what the doctor ordered. New readers will have no problem jumping in at this point, returning fans have to be pulling on their leashes to get to this. Highly recommended.Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Macmillan-Tor/Forge via NetGalley in exchange for this post—thanks to both for this. Also, sorry that I didn't get this posted sooner, I really did try.

[nancyluebke · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This comes out in July 2020. I really enjoyed this murder mystery. I received this for free and I voluntarily chose to review this story. I've given this a 4.5* rating. This is the first time I've read any book that is by the dog's point of view. In places, this story was so funny. In many ways, this dog was ruled by smells but he loved and obeyed as best he could, his owner. He was ready unconditionally for any kind of action, that his owner wanted to do. Will look for more of this author's work.

[jetangen4571 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

dogs, private-investigators, murder-investigation, suspense*****If you've never had a K-9 failure tell you about a difficult case he and his partner PI Bernie Little survived, you've missed a lot! Chet tells all from his own unique perspective. He doesn't understand what hydrology is or why it's important in the desert Southwest where they live, but he does know things that Bernie doesn't and that they have each others back no matter what. If I remember right, this one has even more plot twists and red herrings than usual, but all of the characters are engaging, interesting, and occasionally evil. Just not the good guys, sometimes they are a bit clueless, but never evil.I requested and received a free ebook copy from Macmillan-Tor/Forge Forge Books via NetGalley. Thank you!