Sep 10, 2013

Book Review: The Sound and the Furry by Spencer Quinn

Also submitted to: Teaser Tuesdays hosted by MizB; choose sentences from your current read and identify author and title for readers.  First Chapter, First Paragraph is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea.


Opening paragraphs:
"One thing's for sure," the lawyer said, handing Bernie our check," you earned every cent."

Bernie tucked the check in - oh, no - the chest pocket of his Hawaiian shirt, just about his nicest Hawaiian shirt, with the hula dancers and the trombones, but that wasn't the point. The point was we'd had chest pocket problems in the past, more than once. And possibly more than twice, but I wouldn't know, since I don't count past two. What I do know is that checks have a way of falling out of chest pockets.

"What's he barking about?" the lawyer said.
My comments: That's Chet talking, the 100-pound plus dog who, with his human partner, Bernie, make up the detective duo, Chet and Bernie. Chet narrates the stories and we see his limitations and also his strengths in the partnership. He can't communicate in words with Bernie but he is astute, a great sniffer, and knows lots of things Bernie doesn't. With Bernie's human smarts, together they make good PIs.

In The Sound and the Furry, the pair are asked to find a missing inventor, Ralph, the reclusive brother of a criminal Chet and Bernie have put behind bars. They leave the dry desert Chet is familiar with and head down to Louisiana and the bayou. It takes some getting used to for Chet, all that water, but he takes it in stride, even swimming in the bayou a couple of times.

And what I had feared happened. Chet gets into big trouble in that bayou, and I won't say how, but it's spectacular and nail-bitingly suspenseful. The big dog meets more than his match. The duo solve the mystery though, with Bernie getting involved in more than he had bargained for. But as Chet explains about Bernie being able to figure things out,
" Bernie handles the so therefores. I bring other things to the table."

My take: Entertaining, suspenseful, good writing. An excellent read.


By the way, this is the sixth book in the series, but they can be read in any order.

Book description:
Chet and Bernie head to Louisiana after they run into an old criminal friend they helped send to prison, Frenchie Boutette. Frenchie needs Bernie and Chet’s help to find his missing brother, Ralph, who has disappeared from his houseboat. A reclusive inventor, Ralph is the only law-abiding member of his family. The Boutette family has a long running feud with the no-good Robideaus and it seems as if Ralph’s disappearance is connected to a dispute over a load of stolen shrimp. But when Chet uncovers a buried clue, the investigation heads in a dangerous direction and a conspiracy involving the oil business. Visit Chet's website: Chet the Dog.

Title: The Sound and the Furry: A Chet and Bernie Mystery #6 by Spencer Quinn
Published September 10, 2013; Atria Books
Source: review book provided by the publisher'
Objective rating: 4.5/5

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19 comments:

  1. Great idea narrating the story from Chet's point of view. The idea has a lot of potential.

    Have you read all the previous books in the series Harvee?

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    1. I have read most of them, Brian. I have a few to catch up on. I loved the very first one I that I read which got me hooked on the series, The Dog Who Knew Too Much.

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    2. I've read the first book in the series and really enjoyed it.

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  2. Sounds interesting. I hope you enjoy this one.

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  3. I like the fact that we are hearing Chet. I too would be concerned about putting a check in the chest pocket of an Hawaiian shirt. Surely, not the safest place, I have stories I could share!! LOL

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    Replies
    1. Would love to hear the stories, grammajudy! LOL

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  4. Oh I like!. Here is mine.

    http://andreareadsandreviews.blogspot.com/2013/09/tuesday-teasers-meme-91013-twofer.html

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  5. That title caught me off guard. I wonder what it's really like? Kelley at the road goes ever ever on

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    Replies
    1. You won't know for sure till you try it!

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    2. I like the intro and actually read the first in this series -- I'd keep reading.

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  6. This one doesn't really appeal to me, but the title made me smile. Glad you enjoyed it.

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  7. Harvee, the opening is interesting, to say the least. It does sound like a very good mystery.
    I mention your blog in my post today. :)

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  8. I love this series! I have this one from NetGalley and hopefully I will get to it soon.

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  9. This one sounds like fun. Good opening paragraph. I'd keep going.

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  10. Not for me but glad you liked it.

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  11. I've been "#1" on the reserve list since my library put this in their system. I hope that soooon, it will be out of "processing" and into my hands!

    I just love this series. :-)

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  12. Sounds like a fun book and interesting point of view!

    Joy's Book Blog

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  13. Oh, that's good to know these can be read in any order. I've been wanting to read this series ever since Stephen King recommended it in Entertainment Weekly. They sound like a lot of fun.

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