Play Dead

I'm still catching up on previous books in David Rosenfelt's defense attorney Andy Carpenter mysteries with Play Dead (#139).   This book features (what else?!) a golden retriever sequestered at the local pound. Because he's bitten his owner,Yogi has been deemed a dangerous dog and is scheduled to be put down.  But the man in charge of the pound doesn't agree, so he calls Andy Carpenter, dog advocate, to the rescue.

Andy causes quite a stir with the media in the dog's defense, with a ruling in Yogi's favor.  But in the course of the television coverage of the trial, Yogi has been recognized.  A woman approaches Andy and claims that Yogi is not, in fact, Yogi; he's Reggie, and has been presumed dead for the last five years.  Reggie belongs to her brother, who has been convicted in the murder of his then fiancee and his own attempted suicide on his boat off the New Jersey coast.  Karen Evans has always believed her brother innocent of the crime, and with Reggie's resurrection, she's hoping Andy will re-open her brother's case and fight his conviction.  Since Andy has never been strong on the whole work ethos, he's reluctant to take on the case, but when his phone is tapped, and someone tries to shoot him on the highway, he knows there's more to this case than meets the eye.  His blood is up, and he's out to win.

I always enjoy Rosenfelt's writing style and humor and I hated having to keep putting it down over the holiday.  One small quibble; I do wish he had tied up some plot ends a little more neatly, though.  Those dangling threads did have me asking "But what about...?  What drew those particular people together...?"  Even that wasn't enough to spoil this book for me, and I'm glad things worked out for Reggie.