Audiobook Review: Thereby Hangs a Tail

The Chet and Bernie mysteries by Spencer Quinn are some of my favorite books! The narrator, Jim Frangione, really makes the audiobooks enjoyable. The series is narrated by Chet the dog. Chet and his person, Bernie, run the Little Detective Agency, which specializes in missing person cases.

In Thereby Hangs a Tail, Chet and Bernie are hired to act as bodyguards for Princess the show dog and her owner, Adelina Borghese. The Borghese family has received mail threatening Princess and want to make sure that she has protection while in town for The Great Western Dog Show. At $2,000 per day, the job seems like easy money. Unfortunately, there is an incident causing Chet and Bernie to be fired before the job ever begins. Then Princess and Adelina are actually abducted, and Bernie is determined to solve the case even though he and Chet were fired.

Chet and Bernie are both lovable characters, as is Bernie’s girlfriend, Susie Sanchez. Chet as narrator works really well, even if you have to suspend logic and believe that a dog can actually understand human conversation enough to tell a coherent story. I think anyone who likes dogs will enjoy this series. Chet has a lot of stories about his life as a dog, many of which he tells you he is saving for some other time. He loves gourmet treats from Rover and Company as much as he loves a stale hamburger. Chet’s narration is often interrupted by his discovery of some food item or a cat distracting him by yawning.

When I listen to Jim Frangione-as-Chet narrate, I am often reminded of my dog Sherman. Sherman is always good for a laugh, and he has mismatched ears like Chet.

If you like dogs and you like books, you absolutely must give this series a try! I recommend the audiobooks. Get a head start by having a look around Chet The Dog.

I have already moved on to the third book in the series, To Fetch a Thief. Thereby Hangs a Tail ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, and I had to find out what happened.

Book: Thereby Hangs a Tail | Author: Spencer Quinn | Published: Recorded Books, LLC; January 5, 2010 | Format: CDs | Source: Library
Rating: 5 out of 5

It’s Monday! What are you Reading?

This is my first week participating in It’s Monday! What are you Reading?, hosted by Book Journey.

I am currently reading the following books:

1. Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran. This is an e-galley from the publisher, received via NetGalley. Claire DeWitt is a bit different than your average private investigator found in mystery novels. The concept is fresh, and I look forward to finding out how everything ties together.
2. Spackled and Spooked by Jennie Bentley. I picked this up at the library a week or so ago. My nook needed to charge, so I took a break from Claire DeWitt and started this no-brainer, second book in the DIY mystery series. It is a nice, quick read and was handy for reading at the lake. Yes, I got brave and went swimming in a power plant cooling lake!
3. Thereby Hangs a Tail by Spencer Quinn. This is the second book in the Chet and Bernie series, which is a favorite of mine. Dog as narrator! Chet reminds me of my goofy dog, Sherman, right down to the mismatched ears. I am listening to the audiobook, as I did with the first in the series.

Speaking of dogs, I would like to introduce you to the pack! I made a quickie page for them today. I hope to add the details surrounding their adoptions at a later date. Of course, the pack includes myself and the mister. We are going to start a new dog training class later this week. We might have some stories.

Last week I finished reading and reviewed:

1. The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths – My Review
2. Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters – My Review

I also joined the Goodreads Book Club Challenge and plan to read A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. I am excited about this since I don’t belong to any in-person book clubs, and this book has received a lot of hype!

Current and Upcoming Reads

Currently Reading:

Hotel Angeline: A Novel in 36 Voices

Hotel Angeline is a rare book in that it was written by 36 authors, but it is not a compilation of short stories. The final product is one complete novel. Further, the novel was written in front of a live audience. Imagine the pressure! Watch a video about the concept:

Cop Killer by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö (audiobook)

Cop Killer is ninth in the Martin Beck series. Of course, this is the first Martin Beck that I have read. I hope I am not missing too much by having not read the first eight in order. I am about halfway through and the narrator, Tom Weiner, is very good.

New Arrivals:

The Murder of the Century: The Gilded Age Crime That Scandalized a City & Sparked the Tabloid Wars by Paul Collins

I won this one in a Goodreads giveaway and I can’t wait to read it.

Upcoming:

Thereby Hangs a Tail and To Fetch a Thief by Spencer Quinn  (audiobooks)

I listened to the first book in the series, Dog on It, and I loved it so much that I bought the book to read again. I bet I will want to do the same with these two. Going in, I never would have thought that Dog as Narrator could work so well. Folks, it works very well. I love a good animal-centric mystery.