Rating: 
Summary: Back on track, hooray hurrah!
Review: After being badly disappointed in the previous installment, I was hesitant.And wonderfully surprised to find that Ms. Conant has returned! Even though her protaganist holds a dim view of "pet owners", I still really enjoy the characterization. This book seems to have a lighter touch on the personal troubles Holly is facing; something I prefer. Worth the risk!
Rating:
Summary: Back on track, hooray hurrah!
Review: After being badly disappointed in the previous installment, I was hesitant. And wonderfully surprised to find that Ms. Conant has returned! Even though her protaganist holds a dim view of "pet owners", I still really enjoy the characterization. This book seems to have a lighter touch on the personal troubles Holly is facing; something I prefer. Worth the risk!
Rating:
Summary: Back on track, hooray hurrah!
Review: After being badly disappointed in the previous installment, I was hesitant. And wonderfully surprised to find that Ms. Conant has returned! Even though her protaganist holds a dim view of "pet owners", I still really enjoy the characterization. This book seems to have a lighter touch on the personal troubles Holly is facing; something I prefer. Worth the risk!
Rating:
Summary: Well Worth Waiting For
Review: Does Holly get Steve back? Does he at least dump the dog-hating witch? Does Holly recover from her concussion? Does Ceci get a new Newfie? Is there really a dangerous pervert haunting the dog park? What's wrong with the golden retriever at the dog park? Is Holly's new therapist any good? How's Leah doing at Harvard? What's Kevin up to? How great a dog is Rowdy really? Does Kimi finish her championship? Some of these questions get answered, just enough to keep us satisfied until the next Holly/Rowdy/Kimi/Leah adventure comes out, but enough of these questions go unanswered to make us eagerly antisipate the next book Conant comes out with. It didn't take me long to finish, but the solution to the mystery came as a complete but pleasant surprise.
Rating:
Summary: Well Worth Waiting For
Review: Does Holly get Steve back? Does he at least dump the dog-hating witch? Does Holly recover from her concussion? Does Ceci get a new Newfie? Is there really a dangerous pervert haunting the dog park? What's wrong with the golden retriever at the dog park? Is Holly's new therapist any good? How's Leah doing at Harvard? What's Kevin up to? How great a dog is Rowdy really? Does Kimi finish her championship? Some of these questions get answered, just enough to keep us satisfied until the next Holly/Rowdy/Kimi/Leah adventure comes out, but enough of these questions go unanswered to make us eagerly antisipate the next book Conant comes out with. It didn't take me long to finish, but the solution to the mystery came as a complete but pleasant surprise.
Rating:
Summary: I just wait until the next one comes out, I'm addicted.
Review: Even though the thought of owning a Malamute sends my husband, my cats, and my poor terrier into fits of terror, I just can't seem to get enough of Rowdy, Kimi, and even some of the "people" characters. Everytime I spot a Mal, I can't control my urge to ask for permission to get my hands on one. I sneer at people who use the work "huskies". I suspect Conant of using some kind of Harvard shrink tricks to turn sane people into Malamute crazies. Hopefully, Holly will come to her senses and hold on to Steve this time. The dogs deserve a great vet.
Rating:
Summary: One of Her Best
Review: Holly Winter, proud owner of two beloved malamutes Kimi and Rowdy, is going through some hard times. She is recovering from a case of amnesia and related neurological problems, while trying to adjust to the fact that her long time lover and vet, Steve Delaney, married somebody else. To add injury to insult, Steve's wife is somebody Kelly absolutely despises for good reasons.
To get her mind off her personal problems, Holly spends some time with a group of pet owners and their dogs in a beautiful park in Newton, Mass. One of the members, Sylvia has a golden retriever named Zsa-Zsa who is rambunctious to the point of being dangerous. It is a shock when Holly and some other member of the group find Sylvia dead in the park, killed by a bullet in her chest. Holly goes into her sleuth mode and tries to ferret out the perpetrator.
It has been a long time since Susan Conant has written a book about everyone's favorite malamutes but the poignant mystery was well worth the wait. The relationship the heroine and her canines share is precious to behold while Holly's sense of justice encourages her to take risks that most people would not. THE WICKED FLEA is a delightful whimsical and humorous mystery that shows off the attributes of humans and canines that are rather similar in nature. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: delightful whimsical and humorous mystery
Review: Holly Winter, proud owner of two beloved malamutes Kimi and Rowdy, is going through some hard times. She is recovering from a case of amnesia and related neurological problems, while trying to adjust to the fact that her long time lover and vet, Steve Delaney, married somebody else. To add injury to insult, Steve's wife is somebody Kelly absolutely despises for good reasons.
To get her mind off her personal problems, Holly spends some time with a group of pet owners and their dogs in a beautiful park in Newton, Mass. One of the members, Sylvia has a golden retriever named Zsa-Zsa who is rambunctious to the point of being dangerous. It is a shock when Holly and some other member of the group find Sylvia dead in the park, killed by a bullet in her chest. Holly goes into her sleuth mode and tries to ferret out the perpetrator.
It has been a long time since Susan Conant has written a book about everyone's favorite malamutes but the poignant mystery was well worth the wait. The relationship the heroine and her canines share is precious to behold while Holly's sense of justice encourages her to take risks that most people would not. THE WICKED FLEA is a delightful whimsical and humorous mystery that shows off the attributes of humans and canines that are rather similar in nature. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: Ending a little weak, but still definitely worth reading
Review: I love Susan Conant's books - partially at least because I love Alaskan malamutes and Conant does a great job of capturing their unique if at times slightly bull-headed nature. This book is no different. Conant manages to keep your interest in the series going, even though some might think the malamute hook would have worn itself out by now. My major complaint with this book is two-fold 1.)I don't like reading about anything bad happening to dogs, but bad breeding is a fact of life and 2.)the ending is weak. There weren't enough clues pointing to who did the crime. It was like at the end she said eeny meeny miney moe and picked a villain, then just said alright he/she dunit.
To me Conant's villains are always the biggest weakness in her books, but I will definitely keep reading them. The only danger in reading them is that they will cause you to pick up the phone to find your own malamute. :-)
Rating:
Summary: My least favorite of the series
Review: In this book, I was upset to find my old pal Holly had turned into a real bitch (of the arrogant woman variety) Had to go back and re-read "Creature Discomforts"to find her excuse. I was still offended by her snotty & snobbish condesension toward pet people. OK,I confess that as one of the much maligned pet people, I actually look down my nose at silly show people, not to mention my distaste for breeders. We're still in agreement in our low opinion of backyard breeders and high opinion of rescue organizations. I was also pleased at the renewal of the romance with the marvelous Steve. I had pretty much given up on the series following the aforementioned "Creature Discomforts" in which she rejected the darling man once too often, pushing him into taking up with and marrying a real slimeball dog hater.
So,much as I disliked this book, I am looking forward to "Bride & Groom" and seeing how they manage to merge their canine families. I'm also anxious for updates on some of the other secondary characters. Poor Kevin was still in the hospital when last seen in "The Dogfather", and both he and Rita the shrink had budding romances going.
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