title: Dog Collar Crime
author:  Melissa Cleary 
description: In their second adventure, Cleary's ( A Tail of Two Murders ) amateur sleuth Jackie Walsh and her retired police dog, Jake, track down the culprit responsible for murder at the local kennel: Melvin Sweeten, kennel owner and breeder of prize-winning basset hounds, is found in a dog run, strangled with a choke collar. Though beloved by his bassets, Melvin was less popular with several people. The night he died, he had a particularly acrimonious meeting with Dog Fanciers Assn. members Thalia Gilmore and Dick Buzone. Even Amy, Mel's quietly unhappy wife, was waiting for her dog-obsessed husband to notice her enough to divorce her. Jackie is sufficiently intrigued to talk to the widow and do some nosing around the dog-show circuit to get a sense of Mel's milieu. Meanwhile Jackie's friend, Lt. Michael McGowan of the Palmer P.D., learns that Mel had more money salted away than seemed possible on his earnings. The tale is lightweight and standard enough that its doggy appeal is its prime one. And readers may be put off by an evidence problem: the murderer fabricated evidence that is presented to us as corroborated by another source. <br />Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
  						    	
  						        	--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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  ![9781488019333.jpg](../cover.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  CAUGHT IN THE CROSSHAIRS
  
  
  A dog-sitting favor for a friend takes a terrifying twist when the police-dog-
  in-training runs off and leads Alexis Thompson into the middle of a drug drop.
  Only the quick thinking of a passing stranger gets them both out alive.
  Veterinarian Nick Kendrick, who’s running for mayor, knows the race for
  survival is just beginning. As moving targets, he and Alexis must work
  together to learn the identity of the drug ring’s murderous mastermind. But
  having killers on their tail isn’t the only problem they face. Alexis’s past
  as a disbarred lawyer could jeopardize Nick’s political future. Only by
  putting their dreams and their safety on the line can they eliminate the
  threat to their town, and find a way forward together...
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  “Get them.”
  
  
  A gunshot rang out. Alexis ducked and put both hands over her head. A scream
  tore from her throat. The dog answered with a bark. Th