I always enjoy the Mrs. Murphy Mysteries, although I have never figured out what real part the animals play except to tell a little bit of what is happening that Harry is unaware of.

When the series began years ago, I wanted to BE Harry and work in a small town post office. I enjoyed watching the main character grow through the various stories. This one is no exception.

While getting ready for a Hounds4Heros event in Aldie (which I know, living in in Northern Virginia) one of the crew working to clear trails after a storm is murdered brutally. There are very few people who could have committed the murder and all are friends of Harry and Susan's. All have dogs they run, and all have ties to government jobs that required secrecy.

The parallel story is of finding a body at St. Luke's on top of a casket in an old grave. It is a mystery who this woman is and how she got there. Could the two deaths be related?

In the end, Harry must seriously consider her convictions and the morals on which she stands. Is justice always the right course of action? Does one ever consider mercy? Who is actually an enemy?

Whisker in the Dark is my first cozy mystery by Rita Mae Brown. I've seen her books mentioned on other blogs and thought they looked cute so when I saw on NetGalley that she had a new book coming out I had to try it. As it is book 28 in the Mrs. Murphy series, I hoped it would be more of a stand alone.

Before the story gets started there is a list of characters with short descriptions. If are following the series, it probably serves as a good reminder and for those like me picking up this book first, it gives some background information. I wish more books that are in long series would do this (or at least provide the info online). Do you like having a list of characters to reference?

And there are plenty of characters to keep straight. I'm not sure which characters are unique to this story and which are recurring characters, but there is quite a list that I assume are recurring especially since there are pets included in the list. The pets are very much a part of the cast - Mrs. Murphy is a cat. While the humans do not understand the animals the animals do talk to one another.

I'm not sure how to classify this cozy mystery. There is a lot of "interests" that it could fall into. At first, I thought it was an animal cozy, but then they spent a lot of time talking about hunting (rabbits and foxes), so I thought maybe it's a hunting cozy (is that such a thing?), but then there is a historical storyline and a lot of the main characters in present day seem to know a lot about history (who remembers the date of the surrender at Appomattox?) so then I thought maybe it was a history cozy. There's also a good bit of military and foreign service members so maybe that's the category. It seems to defy classification. And that's okay.

I was a bit worried that this was going to be a southern story (it's set in Virginia) where they were obsessed with being southern, particularly given the Civil War references at the beginning. I live in the south and know people that haven't quite gotten over the war (in eighth grade a kid told me he hated me because my side one the war - I'm originally from the north). But when the story switches focus from present day to the past it is the 1780s and the United States is just forming.

At first, I thought the historical storyline was because of the body the present day characters found buried on top of another grave. But that it isn't the only murder in this story. There's also a murder to be solved in the present day. It wasn't until the end that I started to think that the historical story is recurring throughout the series as well.

I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. And as I had hoped, it read well as a stand-alone. While you can tell the characters all know each other there isn't a lot of references that make you think there is more to the story that you are missing because you haven't read the previous books. It is more like you were dropped in the middle of a community where the characters had lives before we encountered them and will continue living life after we close the book. I much prefer this approach than the stories that hint at other mysteries the characters solved.

Now the big question whenever starting a series that has some many books in it - will I go back and catch up? Probably not totally. I will probably do what I do the M.C. Beaton series I have encountered - I'll read the books that I happen to come across at the library or thrift sales. But I will definitely read more in this series, both past books, and any future books as I want to know what happens with the characters.

The review will be published at Girl Who Reads on June 4.

I just really didn't like it. For a cozy mystery, it's neither cozy or much of a mystery. A significant amount of the story was focused on teaching the reader historical facts about American history and how hound hunting works. The mystery didn't even begin until I was one-third into the book and even then it seemed to remain on the back burner until the last 20 pages or so. I really enjoyed the animals and thought the way the author wrote their dialogue alongside the humans was really neat but there's not enough of that to carry me through the book. The ending was interesting as well; even though I picked the killer I was surprised by Harry's response.

But those two things I liked were only a handful of pages overall and not nearly enough for me to want to pick it back up. Nothing propelled me forward through the explanatory dialogue (I was a history major. I love history but not when someone recounts facts for multiple paragraphs of dialogue.) or vast amount of names of characters that seemed not to matter. Maybe it's because I haven't read any of the other books in the series but other than the animal sections I didn't like it. I'm sorry to leave such a review but I promised to always write honest reviews for what I read. I really adore cozy mysteries but without the mystery what even is it?

Note: I received a free Kindle edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher Random House, and the author Rita Mae Brown for the opportunity to do so.

The latest in the Sneaky Pie Brown series has dual plot lines. One taking place in the late 1700s, involves the families of Cloverfields and Big Tawey, two neighboring plantations. Although there is no mystery currently involved, the events of the time intrude upon today, this time with a body that turns up in a grave from the time.

The other happening today involves the sport of hunting rabbits on foot with beagles and basset hounds. As Harry and others prepare for an important event at a club near DC, one of the volunteers is found murdered. The death opens questions about another recent disappearance at the club.

I liked that the two plotlines are coming together and I also liked that much of the action took place outside of Harry's hometown of Crozet. I also liked that we learned about another type of hunting.

What I didn't like as much about this book is that it left so many questions open. We are left wondering about the old body and why it was uncovered now. We wonder what were the circumstances behind the murders at the hunt club. I find myself even wondering if the murderer will go free.

I can't wait for the next book.

I liked the time slip aspect of this novel--part of it is set in the Revolutionary War and the rest in present day. Overall, a good one.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Harry and her friend Susan are helping out clearing the grounds for the Hounds for Heroes run for Bassets and Beagles. Along with other volunteers, they find a problem on the road that needs the help of a tractor, and one of their friends, Jason Holzknect, sets off to find one. But when he doesn't return, they set off to find him...and they do, with his throat slit. While Harry is convinced someone at the club killed Jason, everyone wants her to let the police handle the case. And when another body is found Harry begins to connect the dots, never realizing that the truth is indeed stranger than fiction...

Meanwhile, the discovery of a centuries-old skeleton in a grave marked for another leads to other questions: who killed the woman and why put her on top of the casket of someone else? Why a couple of parishioners are more interested in the expensive jewelry she wore, Harry, of course, is interested in her origins and who hated her enough to leave her there...

This is the 28th book in the series, and I am happy to say that it's just as intriguing as all the previous ones. As a matter of fact, I find each book better than the last one I read. Perhaps it's just that I truly enjoy Ms. Brown's writing, but I also love a good mystery, and these books not only give you that, they give you tales that span the centuries.

Harry's joined, of course, by her faithful friends: cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, dogs Tucker and new friend Pirate, who's recently adopted and still growing. The animals make their own friend in this book, that of a ghost Beagle named Ruffy who has a tale of his own, and hopes his new found friends can help him. It's a mesmerizing story of love, betrayal, death, revenge, and money, and the author tells it well.

As Harry refuses to let go of Jason's murder, she's warned off gently but it doesn't stop her, and she's determined to solve the case. She begins to put the pieces together and convinces herself of the reason why the man was murdered; and through her determination and self-will, she keeps going, knowing there's more to the story.

Once again we revisit the eighteenth century where the Ewings and Holloways are neighbors, and we see how difficult life was in that century, where the author puts a different spin on the thoughts of certain beliefs of that era. I do believe that people forget that all souls are products of their time, and to expect anything different is sheer foolishness. I, for one, understand this and never expect the past to be the same as the present, nor would I wish it to be. It was a different world, when America was new and people were learning to survive in this country - any way they could.

Together both stories make for quite an absorbing narrative, which kept me reading all the way through to the end in nearly one sitting (sleep does reluctantly come). Just when I would find myself engaged in the past, I was pulled into the present, back again to Harry and her tenacity. But be aware that I never felt it was an intrusion or disruption of the story, and both seemed to meld together seamlessly.

When the truth of the murder is found, I had already figured out the killer as I read a lot of mysteries and for the most part it's rarely difficult, but I have always stated that it's the journey that's the most fun in mysteries - watching how the protagonist puts the pieces together, and Harry's almost an expert in this. It brings home a few questions of our own to answer, and our answers will tell us how we feel about this book.

I, for one, absolutely loved it, and felt that justice was done. I was satisfied with the ending, and although I do feel that Megs and Janice are just too avaricious for their own good, (although this is a personal feeling and nothing was alluded to it in the book) I look forward to the next in the series, where I can continue visiting with Harry and her friends, and of course the Ewings and Holloways. Highly recommended.

Whiskers in the dark is a story about murders that took place in 1787 and 2018....a cat and dog that talk and help their owner (Harry, they call her) out with trying to solve said murders. It’s a VERY CUTE story that you are SURE to LOVE, if you love cozy’s. Rita Mae Brown is a author that clearly knows her stuff, and you’ll agree the first time you read her books. She is able to smoothly take you from one erra to another, without confusing or losing the reader. You’ll love this book as much as I did, so read it. Happy reading!!! :))

A time traveling story *and* a work by Rita Mae Brown. It does not get any better than that! I read this in one sitting and just wished it were longer!!!

I've read this series from book 1 and although there have been a couple that I didn't enjoy as much as the rest. However, I found this one very hard to put down.

I love how she in intertwining both a 'current' and 'historical' storyline in this series. She is one of the few authors that I think do this very well.

Some twists and turns and of course, there is also a bit of 'what's next?' as the book ends and I have to wait until the next one is published.

Buy the premise of talking, crime solving pets! Do it! This latest installment in Brown's long running series sees a dual time line - the current day and 1787. Of course there are murders in both eras and Harry is going to solve them. A lot of the charm for me is in the location and characters- those familiar with the area will see that she nails them both. The mysteries themselves aren't especially twisty but you'll learn a bit about hunting hounds and the Revolutionary War. And you'll smile, especially at Pewter, Mrs. Murphy, Tee Tucker, and Pirate. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A satisfying read for fans and one which is fine as a standalone.

Four murders, two time periods, a lovely Virginia estate, a hunting hound competition and a bunch of retired former members of the diplomatic corps, military and CIA. Sound interesting? Sure enough, it truly was. Protagonist "Harry", (Mary Minor Haristeen), and her cadre of felines and canines are on it. Curiosity is her weakness and unsolved murders on the competition grounds is just bad for business.

Enlightening informative book.

A very well written and engaging book from the opening chapter. Loved learning a bit about dog hunting. Characters were well developed. I must admit, I didn't see the ending. Quite good. Highly recommend. I received an advance reader copy from the publisher. Opinions are my own.

This was an interesting mystery set in two time periods - present day and 1787. There are suspicious murders in both time periods. In the present day scenario Harry Harristeen and her pets - cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter (love this name for a cat) and two dogs Tucker and Pirate - investigate both the present day and the 1787 murders. The talking animals are adorable - I enjoyed them. The setting is against a backdrop of an annual Hounds F4R Heroes beagle and basset hunting competition at an estate in Virginia.

Unfortunately I didn't find the ending to either scenario very satisfying, but did find the investigation interesting. There's quite a bit of historical discussion that history buffs may enjoy. The descriptions of the dogs competing was enjoyable as well.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine through Netgalley for an advance copy.

The characters are real and fun. They continue to grow. The writing is smooth and predictably enjoyable.

Rita Mae Brown delivers again!

3.5/5 stars

Four murders, two time periods, a lovely Virginia estate, a hunting hound competition and a bunch of retired former members of the diplomatic corps, military and CIA. Sound interesting? Sure enough, it truly was.

A fully clothed African American woman's body bedecked with a stunning pearl necklace and pearl earrings surrounded by diamonds, had been hastily buried atop two freshly buried caskets...back in 1787 in the local graveyard. In 2018, with so little information on which to draw, her identity remained a mystery. The reader is treated to the 18th century background story in alternating chapters to the main story taking place in 2018 Loudoun Co., Virginia.

Meanwhile, members of the local chapter of the National Beagle Club of America are out on their grounds at the Institute in Aldie, clearing paths and trails of fallen trees and brush in preparation for the annual hunting basset and beagle competition hosted by Hounds F4R Heroes. At days end, as a storm is forming, another dead body is found and on the next day, another. They're members of the Club and now it's all looking rather personal.

Protagonist "Harry", (Mary Minor Haristeen), and her cadre of felines and canines are on it. Curiosity is her weakness and unsolved murders on the competition grounds is just bad for business.

Although this is my first foray into the Mrs. Murphy mystery series, I found the story solid as a stand-alone. With its excess of 34 characters, thankfully, there's a roster for both the current and the 18th century time periods. Ms. Brown is a whiz at educating her readership with her engaging tales and this story was no exception. One learns about colonial plantation life of Virginia, the beagling hobby, bits about regional Civil War history and the Battle of Aldie. There's also an interesting discussion regarding diplomatic corps service which sometimes appears to be at cross-purposes with the intelligence gathering community.

This was definitely an informative and most enjoyable read. I look forward to catching up on other installments in this series.

I am grateful to Bantam Books and NetGalley for having provided an advance uncorrected proof of this book. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.

The weaving of the past into the current time frame shows you how the past always catches up. The characters are like visiting old friends.

Harry is working with the National Beagle Club at Aldie as the date for its springtime Hounds for Heroes veterans’ benefit approaches. Susan, her best friend, is there, too. While they are chatting about an old murder just found, they discover a brand new murder right at the club. His throat has been cut from ear to ear. He's a rich man who's very nice, who would kill him? What's worse is its must have been someone at the club...

Bantam Books and Net Galley let me read this book for review (Thank you). It will be published June 4th.

The dead man's wife comes to the show with their dogs. He was going to show them so she'll be doing it in his memory. After the show she heads back for her cabin. They find her in the horse barn, dead. It looks like natural causes, but she was poisoned. The mystery deepens...

These deaths are related to spy activities during the war. Harry eventually puts that together. However she doesn't realize how close to death she herself is...

As a cozy mystery, Whiskers in the Dark may seem cute with cats and dogs that talk to one another and try to help their person, Mary Minor Haristeen (known affectionately as Harry), when trouble comes her way. Having read most of Rita Mae Brown’s 28 books in this series, I have grown quite fond of Harry, her cats Pewter and Mrs. Murphy, and her Corgi, Tee Tucker. Now there is a new pup in the family as well, Pirate. We don’t see much at all of Harry’s veterinarian husband Fair in this one, but we do see her friend, Susan Tucker, who accompanies her as she journeys to the Blue Ridge Mountains to help with the cleanup in preparation for the Hounds for Heroes benefit event. The dogs and cats accompany Harry, naturally.

Did I say mystery? During the cleanup, one of the volunteers is found brutally slain. Harry, of course, is right in the thick of things. Did I say “mystery”? Make that “mysteries.” Harry also assists at her church, where an eighteenth century skeleton is found. The victim was murdered , most likely a black woman. What makes this even more strange is that the skeleton is wearing what appear to be very expensive pearls. What was her story?

In recent “Mrs. Murphy” books, Rita and her co-author have delved into the past. This time, the discovery of the skeleton segues into a tale of two plantations, Big Rawly and Cloverfields. Ms. Brown and Sneaky Pie don’t tell us that slavery was difficult, that it was wrong. They show us. We see the contrast between the treatment of slaves by the two owners, Maureen Selisse Holloway at Big Rawley and Ewing Garth at Cloverfields. I was struck, too, by the portrayal of the slaves. They are not perfect human beings. They are, simply, human. Some are good to the core. Some are untrustworthy thieves. Unlike some other works of literature, Brown’s slaves do not speak in a dialect that distinguishes them from their white owners, even though they lack education. Some care deeply for their white families, and it is mutual. There is even the opportunity for love between slaves from different estates. How will that be dealt with? Both owners have individual slaves upon whom they depend for the operation of their properties. Is someone among them a murderer?

Back to the present day, a rare April snowstorm makes the cleanup challenging. When another death occurs, Harry is convinced that it is no accident. In fact, she is certain that it is related to the first one. Her animals are concerned. They know what their mom is like! Everyone, including the cats and dogs, knows that Harry is a busybody who loves playing amateur sleuth. She just can’t help herself. There is another little mystery tucked in here too – a ghost beagle named Ruffy appears. Is he from the eighteenth century, or did he die more recently? Will he be reunited with the ghost of his person?

As mysteries go, Whiskers in the Dark is just average. There are just a few modern-day political digs, fewer than in some of Brown’s recent books. However, she focuses on more enduring concepts, like equality and justice. Harry, and ultimately, the reader, must decide whether the surprise ending is acceptable. It took me by surprise, and I am still not sure...

I missed some of the banter that is a hallmark of these stories, but I did like the addition of Pirate to the critter family. I also have to mention, once again, that the illustrations are marvelous, as always!

My thanks to NetGalley, Random House, and the author(s) for this ARC in return for my unbiased review.

4 stars

Whiskers in the Dark by Rita Mae Brow and Sneaky Pie Brown is the next book in the Mrs. Murphy mysteries series.
Mary Haristeen, nicknamed Harry and her pets are ready to solve another mystery. This book goes back and forth between the late 1700’s and 2018. 1700’s finds a body placed on top of another grave. No idea who the person may be or if there is any connection to the persons who are already buried there. The body is a woman wearing very expensive jewelry. Will her identity ever be known? In 2018, Harry and her friends are preparing the hunting grounds for the upcoming Hounds F4R Heroes hunt that raises funds for veterans each year. Of course, Harry’s trusted animals come along- Mrs. Murphy, Pewter, Tucker and Pirate. The dogs meet up with a ghost dog as the fields were once a battlefield during the civil war. When a murder occurs the speculation centers around why and who might be next?
I did not enjoy this book as much as the previous ones. The animals played a more minor role along with several of the characters who are prominent in previous stories. I also thought this book became too political with the characters who worked with the CIA and military intelligence. I won’t give it away but I didn’t care for the ending. I give this book 4 of 5 stars. It is well written and the characters are familiar and act as expected.
I received an advance copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Whiskers in the Dark is a nicely written book - full of twist and turns. While I really loved the first half of the book, I did not like how Ms. Brown wrapped up the story. I would have loved to have seen more interaction of the pets. I liked the introduction of a ghost dog but would have loved to had more dialogue between him and the other pets. I think the ending was rushed. All in all the book was well written and I look forward Ms. Brown's next book. I was hooked with her first book and have been a fan since then. Keep them coming!