Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: June 30, 2020
Mason Reid trains dogs to help out with police investigations, searching for drugs, guns or cadavers. After a tragedy, Mason adopts “Elvira”, a golden Labrador who survived outstanding odds and quickly takes to being a cadaver dog. Vira is so good in fact, that Mason begins to wonder about his dog’s special abilities. Mason is soon embroiled in a murder case, and with police officer Kippy Gimm (and Vira) by his side, Mason realizes how special his furry friend actually is.
“The Finders” is the first in an apparent series, “Mace Reid K-9”, by Jeffrey B. Burton. Burton has an award winning short story under his belt, as well as three novels from a previous FBI crime fighting series. His murder-mystery, crime-fighting “The Finders” is full of dog love and police action.
Mace immediately connected with me, as he speaks to his dogs as if they are his children (in fact, calling them “the girls” or his “girls), and mentions that there should be no harsher crime than that which is laid on animal abusers (AMEN Mason). He also talks of how his last relationship ended because his ex merely “liked” dogs, whereas Mason “loves” them, and that made all the difference. Animal lovers will immediately form a connection with Mace, and beautiful little Elvira.
The novel’s plot alternated narrators, mostly the story was told from the standpoint of Mace, but we did occasionally get snippets of “Everyman”, who is the novel’s murderer. I always love when I get a bit of a glimmer into the killer’s psyche, and Burton did not disappoint here.
There were a lot of police officers in this novel, and none of them were particularly interesting. I also found the language and flow to be a little choppy. Mason and Kippy were bound to develop a romantic relationship, so that was predictable, but I enjoyed learning the down-and-dirty details of cadaver hunting in regards to police work, through lovable Elvira. The reveal of “Everyman” was anti-climactic, but it certainly wasn’t predictable.
Fans of crime fighting, police procedurals and (of course) dogs, will no doubt find an entertaining read in Burton’s “The Finders”. I would have loved a more developed narrative, and an easier flow, but the murderer’s perspective was downright creepy, and of course, the charming little dogs peppered throughout brought a smile to my face.

The Finders by Jeffrey B. Burton is the first book in the series of Mace Reid K-9 Mysteries. The information on IDOT operations and learning how the cadaver dogs are trained and how dogs detect human remains was quite interesting. The information was presented as part of the narrative that flowed into the story which was fast paced and intense. Fell in love with Vira, the extra special Golden Retriever and Sue, a German Shepherd with an attitude worthy of his namesake (A Boy Name Sue by Johnny Cash). Mace has to have nine lives, don't quite know how he survived his numerous altercations. Kippy is a law unto herself. The villian is Everyman creepy and a surprising reveal. Thoroughly enjoy the book. Looking forward to more crime solving adventures from these canine and human characters.

Thank you to Sara Beth Haring of St. Martin's Press for recommending the book and to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin Press and Minotaur Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Dog on the cover: check. Mystery with cadaver dogs: check. Serial killer: check. Welcome to The Finders, the first in what's sure to become a series.

The story begins with the kidnapping of a woman at a rest area. She doesn't know who her abductor is and it sounds like if she got a good look at him he'd look like any guy on the street. Next we learn about a dog that was almost killed but survived only to be chosen to become a cadaver dog. Cadaver dogs are used by law enforcement to help find remains of decedents. Vira (Elvira) seems to have special senses though compared to her canine colleagues. Does it have to do with her near death experience? Does she just have a super sniffer nose? How the two stories are intertwined lead to a stand off between the serial killer and Vira's handler/owner Mace Reid with deadly consequences.

The Finders is a fast paced mystery novel that seems to be the start of a series with the groundwork present. It seemed uneven at times but I brushed it off to the start of a series, which sometimes I feel can be uneven. Midway through the story you start to get chapters on perspective on the serial killer hunting Mace and that's when I feel like the real action started. Although predictable I enjoyed this story a lot. I'm looking forward to seeing what Burton as planned for Mace Reid in the future.

This was a fun easy read that is worth picking up if you like stories with police, dogs and who dun it mysteries! Burton did a great job depicting the strong bond between Mace and his dogs. As a fellow dog lover you know the bonds you create and it was nice to have in a story. I love a good story involving Law Enforcement Office (LEO) and/or military, so ones that combine those and dogs is even better. The plot was pretty fast paced and easy to follow. The first chapter that introduced one character was a little confusing, it felt like you were missing connections and backstories that would have helped as you were reading. However, those connections come to light farther into the book but it was a hard way to start a character introduction. For some reason I struggled with one characters code name and the name of another character, it's absolutely a personal thing, that had no bearing or impact on the overall story, but it started to drive me crazy towards the end! This is a strong first book in a series for Burton!

Mace lives on the outskirts of Chicago and is a dog man. He teaches his dogs to find cadavers (dead people). He adopts a golden retriever who has more intuition than his other dogs.

Minotaur Books and Net Galley, let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published the 30th of June.

The new dog is very good at finding bodies. She also has a talent for picking out killers but it takes a bit before Mace realizes it.

They're after a man who is a serial killer, always looking for a certain type. After a while they run him down and find he's looking for a woman like his sister, who died. He slept with her and they had a child. That child died because he tried to kill Mace. The cop with him took him down. Then Mace learns there was another man involved. He liked his son. Can he find him?

He knows he's around because he sees him in the trees, but his dog protects him. Even when he meets him, he doesn't recognize him. He wears a mask when on a killing spree.

The ending is full of action and weapons and you have no idea who is going to win.

This not a cheery book but it makes you feel good to see the criminals put behind bars...

I'm typically not a lover of books with a focus on animals, this was different, I really enjoyed The Finders and the side dose of mystery as well. I came to think of these animals as human some of the time, like when there is a choice, or having to think things through. Thoroughly enjoyed this story and I'm glad it is the first in a series, I'll be waiting for the 2nd! Thank you #NetGalley#TheFinders#MinotaurBooks

The Finders by Jefferey B. Burton is a well-thought début about a nice and relatable guy Mason "Mace" Reid who makes a living by training cadaver dogs. However, the real protagonist of the story is an adorable and unusually gifted golden retriever, rescued from a certain death by the resolute police officer Kippy Grimm. The trio gets inevitably entangled in a spiral of homicide investigations, witness protection, and searching for bodies (obviously), all concocted by one psychopathic maniac with a personal grudge.

The main characters are likeable and easy-going, exactly what you would expect of the dog people (and a dog-person writer). The affection for all that’s canine is ever-present in this book so the reading will give the worm feeling to everyone with a heart for animals. The first-person narrative is witty and full of gentle sarcasm – often self-directed – which, combined with a fast pace and numerous plot twists, makes it a rather gripping book. My only concern was that the writing itself was sometimes a little rough on the edges, with a little touch of naivety but I’m sure it is a typical thing for the beginning writers, and the style will get smoother with the next instalments of the series.

My overall experience with this book was a positive one - the refreshing idea of portraying a cadaver dog, the touch of humour and the dynamic action makes it a nice read and a promising start of a new crime series, and I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with the copy of its beginnings.

The Finders has a well-paced intricate murder mystery plot. The details about the training of Vira, the cadaver dog, are interesting and integrate well with the rest of the story. Each chapter ends in a surprise that propels the reader to move right on to the next chapter. This is a good option for anyone who likes murder mysteries, dogs, and even procedurals.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5

There is a lot to love about this book. I mean who wouldn’t love to read a thriller involving a canine buddy. There were multiple dogs in this book but it did feature Vira and her abilities a little more. I loved how each dog had their own personalities and they were involved throughout the entire story. You could definitely see the bond that Reid had with his dogs and how they trusted him equally in return. I did have hard time believing Vira’s special abilities that were revealed early in the book. I kept thinking to myself that the killer should have been obvious because of them but I didn’t even piece it together. I also loved that you got some chapters from the POV of the villain without revealing who they were. But at times that took away from the “wow” moments because they laid out what their plan was.

What I didn’t like was the writing style. It felt at times like someone was just writing their thoughts down instead of trying to tell a story. There was some comic relief which I like to see but I thought there was way too much of it, which made the beginning of the story a little cheesy for me. It was faced paced but did slow down a little in the middle (at the time I knew what was going to happen next) but then picked up again at the end.

This is a good start for a series and I am interested to see how Reid and the dogs will develop

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the gifted copy in exchange for my honest review

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

The lead character in this story is the dog handler, Mason Reid, who works closely with the police to find dead bodies. He trains dogs to follow the scents that are produced by cadavers. While this might sound somewhat gruesome, the police procedural is well written and very interesting. The characters are well-drawn, believable, and very likable.

Mace's new dog, Vira, is a champ! She is helping to find a brutal serial killer before there is another catastrophe. The reader wants to hug and pet Vira and her "sister"dogs, Maggie May and Delta Dawn. The leader of the pack is a boy German Shepherd named Sue. :)

In this first novel, we learn how Mace works with his dogs to help solve crimes. I look forward to future books in the series.

What a great read and I absolutely love the dogs. Alot of mystery, action, and story. A mist read. I would recommend this book to anyone that loves a mystery and dogs

2 STARS

Mason "Mace" Reid lives on the outskirts of Chicago and specializes in human remains detection. He trains dogs to hunt for the dead. Reid’s adopts a rescue dog with a mysterious past—a golden retriever named Vira. And when he begins training Vira as a cadaver dog, he comes to realize just how special the newest addition to his family truly is…

Suddenly, Reid and his prize pupil find themselves hurled into a taxing murder case, which will push them to their very limits. Paired with determined Chicago Police Officer Kippy Gimm, Mace must put all his trust in Vira's abilities to thwart a serial killer who has now set his sights on Mace himself.

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Okay, I wanted so badly to love this book. It has a little bit of everything in it: thrills, serial killers, dogs who sniff out dead bodies (!!)....but unfortunately something about it just didn't work for me. I think this was definitely a case of "it's me not the book" because I didn't have any major issues with the writing, plot or characters. However, this was fairly heavy on the police procedural aspect and I know that this is not something i usually enjoy (case and point, the 2 stars.) That being said, I did enjoy the small tidbits of cadaver science sprinkled in and I was rooting for Mace and Vira the whole time!

THE FINDERS is a well written, heart pounding police procedural that is guaranteed to hook many readers within the first few pages! Plus one of the main characters is a bad-ass corpse sniffing prodigy dog. What's not to love?!

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC. THE FINDERS is out June 20th!

This was a great story with the dogs the stars of the show. Really relatable characters, non stop action and a fascinating storyline. Interesting information about the Training of the dogs and their exceptional abilities. I loved the conclusion.

I'm a sucker for novels featuring dogs and this one is pretty good. Recently divorced Mason (Mace) Reid teaches obedience classes as well as training cadaver dogs for work with the Chicago police. Along with his German shepherd and two collies, he's recently adopted and started training a new recruit, golden retriever puppy, Vira, rescued from a bad situation by policewoman Kippy Gimm. In Vira's first outing to find a cadaver of a young female kidnapping victim, she shows a remarkable skill that even Mace has difficulty believing.

The novel switches between Mace and his dogs and a serial killer who has been undetected in killing lone female travellers for quite a few years. Nicknamed 'Everyman' due to his unremarkable looks he is very good at what he does and I did not guess his real identity before it was revealed. The plot suffers from a drop in the pace after Vira's initial case while the next one is developing but builds up to a suspenseful ending. I really like Mace's engaging character as well as that of Kippy Gimm, who comes to visit Vira and the rest of the crew. All the dogs are endearing, individual characters and it's clear that Burton loves and knows dogs really well. An enjoyable read and a promising start to a new series.

I'm not interested in the killer

This story is told primarily from the POV of the killer and not the two main characters. I'm not very interested in the killer, to tell you the truth, and I wanted him to be quiet.

The main story about Mace and Vira develops too slowly because it is constantly interrupted by the killer's voice. I found it all rather dull.

The Finders is a very well written murder mystery. I enjoyed the characters of Det Mace and his rescue cadaver sidekick, Kira. A great beginning to a new series. I look forward to reading more by this author. I received an arc from Netgalley and the publisher and this is my unbiased review.

The Finders incorporates two of my absolute favorite things: thrillers and dogs. In an exciting twist, the story is told through both the killer's eyes and the victim/detective's eyes. While the story kept me wanting more, the story started of a little confusing. It took me some time to understand that the story was being told from 2 different perspectives. With that being said, I would give this read a solid 4/5. With the difficulty to understand, the second half of the book kept me entertained. I never expected the twist at the end! Great read!

An intriguing story which kept me guessing right up until the end - I'm usually fairly good at working out the twist in mysteries/thrillers, but I was taken by surprise when the killer's identity was revealed.
The start of the book didn't drag me in, but once it got going I enjoyed the dual narrators and the subtle clues about who the killer was. The main character, Mace, felt believable if a little awkward, and while his new dog Vira's ability initially seemed almost supernatural, I enjoyed the theorising the characters did about how and why she was able to discern various killer's identities.
Overall it was an enjoyable book with a surprising twist, and I would read the next book in the series.

Loved this book. Plenty of devious surprises and crackling suspense, along with interesting characters. Just the sort of book to cause a lack of sleep, but I won't complain! Highly recommended.

*This book was provided to me as an ARC at no charge in exchange for my honest review. My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to participate in this program.*

Great start to a new series featuring Mace Reid and Vira his cadaver dog. With a serial killer on the loose, Mace, Vira and the police officer Kippy must stay one stay ahead of the killer and find the missing girls. This is a fast pace thriller with great characters. Looking forward to the next book.