oved it. Warning, it may cause chortles, guffaws, or even a snort. Not sure why but the writing reminded me of the Spenser series by Robert B. Parker. They were a favorite. Even the courtroom scenes were interesting. Appreciated noting the clue and happy when it was all revealed eventually. I look forward to more adventures with Andy and company, including the dogs. I need to find the time to read the ones I have missed..

As always Andy, his pups, wife and cast of characters are both hilariously witty and an ensemble of well-developed characters. Even Marcus (whose speech is only understood by Andy’s wife)
The plot is full, intriguing and well planned by the author
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this arc

This series is my literary comfort food. Books I read by untried authors may be great or disappointing, fast paced or slow, gritty or poetic.....they're an unknown until I crack the cover. When I pick up the latest Andy Carpenter, I know I'm in for a complex mystery, legal drama, witty dialogue & great characters (with 2 legs or 4). Besides, look at that cover. A ridiculously cute dog AND donuts. Seriously? Just hand it over.

The story unfolds something like this. Andy & Laurie are out walking their herd when they witness a man assaulting a wee pug (see cover beast). Before they can intercede, another guy comes out of nowhere & saves the pupper by giving his attacker the thumping he deserves. Our hero's name is Matt Jantzen & once police arrive, he seems oddly resigned to being arrested. Andy hands over his business card & before he knows it, not only does he have another hairy child (that would be Hunter, the Wonder Pug) but a new client as well. Just when retirement was going so well.....

Obviously there's much more to Matt's story & he ends up extradited to rural Maine on murder charges. Andy follows & is soon surrounded by colourful locals, skeevy bad guys & a mountain of lobster rolls.

Recline your deck chair, grab a cold one & prepare to be entertained. There's a twisty mystery ahead punctuated by red herrings, action, humour & dogs. Like the rest of the series, this can be read as a stand alone but may be enjoyed on another level if you know the characters.

Honestly, I think these books should be available by prescription & covered by your healthcare plan. Over the past year I've gained a profound appreciation for anything that provides an escape from reality and/or makes me laugh. This series is as close to a sure thing as it gets so up next will be "Best in Snow", the annual Carpenter Xmas Disaster-fest. Hopefully there will be donuts.

New Jersey lawyer Andy Carpenter and his his wife Laurie are taking the dogs for a walk one evening when they encounter a man beating his dog. As Laurie runs to defend the pup, another passerby, Matt Janzten, steps in. Following the altercation, Matt and the dog owner are taken into custody, while Andy and his wife end up with the dog. It turns out that Matt is wanted for murder in Maine, and since Andy doesn't believe anyone who would risk his own freedom to help a dog could be guilty of murder, he and his team are off to Maine to mount Matt's defense. They have their work cut out for them, however, as the prosecution;s key piece of evidence is Matt's blood, found on one of the victims, and DNA doesn't lie. Part of a series but easily read as a standalone, this is a well-crafted story full of David Rosenfelt's trademark wit, I quite enjoyed this book. And now I'm craving lobster rolls!

Andy Carpenter, retired lawyer, and his wife, Laurie Collins, are walking their dogs one evening and see a man abusing his dog. Andy rushes to save the dog, but another man gets there first and punches out the abuser. When the police show up, it comes to light that Matthew Jantzen is wanted in Maine for the brutal murder of two people. Andy and Laurie both believe that no one who rescues a dog from abuse could commit one murder, let alone two. Andy travels to Maine to defend Matthew and uncovers a deadly trail of drugs, mayhem and murder. The FBI is involved because of the drug trafficking and they are not happy to work with Andy, but agencies rarely are. Andy is his usual smart-ass self, which is one of the best parts of this long-running series. All of Andy's friends travel to Maine to help him, including members of the K-9 Team, Andy's wife's investigative agency. Another very entertaining read.

This series is a favorite of mine, and I am so thankful I got the chance to read this early. This is a solid addition to the series, and will keep me coming back for more!

You can’t go wrong with David Rosenfelt. He has a great cast of characters, including the four legged kind. You have humor and mystery and lovable canines and humans. Being from New Jersey, I enjoy reading about the familiar locale and idiosyncrasies of fellow Jerseyans. Having read all of Rosenfelt’s books, I am compelled to find out what Andy Carpenter and his team are currently up to.

This was my first Andy Carpenter book and I am going to hunt for earlier ones!

Andy Carpenter is a reluctant defense attorney whose pledge to help a man who jumped in to rescue a dog being being abused by its owner has led to living in Maine for the short term.

Andy, his wife Lauren, their teams of interesting characters all combine to make this a very good investigation. How do you prove DNA evidence placing Matt at the murder scene is false when the potential leads and witnesses have had 2 years to fade away?

Very entertaining and sometimes tongue in cheek scenes that made this a truly cozy mystery.

With each Andy Carpenter book there are really only a few questions.

1.) Do you like Andy Carpenter books? If you don't, why exactly are you reading number 23?
2.) Is it one of the better ones?

In the end, David Rosenfelt's Andy Carpenter series is comfort food. They are cozies that are a bit grittier than the average "murder at a bake shop" cozies that are so popular. They follow a tried and true formula that has been extremely successful. Someone is charged with a murder. That murder features either someone that likes dogs, or there is some sort of dog witness. Andy doesn't want to take the case but Laurie convinces him. Andy makes a bunch of jokes. Marcus saves his life. He then solves the crime and everyone lives happily ever after.

Personally I love the familiarity of the novels and the fact that it is always a quick read that packed with laughs.

The twist in this particular book is that the case takes him to Maine where he is a bit out of his element. Yet most of his cast and crew follow him up for the investigation and innumerable jokes about lobster rolls. The murder this time has several possible motives including romantic, drugs and right wing terrorism. Of course Andy puts it all together in the nick of time as he always does.

Rosenfelt rarely disappoints or surprises. And that holds true here. This is an average to above average Andy Carpenter book. For me, that's pretty much all I ever want.

Another great Andy Carpenter book from David Rosenfelt! This time Andy heads to Maine to defend an innocent person and solve another murder. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

“We might be defending a double murderer.”
“He saved a dog”, she says. “Isn’t that the bottom line?”
“Apparently, it is.”

And isn’t that the reason Andy always accepts a client? This time, Andy, Laurie and Marcus end up in Maine, defending another dog lover. Someone whose DNA was found at the scene of a double murder.
This is such a fun series and this one is a worthy addition. I found myself chuckling on a regular basis (especially when Rosenfelt personally made an appearance). As always, Rosenfelt managed to take the ending in a way I never saw coming. He also managed to weave in some themes that made it feel very current in light of the ongoing political climate.
This can be read or listened to as a standalone, but why would you want to? It’s a great series and Rosenfelt manages to keep it fresh. The books make a welcome change from the darkness prevalent in so many mysteries. Yet, it never comes across as a “cozy” mystery.
My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for advance copy of this book.

Andy Carpenter scores again!
Dog Eat Dog has one of the most intriguing setups for a legal thriller that I have read in a long time. Andy’s client was arrested for a murder that occurred two years earlier after the police fortuitously matched his DNA to blood on the victim’s hand. The client denies committing the murder or even knowing the victims, but he has no idea where he was on the day of the murder. How is Andy going to solve this one?
For sure he is going to solve it with his usual wry wit as well as his own wits and the skills of his quirky but capable team, which consists of his wife Laurie, who is an ex-cop, taciturn muscleman Marcus Clark, accountant and cyber-investigator Sam Willis, whose methods are extremely effective and “sometimes even legal”, and Corey Douglas, another retired cop, and his German Shepherd K-9 partner Simon Garfunkel .
Andy’s narrative style is up to its normal standard and is on full display---funny but never mean. For example, when Andy goes for a meeting with the prosecuting attorney, he is greeted by the prosecutor’s dog: “He’s some kind of grayish poodle mix, no more than a dozen pounds. He’s adorable and his tail is wagging, a sure sign that he doesn’t know I am a defense attorney.”
Except for the opening scene, there is no real dog involvement in Dog Eat Dog, so readers who love this feature of the series may be a bit disappointed. We do meet Hunter, a pug who takes to Andy’s dog Tara immediately. But then, who doesn’t?
The ending left me a bit unsatisfied on a few points. Andy notices and puts together little details whose significance completely escaped me and prevails on behalf of his client (no spoiler there, I am sure), but a few details of the denouement were not clear enough for me, for example, what motivated the person who supplied the blood sample. However, in an Andy Carpenter book, it is the journey and not the destination that provides most of the enjoyment, and this journey is as lively and fun as ever.
I highly recommend Dog Eat Dog (and all the rest of the series), but if you have not met Andy in a previous book, do start with book 1, Open and Shut, so that you get a proper introduction and the background for Andy’s activities. After that I am sure you will want to see him again.

I loved this book!

I secured a galley copy, and read it in just two days. Rosenfelt has developed such interesting characters, I feel as if I know them personally, and expect to run into them on the streets here in NJ, though this newest transports us to Maine, where the author has relocated. He perfectly captures the small-town, New England feel, while telling a captivating tale. While it begins with the rescue of a dog, as so many of his books do, the story takes a different turn from several of his others, introducing us to new challenges and criminal pursuits, and perhaps a new cast of characters -- will there be more opportunities for Andy and his family to travel to Maine? Perhaps they will summer there?

If you are a fan of David Rosenfelt's writing, you will enjoy this. If you have never read him, what are you waiting for!?

If only they made these books into a Netflix series, like Harlan Coben's have been. I think Saul Rubinek would be a perfect, if slightly older, Andy.

My only disappointment is that I have read all of his books :-(

Lawyer Andy Carpenter doesn't want to do any lawyering any more. But it seems that no matter how hard he tries to not take on a case , he ends up getting involved. And this story is no exception. Andy and his wife, Laurie, are out walking their dog when they see a man abusing a dog. They try to intervene but a passerby, Matthew, is closer and stops the man. However, Matthew who saved the dog ends up having a murder charge against him from two years ago. He tells Andy that he is innocent and in this case, Andy believes him. Now its just up to Andy and the team to find out who framed him for murder and why. I love the Andy Carpenter series by David Rosenfelt and Andy's wry wit. An enjoyable read that I could not put down.

Another enjoyable entry into this wonderful series. I look forward to each one of these books and David Rosenfelt never disappoints.

I'm a true fan of David Rosenfelt. His Andy Carpenter character is always entertaining. This addition to the series is a fast paced, enjoyable trip to Maine (where Rosenfelt actually lives) to help another fellow dog lover out of a jam. The man is accused of a murder he didn't commit and Andy has to find a way to prove someone else is guilty, despite DNA evidence as proof. All Andy's helpers join him in Maine and work with him to solve the mystery, and Rosenfelt himself is even spotted in a local restaurant. Ad usual, he pulls out a win for his client in the end and all the dogs live happily ever after. The Andy Carpenter series is a hit every time.

This is a Mystery, and this is the 23rd book in the Andy Carpenter series. I just love this book series. Andy is a lawyer, and he loves dogs. There is a lot with dogs worked in this book which makes this book so much better. The characters in this book is so great, but Andy is everything in this book. The character, Andy has dry humor which is funny as well. This book was fun, and I could not put it down. I loved it so much. Let me just say the cover is so very cute, and I would want to read it just because of the book cover. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Minotaur Books) or author (David Rosenfelt) via NetGalley, so I can give honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that. This book is schedule to be release on July 6-2021.

David Rosenfelt is one of my top favourite mystery writers. Dog eat dog is full of mystery, humour and dogs. His books are interesting and funny, yet people keep getting murdered as they are trying to find the real killer. My favourite characters are Marcus and the dogs. Every book keeps you guessing right to the end about who the murderer is and I love the celebration party at the end of each book. Bravo David Rosenfelt👏👍📚❤️

Andy Carpenter is back and this time he is defending a man accused of a double murder that occurred two years ago. Irrefutable DNA evidence places the suspect squarely at the scene of the crime, but Andy is willing to help him after witnessing the suspect intervene when he sees a stranger abusing a dog. Andy is a consummate dog lover so that’s good enough for him.

Once again, the gang’s all here. Andy’s wife, Laurie, his intrepid bodyguard/investigator Marcus, hacker extraordinaire Sam, and Cody, Laurie’s partner in their investigative business. All of these characters add to the enjoyment of David Rosenfelt’s latest book and the plot is interesting, with just the right amount of humor. Dog Eat Dog is a good read and Andy Carpenter fans won’t be disappointed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

Always a fun read. Rosenfeldt is a great storyteller with his sarcastic wit and charming self deprecating style. And being set in Maine with lots of delicious lobster rolls was an added bonus!