Paw of the Jungle by Diane Kelly

source: free ARC courtesy of Netgalley / St. Martin’s Press
title: Paw of the Jungle (A Paw Enforcement Novel)
author: Diane Kelly
pages: 365
genre: cozy mystery
published: November 2019
first line: Please say yes.
rated: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

blurb:
Police officer Megan Luz and her K-9 partner in crime, Brigit, are on all fours as they try to solve their latest Lone Star mystery.

AT THE ZOO
The weather is beautiful, work is slow, and her canine colleague could use a walk. What better day for Megan to take Brigit to the Fort Worth Zoo, where they can let loose and witness the law and order of nature unfold? But what begins as a fun field trip turns serious when a pair of rare hyacinth macaws named Fabiana and Fernando goes missing. Is the new custodian, a gentle soul who happens to be an ex-convict, to blame? Or is something far more sinister afoot?

AND ON THE HUNT
The birds are worth thousands of dollars, and the list of people on the premises who might have stolen them is long. Soon other animals start disappearing. . .and Megan and Brigit have their hands and paws full of suspects. But when a rare black rhino is taken from the zoo, presumably for its black-market-friendly horn, time is of the essence. Can Megan and Brigit find out who’s behind the mystery—before they too become prey?

my thoughts:
Paw of the Jungle is book 8 in author Diane Kelly’s Paw Enforcement series. I had no idea this book was that deep into this series, it reads perfectly well as a stand alone.

Dead as a Door Knocker (House-Flipper Mystery #1) by Diane Kelly

source: free copy via NetGalley / St.Martin’s Press
title: Dead as a Door Knocker: A House-Flipper Mysteryauthor: Diane Kelly / Twitter
pages: 368
genre: cozy mystery
published: January 29th 2019
first line: I grabbed my purse, my tool belt, and the bright yellow hard hat I’d adorned with a chain of daisy decals.
rated: 3 out of 5

blurb:
The first in a brand-new cozy series from Diane Kelly set in Nashville–where the real estate market is to die for.

WILL THIS KILLER DEAL LEAD TO A DEAD END?
Meet Whitney Whitaker. A hopeless romantic when it comes to real estate, she knows what it takes to find–and flip–the home of one’s dreams. A fixer-upper is like catnip to Whitney: she can’t resist the challenge of turning an eyesore into a priceless work of art. So when one of her clients decides to liquidate a crumbling property, Whitney seizes the opportunity to purchase it for a song. But soon a curious incident of the cat in the night-time leads to a change in tune. . .

Sawdust is the name of Whitney’s cat–of course. Whitney’s passion for gut-renovation may be a mystery to him but one thing Sawdust knows for sure is this: Dead bodies don’t belong in flower beds. So why is there one in this new, albeit old, house? Now it’s up to Whitney, along with the help of hot-and-cold Nashville Police Detective Collin Flynn, to find the truth about what happened before the mortgage property forecloses and Whitney loses her investment. . .and maybe her own life.