THE DOGFATHER, by Susan Conant

The Dogfather is subtitled, "A Dog Lover's Mystery," and indeed it is. Emphasis more on "dog lovers" than mystery, at least in the case of The Dogfather.

This story was fun to read, as are all of her books. Conant writes with humor and special insight into the life of a dog owner. In The Dogfather, protagonist Holly Winter has received an offer she can't refuse: help a Mafia boss train his new Elkhound puppy.

Before long, Holly finds herself in the middle of a family vendetta between two rival mob bosses. Mixed in with the likable owner of the puppy are parodies of mob stereotypes, and a potential romance with an old boyfriend.

Holly's own dogs of choice are Alaskan malamutes, Rowdy and Kimi. Since I'm a dog person, the scenes with the pups kept me chuckling. It took a while for the mystery portion of the book to kick in, but with the humor in Conant's writing it almost didn't matter.

I've read several of Conant's dog lover's mysteries, and enjoyed them all. The books are intended for the general market, and as such contain a sprinkling of salty language. If that's not an issue for you, by all means read The Dogfather, or any other Susan Conant books you come across. You'll enjoy them.