Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

A poodle breeder finds herself in the doghouse when a guest is murdered at her Christmas party. Peg Turnbull has had such a busy season judging dog shows that her responsibility to run the Cherry Valley Kennel Club’s annual Christmas Bazaar has completely slipped her mind. So club president Linda Smiley has replaced her with the odious Jonabell Goff, demoting Peg to the hated decorations committee. In a gesture of defiance, Peg hosts a holiday open house and invites all the club members, including Jonabell, plus a horde of her suburban Connecticut neighbors. During the packed event, Jonabell drinks a cup of poisoned eggnog and dies on the spot. Now Peg’s the prime suspect in her murder. Even worse, Linda manages to get Peg suspended from the club, claiming bad optics. The tale unfolds along entirely predictable lines: To restore her reputation, Peg needs to unmask the real killer. She enlists the help of her sister-in-law, former nun Rose Donovan, who runs a women’s shelter with her ex-priest husband, Peter. Sweet-tempered Rose and caustic Peg unearth plenty of other folks who have a beef with Jonabell, a bully who dabbled in theft and blackmail. But the police cling stubbornly to their theory that since the murder occurred in her house, Peg must be the culprit. It’s fun to see Peg and Rose’s relationship develop after years of estrangement. And as always, Berenson provides a revealing take on the lively world of dog breeding. But the puzzle itself is solved completely outside Peg and Rose’s agency by someone who didn’t bother sharing a vital clue with the police. And due to Peg’s suspension, they never do deck the halls. Here’s hoping Berenson unleashes her breeder’s detective skills more effectively next time. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.