Reading: BARK IF IT'S MURDER - V.M. Burns

Lilly Ann Echosby is still trying to settle into life in Chattanooga with her beloved poodle Aggie in book three of Burns's Dog Club cozy mystery series. Still residing in a hotel room, Lilly's finally found a home she wants and puts in an offer, just in time to be invited by her museum-owner boss as a last-minute replacement on a buying trip to Atlanta. With no wish to burden her best friend Dixie, and her boyfriend Red busy with work, Lilly warily decides to board Aggie at Pet Haven - a lush spa and boarding home-away-from-home for canines - after meeting married owners Kerri Lynn and Dallas Simpson at a dog show. Pet Haven is dog luxury at its finest, the prices reflecting it, and upon learning that part of the benefits are that Lilly can check on Aggie anytime via a "pet cam," from the road or her hotel, Lilly signs her beloved fur baby up, leaving town with only slight reservations ... until from the comfort of her hotel room in Atlanta, during a storm, when she's checking on Aggie via her laptop. All is well with her little one, but when the cameras go wonky Lilly's point of view is shifted to a different camera - just in time for her to see a blond woman in rain gear strangled on-camera, before the power in her room goes out and the screen goes black. The rest of this short, tightly-plotted mystery revolves around whether or not Lilly Ann actually saw a murder committed, or even if she did, is she accurate in who both victim or even killer are? Every one from her best friend Dixie to her friends at dog training class to her son David, boyfriend Red, and daughter's boyfriend, K-9 officer Joe - currently in town on business - is on hand to lend their expertise/help, but as Lilly continues to question both herself and those suspected, Bark If It's Murder follows a very straightforward, linear course to a satisfying resolution ... and even manages to throw a surprise or two in, at the end. A short, to-the-point plotline moves things swiftly, and in Lilly Ann V.M. Burns has created an engaging, kindhearted, passionate woman who puts those she loves ahead of her - and doing what's right above all else. I look forward to reading more of her!  3.5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.