Bark to the Future - Chet and Bernie Mystery #13

 

Bark to the Future is the 13th (!!!) Chet & Bernie PI mystery by Spencer Quinn. Released 6th June 2023 by Macmillan on their Tor Forge imprint, it's 272 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. Paperback format due out late 2nd quarter 2023. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats.

This is another fun and engaging read starring Chet (the dog) and Bernie (the human) doing what they do best, solving crimes, righting wrongs, and keeping each other (relatively) safe and functional. Although it's the 13th book in the series, all the books work very well as standalone novels. There are a few minor spoilers in the background story if read out of order, but nothing major and they're all fun, light, fast reads and can be picked up and put down without losing the plot. The ideal light entertainment comfort food for the brain.

Probably the most unusual aspect of the story is that it's told in the first person point of view of Chet, Bernie's Dr. Watson. Chet's a Very Smart Dog, but he is a dog and so there are many asides about smelling things and sort of a stream-of-consciousness commentary running throughout. I found it very distracting at first, but after a few chapters it isn't nearly as noticeable. 

For current fans of the series, this is another solid mystery; full of corruption, coverups, the "glory days" of high school, and several apparently unrelated plot threads which intertwine ever more closely to an exciting denouement and satisfying resolution. The language is a bit rough in places, but not egregiously so. There is some physical violence and descriptions of violence, but nothing extreme. It's not over-the-top, but it is there.

Recommended for fans of mysteries with strong animal protagonists, and American PI mysteries. This is the 13th book in the series and they're all quite trope-y and similar in narrative arc, but they're all written to a high standard and contain lots of action, good plots, satisfying endings, and humor.

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.