Three Bengal Kittens is the fourth Dr. Bannerman veterinary mystery by Dr. Philipp Schott. Released 14th April 2026 by ECW Press, it's 256 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references.
This
is a nice follow up to the other books in the series, featuring
an amateur sleuth
who is also a veterinarian and high functioning neurodivergent protagonist alongside his trusty canine sidekick
Pippin, a husky/lab/border collie
mix with a gifted sense of smell and an unusually high degree of
intelligence to go with it. Dr. Bannerman struck me as an odd guy,
generally likeable but also stubborn and often pedantic. Readers who
enjoy nerdy culture references with which the author liberally sprinkles
around in the story will find a lot to enjoy here. Additionally,
it's cool that Bannerman's wife is also a nerdy fibre artist and knitting
designer.
The book is well plotted and moves along at a good clip; definitely action driven and engaging. Unusually in this case, the characterizations are above average and believably rendered. There were a few places in the book where the dialogue didn't ring true at all, but all in all, well written and enjoyably readable. This episode tangentially touches on the war and ethnic cleansing in the Bosnia/Herzegovina conflict and right wing paramilitary groups. There are frank discussions about mental health, including some uncomfortably explicit descriptions and dialogue about psychotic episodes and dissociation/hallucination.
It's not really a cozy mystery at all and shares more in common with modern medical thrillers than "James Herriot". The author is clearly familiar with rural Manitoba and he does a great job describing the weather, the area, and the history of the place. There is some on-page violence as well as some mildly graphic descriptions of mental health gaslighting, suffocation/murder, poisoning, and ethnic violence. Language and dialogue are mostly PG rated shading toward the R-rated end of the spectrum.
The unabridged audiobook has a run time of 6 hours and 51 minutes and is capably narrated by series narrator Miles Meili. He has a rugged and rough-edged baritone which suits the dialogue very well. Sound and production quality are high throughout the recording.
Four
stars. Very enjoyable, looking forward to seeing what comes next
for Peter, Laura, and Pippin (&co). The author/publisher have
included a sneak peek at the fifth book in the series, Five Icelandic Ponies at the back of the book.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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