TRACKING GAME, Margaret Mizushima, Timber Creek K-9 Mystery #5

Mattie Cobb has a canine partner in police investigation: her trained K-9, Robo, who also acts in part as a chaperone. But when crime and death break out, Robo is all business.

TRACKING GAME is the fifth in the K-9 police procedural series from Colorado author Margaret Mizushima. Deftly portraying the allure of watching this kind of investigation partnership in action -- the gestures that alert a dog's highest capacity to seek, the communication between animal and handler, the risks they tackle together -- Mizushima adds to it a fitting strand of growing romance between Cobb and the veterinarian who keeps her dog fit. Mattie and vet Cole Walker both have engrossing careers that leave them with little spare time, but at least this time, they're learning how to make space for each other.

But then again: With the unfolding criminal entanglement at Timber Creek, even the usual shreds of down time may vanish:

Cole still knelt beside his friend, apparently assessing his condition, while Mattie's heart thudded in her throat. Who in the world could've killed Nate Fletcher? And did the person who shot him torch his van to destroy some kind of evidence?

Mizushima spins an active, smoothly constructed crime novel that tugs at interpersonal connections while also laying the familiar card of a ranch threatened with foreclosure and a possible gambling habit. Then she lights up the strands with a new form of smuggling: exotic wildlife for highly illegal "big game" hunting for big dollars.

The twists of the plot are balanced best by the moments of Robo going into action, prepared for it by Mattie Cobb:

She turned to go to her Explorer, and as she approached, Robo started his happy dance, his head bobbing behind the front seats. He'd probably been watching the entire time, wondering when it would be his turn to play. It took mere seconds to prep him, and when she slipped on his narcotics detection collar, it focused all that eagerness into work. She clipped on his leash and used the phrase that would communicate his mission. "You want to find some dope? Let's go!"

K-9 policing will be new to many crime fiction authors. It makes a great new "shelf" of books to collect, starting with Mizushima's five (she describes them as stand-alones with a character arc). Add this also to Western mysteries, to female leads, and to well-done police procedurals. Violence? Enough for crime, but not gory, although brace for some wildlife moments that aren't always gentle (Western life, right?). Consider this a traditional mystery, treading fresh ground.

Published by Crooked Lane, and already available.

PS:  Looking for more mystery reviews, from cozy to very dark? Browse the Kingdom Books mysteries review blog here.