Review ‘The Nosy Detectives’ by Louisa Bennet
What a great read! This story has heart and soul and Louisa Bennet’s characters took me by surprise with a dark mystery, light humour, good friendships, anthropomorphic animals and a touch of romance. Monty the Golden Retriever is one of the main protagonists. I love the way the animals are really the heroes, working hard to assist their hooman, Rose Sidebottom, who was formerly a police officer. With her young assistant Ollie Fernsby, Rose has just opened her newly painted private detective agency in an office shed behind the local vet surgery.
The four-legged team consists of three dogs Monty, Summer, Panda, and Betty the rat who is my favourite. There is support from stalwart vet Malcolm Kerr (good with animals but tongue-tied around Rose) and other fascinating personalities in and around the village of Nether Wallop. Flies in the ointment are unhelpful police and people with vague memories.
The plot revolves around young Finn Toyne suspected of arson on his birthday which destroyed his family home. He lost his parents and the ability to speak after the blaze. Finn’s mind is in turmoil. Of course, unscrupulous land developers loom on the horizon, and legal wills and inheritance are brought into the equation. Can his grandmother Phyllis O’Neal be ruled out even though she has hired Rose to investigate this cold case?
Rose gives Monty one of her loving smiles. “If anyone can persuade Finn to talk, it’s you.”
THE NOSY DETECTIVES BY LOUISA BENNET
Monty thinks “If a dog could blush, I would. I wag my tail across the floor.”
A nice touch is the shadow silhouettes of Rose and Monty at the beginning of each chapter.
They act as flick-pics moving across the pages of the book.
In the beginning, Monty and furry friends go on a separate undercover rescue mission. A thrilling ride and very tense moments follow at the Peasemarsh dog pound which brought a lump of emotion to my throat. Further on, Rose offers assistance when a friend’s caravan is wrecked by vandals. Leaving the scene she felt like the canine version of the Pied Piper of Hamelin as she walked across Winterfold Heath followed by four dogs. Strained encounters come in various forms; DCI Leach, Tiffany a perverse cat, and vicar Reggie Mabey who maybe a killer? Rose conducts several interviews including one with a handsome fireman. You can feel vet Malcolm’s disappointment.
Gradually investigator Rose becomes more confident in her skills and she has a tingle-sense which alerts her to people telling lies. It is hard to describe how well this mix works. Monty uses his superior canine sniffer to interpret smells and, of course, there are doggy ways to send messages too. The intertextuality with the animal dialogue is well done and I guarantee after reading you will look more closely at your family pet.
The ending is explosive yet this is the kind of book which can be read by a wide age range. The closest way I can describe it is like your favourite story which left a warm, lasting impression in your memory.
❤ Gretchen Bernet-Ward
1. Monty and Me (2015)
2. The Bone Ranger (2021)
3. The Nosy Detectives (2023
Thoughts Become Words 