New Tricks

David Rosenfelt
Grand Central Publishing (2009)
ISBN 9780446505871
Reviewed by Victoria Gonzales for Reader Views (10/09)

 

This is a hilarious book.  It is easy to see why the author, David Rosenfelt, is a well regarded author.  He has a very unique writing style and it is a pleasure to read this book. You will laugh out loud each page.  He perfectly creates each character and it is almost like you know them and are in the room with them. Andy Carpenter is a witty lawyer who has recently acquired the title of “Lawyer to the Dogs.” 

The story starts after a judge asks Andy to be a lawyer in a custody suit for a golden retriever.  Things get complicated after one of the people seeking custody is murdered and the other person seeking custody is said to be the murderer. Andy has to represent the accused murderer in hopes that he will be able to get custody of the dog.  There are many great supporting characters; the judge, Andy’s friend, and other investigators are all funny additions to the story. Additionally, Andy has a girlfriend who has moved away and he has to win her back. It is not your typical mystery legal thriller; it is hilarious and thrilling at the same time.

There is a combination of action, adventure, romance, and humour in this great mystery, “New Tricks” by David Rosenfelt.  Because it is told from a male perspective, it would likely appeal to a male reader, but overall I think it would appeal to anyone, I certainly enjoyed it and I am female. The best thing about this book is the humour, each character is hilarious. The author is so funny and the book is a definite must-read. It is so much better than the average mystery/thriller. After reading the book, I realized there were more books in the series, at least one of which involves another dog.  I didn’t even realize that this was the case because the characters were well developed in this book; it might as well have been the first in the series. But now, I have more great books to read!  If the other books are as good as this one, then this is an excellent series.

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