Heart of Barkness (A Chet & Bernie Mystery Book 9) Kindle Edition

Don’t discount this because the dog narrates. If you don’t love this you’ve become too jaded. It’s too hard to delight you. You’ve never heard a voice or plots this original. Hearing Chet the dog’s thoughts, full of life, full of humor, smart and relentlessly optimistic—just a few of the joys of reading the Chet and Bernie novels. I’ve read every single one and will continue to do so. I smile at every other page and laugh out loud at others, thinking how can I see life more like Chet the dog? Even when the situation is grim but most delightfully when Chet is enjoying the most mundane of moments and feeling like it’s a day in paradise, which almost every day is for him. Realistic and creative enough to pull you into the plot and whimsical enough to make the ride feel like the dog with his head out the window, blissful in the breeze. Our heroes are smart but all too human. Good hearted, well-meaning, and relentless. You don’t want to mess with them if you’re a perp. As Chet muses, “you’ll soon be breaking rocks in the hot sun.”

I enjoyed this very much, but then I usually do enjoy the Chet and Bernie books. This one has Bernie trying to help a country music singer who has fallen on difficult times. The situation becomes more and more tangled until Lotty Pilgrim finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation. She doesn't trust Bernie Little (of the Little Detective Agency) so she won't cooperate with him on the case but somebody else is willing to hire Bernie to get to the truth.This story had a little bit of an unsettled vibe to it. Bernie goes all introspective and large portions of his thoughts are not revealed to the readers which makes for some puzzled looks from me. Bernie talks mostly to Chet in this story, and that's fine, but thrashing this problem out with a human person could have moved the story along and explained some of what Bernie was thinking. I mean, Cheat is a cool dog, but his conversational talents are sadly lacking. It was maybe a little too easy to figure out who the villain was and I was sorry about that. I'm hopeful that the next book will present more interaction with Iggy and his family. Bernie isn't paying nearly enough attention to them and I worry.Even though there were bits and pieces of this particular story that didn't work so well for me it was all very much worth the reading just to see how Spencer Quinn describes that wonderful dog Chet. The flights of fancy Chet goes on, the descriptions of riding in the car with the top down, the responses Chet has to various people he meets are all so realistic to those of us who love dogs. I'll keep reading this series as long as Quinn keeps writing them. And that's a promise.

This is a return to the good Chet and Bernie adventures. So much better than the darkness of the previous book. I highly recommend you read this series in order. Chet and Bernie both seem to be fit and ready to find the perps. If you haven't read any of the Chet and Bernie books, I don't really recommend that you start with this one. This book is good, but not the best in the series. Any of the other books with the exception of Scents and Sensibility are very good and can be enjoyed as a stand-alone. If you have read all the others I think you'll like this one. I also didn't get the bonus short story after following the instructions to do so. I would really rather have just paid a dollar for it on Amazon.

This book is so much fun! I’m so glad to have Chet and Bernie back. I love this series and it’s been too long since the last one. This book gave me a much needed laugh. I love following Chet’s train of thought. I tried to read this book at a slower pace because I didn’t want it to end. Can’t wait for the next one.

the chet and Bernie books are the best books, fiction or nonfiction, ever written about the love between a man and his dog. and no, these stories are not "about" the love between a man and his dog. they are mysteries, and well written too, with consistently well drawn characters and tense dark moments for man and dog. the simpler and more fundamental the essence of something, the more difficult it is to recreate it, no matter the creative form. spencer quinn exhibits true mastery in this series. every page describes without "describing" the joy, confusion, more joy, and excitement as one earthling and his beloved sidekick go about their days taking care of the good guys and getting even with the bad guys. the chet and Bernie books are the quickest way to a smile when the skies have been grey a little too long.thank you Peter Abrahams/Spencer Quinn for this new book. because no one can do it better.

As a public librarian, I seldom feel the need to buy books. I can borrow them from my library system or through my Overdrive account. However, Chet and Bernie novels are an exception. How charming to be inside the delightful mind of Chet the Dog as he solves mysteries with his human, Bernie. Revisiting these novels is made easier by owning them. Thank you dear author Spencer Quinn/Peter Abrahams.

I love the Chet and Bernie series of books. During hurricane Dorian, which hit us dead on, we lost power; so I read Heart of Barkness twice using a flashlight to see at night. Chet is, as usual, the narrator and the “brains” of the Little Detective Agency and his understanding of events is coloured by his doggy knowledge. I highly recommend these books if you like mysteries and love dogs because Chet is the most likeable character in mystery fiction.

I love dog stories but this was different the dog is the main character and his owner Bernard, but the way it's written in the dogs point of view was different.

Heart of Barkness was excellent. All Spencer Quinn's books are great. Looking forward to the next adventure.