Playing Dead is a most enjoyable traditional mystery. An added bonus of this read are the insights that readers are given into dog training. The dogs of the novel are quite talented.

Molly Madison has moved, along with her two dogs, to a new area. Readers will find out what led to this change for her. It was dramatic. Note too that Molly has been in law enforcement so, while she may not be the officer on the case, she has much to offer in the investigation of a murder.

The victim was known to many in the agility competition (for dogs) world. She managed to alienate just about everybody. Therefore it is no great surprise when she is murdered. Readers will observe that there are many motives and suspects but will they be able to solve the crime before Molly?

This title is the second in a series. I did not read the first one but that in no way diminished my enjoyment of this book. I will likely go back to read the first story.

Playing Dead is the second book in the Molly Madison series. Molly is a former police officer and private investigator. She relocated to California, and can’t keep herself from trying to solve murders in her community.

While visiting the Playtime Academy dog training facility, Molly’s dog discovers a dead body. Molly gets involved in the investigation when a friend is suspected of the murder.

A light and charming mystery. Recommended for readers who enjoy cozy mysteries with dogs.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

📖My Thoughts📖

Cozy mysteries are one of my favorite genres. They’re perfect for when you just want something with mystery but aren’t in the mood for all the gore and scariness. This one had the essence of canines sprinkled through the entire book and it made the book even better! This was fun, fast paced, entertaining and it quite frankly had me guessing all the way until the very end! I was stumped! I also enjoy how cozy mysteries often have one big mystery with a smaller one or two mixed it. I think it gets your focus on the small one making you think that just that one suspect is to blame for the whole kit and caboodle. Definitely not the case and adds that much more fun to the mystery! This was the first book I’ve read by this author and I absolutely enjoyed the writing style and how it all came together. This is the second book in her series, which I wasn’t aware of, but can absolutely be read as a standalone! I will be definitely going back and reading the first one and learn more about Molly Madison and her love for canines! Definitely check this one out if you’re into cozy mysteries, especially ones with dogs!
Thank you Netgalley, Peggy Rothschild and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this book! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Playing Dead by Peggy Rothschild was a super cute cozy mystery! Good storyline, kept me interested the whole read and I enjoyed the characters. I also liked all the dogs!

When Molly Madison takes her dogs (a Saint Bernadoodle and a Golden Retriever) to Playtime Academy for the first time for barn hunting and agility, it’s obvious another competitor has no social skills. She’d rather shame, hurt the other handlers, and smirk about it.

Noodle, Molly’s Saint, isn’t speedy but has a great nose for following a particular scent. Harlow is there for the agility. Noodle is almost last to try the barn hunt. His job is to scent an empty container, one filled with a rat’s bedding, and one with a live rat. It’s a timed event for him to find the rat.

Noodle does a fine job but when finished, breaks his sit/stay, and is off at a full run, much to Molly’s embarrassment. When she sees his find, all is forgiven. After all, a dead body trumps a live rat any day.

Rather than let the dead woman’s dog go to Animal Control, Molly takes the dog home with her. Her agoraphobic neighbor could use a companion, and the dog needs to be with someone who is home all the time.

Beyond the death, there’s still something fishy going on at the Academy. There’s a missing dog, secrets, and lies to sort through.

In her personal life, her boyfriend has a secret of his own, a neighbor asks for pet sitting for an adorable French Bulldog she doesn’t seem to like, a lost kitten, and another dog to take in when an arrest is made.

This is the second in the series. As an ex-cop and former private investigator, Molly Madison has a strong sense of justice and what’s the right thing to do with an inquisitive mind to back up those traits. She’s also got a soft heart where animals are concerned. I thoroughly enjoyed book one, A Deadly Bone to Pick, and this one doesn’t disappoint, it is even better. I’m looking forward to book three.

Playing Dead
Molly Madison, Book #2
Peggy Rothschild
5 Stars

Synopsis:

Molly Madison is back to solve another doggone difficult murder in her California community in this mystery from the author of A Deadly Bone to Pick.

Molly Madison has barely had a moment to catch her breath after moving to the sleepy beach town she now calls home. But as a former PI, she can’t help but notice the odd chemistry between members of Playtime Academy on the first day she and her loyal Saint Bernadoodle, Noodle, and golden retriever, Harlow, visit. When a trainer’s body is found on-site, Molly knows it’s her duty to put her ex-police skills to use. She can’t say no to temporarily taking in the deceased woman’s dog, either—not with those puppy dog eyes.

Relationships at the training facility are not as clean as the prize-winning agility runs, making it difficult for Molly to get a leash on potential suspects. And her personal life is just as messy—her boyfriend is hiding something, her agoraphobic neighbor needs help, and her number of four-legged friends keep growing as she agrees to dogsit a wriggly local French bulldog.

When Molly’s friend is arrested for the murder, she’s not sure who to believe anymore. Is the case as simple as the local cops make it seem, or is something more devious afoot? (Amazon)


Review:

The characters are well rounded and well developed. Molly is very content to take care of her dogs, training them and loving them. She enjoys spending time with J. D. her agoraphobic neighbor and her genius young friend, Ava. When a trainer’s body is found dead at the training site, Molly will try to solve the mystery with the help of her friends

The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and these descriptions helped me enjoy the book immensely. I really enjoyed seeing all of Molly’s animals. Noodle is my favorite, especially with all of his drool. Molly had quite a lot of animals at any given time and that was quite enjoyable. The writing style flows smoothly and the book is an easy read. The mystery was well plotted and there were enough clues to sift through and suspects to consider. I was not sure of the culprit until the very end.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well rounded cozy mystery. I am sad that I finished reading this book because now I have to wait for the next one, and I am not a very patient person.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Berkley Publishing Group, and NetGalley, which I greatly appreciate.

Playing Dead is the second Molly Madison cozy mystery by Peggy Rothschild. Released 7th Feb 2023 by Penguin Random House on their Berkley imprint, it's 304 pages and is available in hardcover, 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 throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is an engaging cozy featuring a likable protagonist and lots (and lots) of dogs. There's a huge amount of info about dog agility and tracking sport which I found interesting. The author is either deeply familiar with the milieu or else has profoundly impressive research skills. (Reading the afterword and acknowledgements, it would seem the latter - quite impressive).

The plot threads are well engineered and controlled and the denouement and resolution are satisfying if fairly predictable. The author did a good job of fleshing out the secondary characters as well. They're three-dimensional and believable. One of the secondary but pivotal characters is a precocious 8 year old who was one of the stars of the book for me. Dog lovers will find a lot to enjoy here.

The language is mild (a few "damns" and nothing worse), and there's no explicit content, gore, or violence. There's a romance sub-thread central to the main character's development which was surprising, and fans of mystery who hate romantic drama in their reads should know that this is a significant part of the plot.

Four and a half stars. This is top shelf cozy mystery. Highly recommended.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Playing Dead is a most enjoyable traditional mystery. An added bonus of this read are the insights that readers are given into dog training. The dogs of the novel are quite talented.

Molly Madison has moved, along with her two dogs, to a new area. Readers will find out what led to this change for her. It was dramatic. Note too that Molly has been in law enforcement so, while she may not be the officer on the case, she has much to offer in the investigation of a murder.

The victim was known to many in the agility competition (for dogs) world. She managed to alienate just about everybody. Therefore it is no great surprise when she is murdered. Readers will observe that there are many motives and suspects but will they be able to solve the crime before Molly?

This title is the second in a series. I did not read the first one but that in no way diminished my enjoyment of this book. I will likely go back to read the first story.

Playing Dead was a fun and quick read. I recommend it to those who like their mysteries with good plots and not much gore. In addition, dog lovers will find much to enjoy here.

Many thanks to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my one.

This is a must read for dog loving mystery reads. There's all kinds of doggie goodness from Molly's ever growing menagerie to her time spent on agility runs. I loved seeing all the different breeds and activities. I'm an active member in a local dog club and run rally and scent work with my Golden and we've just started agility so it's always fun to read about a world I'm familiar with.

Molly has a law enforcement background so I really enjoyed the mix of those tools with the dog training. The mystery kept me guessing as Celeste had no shortage of enemies both in the dog world and out and is truly a dreadful person. I was a bit surprised by how it all worked out but really enjoyed getting there.

This had a bit of a slow start and I'm not sure how interesting you would find some of the side plots if you're not interested in dog training. But otherwise, this was a fun read with an entertaining mix of four legged sidekicks and interesting main character.

This was an enjoyable read that gave us insight into the dog agility atmosphere. But murder strikes and with that, Molly gets pulled in as she seeks out or rather gather clues. The suspect pool was aplenty but it was the dogged determination with help from her friends that led us to the killer hiding in plain sight. I liked how the author set the stage for this fresh drama with a few surprising twists that enhanced my reading pleasure. Overall, this was an engaging and entertaining read and I look for more adventures with Molly and her ever growing doggy friends.

Playing Dead by Peggy Rothschild is the 2n book in her Molly Madison series. Molly Madison, our heroine, is a former ex-cop and private investigator, who moved recently to the small beachside town, Pier Point, California. Molly has two dogs that she trains, Harlow and Noodle, and in a short time, she adds a couple more to help train for some neighbors. She brings her dogs to a training facility, Playtime Academy for agility and scent training, also meeting new people with dogs. Molly meets many different people, but overhears complaints from others about a nasty member. In a short time, during scent training, Noodle will find the body of a murdered woman, who was Celeste, the person everyone hated.

Trying to stay out of the investigation, Molly agrees to take care of Celeste’s dog, and ends up becoming permanent, since the husband wants nothing to do with the dog, Buster. When Felicity is accused of murder, Molly begins to use her investigative knowledge and find the real killer. Along the way, she finds clues that possibly incriminate a number of people, with the police not too happy with Molly giving them information. With all that going on, Molly’s life is crazy, investigating the murder, discovering her boyfriend being married, and also taking on the job to take care of another dog, Sky during the day.

What follows is an exciting, fun cozy mystery with many possible suspects, and a surprise game changing ending. I did like some of the secondary characters, but I loved the wonderful dogs (Harlow, Noodle, Buster, Sky and Thor). It was wonderful to watch how Molly was so good with the dogs and the fun they had. The last third of the book was exciting and tense, as Molly discovers the truth. Playing Dead was a fun cozy mystery, that was very well written by Peggy Rothschild. If you like lighthearted, cozy, mystery, suspense stories, you need to read this book

"Playing Dead" is a cozy mystery. It's the second book in a series. You don't need to read the previous book to understand this one, but this story gave pretty strong clues about whodunit in the previous novel.

Molly's an ex-cop and retired private investigator, and she still has access to P.I. research tools. She's currently training dogs, mostly her own on agility runs during this story. The details about what goes into dog agility training was interesting. Molly's scent dog found a murdered woman near a scent-finding course. She stayed out of the investigation until a new friend was arrested for that murder. Then she looked around and asked questions, then passed this information on to the police so that any evidence could be properly collected. You can guess whodunit from the clues, and Molly generally understood the clues as quickly as the reader might. The main characters were engaging and acted realistically. I love the young, smart girl, and there's plenty of dogs.

There were no graphic sex scenes (implied but not shown). There was some bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this engaging, interesting mystery.