I really enjoy Sara Driscoll's FBI K-9 series. This is the 7th book and I love how she keeps them fresh. Every book is a different kind of case, with many recurring characters, but always some new ones as well. It is important to keep Hawk's and Meg's skills sharp, so they are attending a water search training weekend in the Boundary Waters area of Minnesota. It turns out that it is also a competition and some handlers will do whatever they have to do in order to win. While out on one of the runs, Hawk alerts to a scent in the water. With Meg interpreting the winds and Hawk's reaction, she leads the team to recover a dead body. Unfortunately, it is the body of one of the competitors, one that Meg had an altercation with. Meg had caught her abusing her dog and was planning on filing a complaint. Before she got the chance, the victim turned the tables and said it was Meg who was abusing Hawk. Those who know her and work with her know it is unfounded, but others do not. Not only is she now the main suspect, but she is in danger of having Hawk taken from her.

I really enjoyed Still Waters. It had all the characters I loved, except for Meg's sister. There were a lot of suspects to research and an impartial group of investigators is brought in. In order to make sure he appears impartial to the nth degree, he homes in on Sara and doesn't really investigate anyone else. It is up to Meg and her team as well as friends to find the real killer. I enjoyed the change of setting from Washington DC to Minnesota and the wooded, secluded area. The characters are very well developed and have a closeness that only comes from working together for so many years. Although this is the 7th book in the series, you can read it as a standalone, but will miss the character and team development. This was an action packed story, with suspense and intrigue. There is one scene where a dog is abused, but it is not described in detail and the dog is not seriously injured. It also plays an important part of the plot. Overall, I enjoyed this wonderful crime thriller/suspense mystery and recommend not only this book, but the series.

Still Waters – Sara Driscoll

FBI’s Meg Jennings and her K-9 Hawk, along with partners Brian & K-9 Lacey, have been invited to participate in a water search and rescue training in rural Minnesota, where they are teamed up with the best of the best, in a spirited competition. While some competitors are friendly, some are not, and Brian quickly notices some discrepancy in event outcomes when his personal timekeeping does not match the official scoring. On a forest search, Hawk seems to lose a scent on and get sidetracked - something that has never happened to him - before finally zeroing in on his find with a somewhat delayed time. That evening, Meg and Brian defuse a tense situation between two handlers, one of whom, Rita Pratt, makes disparaging comments about Hawk, which Meg does not take well, especially when she catches Rita abusing her dog a bit later, an action she fully intends to report.

The next day involves a search for remains in the lake, and Hawk nails the exercise without difficulty. As they are returning to shore, Meg notices Hawk staring intently into the distance with a stance she knows all too well. Hawk has alerted to something else in a different area of the lake. A diver goes overboard to investigate, and reports there is a body is submerged – and it appears to be fresh. It is soon determined to be that of Rita Pratt – the same individual Meg confronted the night prior. Soon after, she learns that Pratt made an erroneous complaint against her, resulting in a suspension, putting her at risk of losing Hawk – and unwittingly making Meg a prime suspect – and the sole focus of a young agent - in her murder.

As Meg fights to prove her innocence and hang on to her beloved Hawk, an unlikely ally shows up – her SAC Craig Beaumont arrives in Minnesota to lend a hand and provide support. But as another body turns up, the situation heats up leaving it up to Meg and her friends to catch a killer…

This is one of a few K-9 series I’ve found lately, and I love them all! As I open the pages to Meg & Hawk, I feel like I’m settling into a grand adventure with some old friends. Be sure you have a free afternoon, because it’s very hard to put this book down! Suspenseful, descriptive, action-packed, beloved dogs – what else do you need for a first-rate novel?! Then, knowing the next installment of adventures won’t be too far behind – it doesn’t get any better than that!!

I received this book as an Advance Reader Copy from Netgalley & Kensington Books in exchange for an objective review. Do you love to read?? Visit netgalley.com and start reviewing books today!!

Special FBI Agent Meg Jennings and her black Labrador, Hawk, are enrolled in a water search training weekend. Hawk, already a search and rescue dog for the Human Scent Evidence Team, understands how to find and leave evidence in place, and to always listen to Meg. Now’s their chance to add to their skills. Her partner, Brian and his dog, Lacey, are there, too. Along for the ride, and the fishing, are Meg’s significant other and his two brothers. With the trio in charge of the food, everyone’s guaranteed good eating for the weekend.

In the boat, Hawk is able to find the scent and Meg manages to give directions to the right spot based on Hawk’s reactions. On land, Hawk is distracted, something Meg’s never seen before. It’s a timed search and Hawk’s score isn’t good. Brian and Lacey had a great run and can’t understand how they came in second, especially with Brian timing the run on his own as well as depending on the judges. Based on other scores, something seems fishy.

As in any group, there’s always one or two people who make life unpleasant for the rest. This time it’s Rita Pratt and her Belgian Malinois who take the win and lord it over everyone. She even manages to throw in a snide comment about Hawk. However, her own dog is skittish, never a good sign.

The next day’s water search goes well, with Hawk detecting the scent and Meg able to direct the boat to the location. Taking the long way back, Hawk indicates another scent. The team thinks it’s probably a dead animal but check anyway. Eighty feet down they find what Hawk scented—a dead body. It’s one of the other competitors. Since she and Hawk found the body, suspicion falls on Meg. With her boss Craig on hand, her friend the newspaper reporter asking questions, and Brian as backup, can Meg prove her innocence? A second death makes things even worse for Meg.

This is book seven in the series. For any dog lover, reading about how search and rescue dogs work is a real treat. The bond between Meg and Hawk is apparent on the page, and the mystery is always a good one. This is a series I thoroughly enjoy and look forward to many more tales of Meg and Hawk’s exploits.

I wanted to like this book. I did like the dogs, and I learned some things about what search dogs can do, and how they are trained. However, there were too many characters and not enough interaction with them to be able to keep them all straight. Part of the problem was that this was the first book in the series I had read... If I had read previous books I would have at least been able to keep the main characters straight. The solution to the mystery seemed to be a bit abrupt.

A training session in Minnesota wilderness becomes a fight for FBI handler Meg Jenning’s and her K-9 partner keeping their search and rescue skills up-to-date for her and her Labrador Hawk it’s essential to saving lives. A water search training session in theBoundary- Waters area of Minnesota has attracted participants from all levels of law enforcement each vying to win. The races are challenging the rivalry intense and Meg is under pressure when Hawk alerts to a scent in the water and discovers the fresh body of one of Meg’s fellow competitors. The contest is called off th the victim had made an unfounded complaint one that could cost Meg her job and see Hawk removed from her care. Though her team flies out to help uncover the truth they’re on unfamiliar territory pitted against a killer with the skills and motivation to stay hidden in plain sight. This was a very enjoyable story with rescues dogs and their trainers I really enjoyed this story.

Still Waters by Sara Driscoll (FBI K-9 #7) 4.5 stars

On a training weekend, FBI Agent Meg Jennings and her K-9 partner, Hawk discover the body of a fellow trainee. The deceased threatened her and her custody of Hawk, so now Meg is the number one suspect. The suspect list is huge, with individuals who are experts in throwing others off a trail. Meg fellow agents come in as support, but they don’t know the territory and the killer may still be among the remaining participants.

A thrill ride the whole way through. Familiar characters provide a good foundation for a cozy afternoon read; all that is missing is a dog at my feet. I can’t wait for the next installment.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for this ARC.

Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jeanie

“Take the joy where you can find it.” Wise words on a trip that went very differently than planned.

For those who enjoy novels about K-9s and their handlers, this fast-paced thriller is one of my favorites so far in the FBI K-9 series. Amid forests and lakes in Minnesota, Meg and fellow FBI handler Brian get one of their most challenging cases. They and their search and rescue K-9s Hawk and Lacey are far from DC on a training weekend that includes timed trials with six other handlers from around the country. To Meg and Brian, K-9s Hawk and Lacey are family members and not just working partners. When Meg finds herself in a situation where she can lose not only Hawk, but her job and her freedom, it is imperative to get to the bottom of it.

The special training weekend is for water search and rescue, and both Hawk and Lacey are doing very well. Each day after the training session, a timed competition is scheduled for the dogs and their handlers. On the first day, Brian timed himself, but the scorekeepers claimed a longer time for him, allowing handler Deputy Pratt and her dog, Ava, to win. There was also a spot on the competition course that caused two of the other dogs, including Hawk, to struggle, and one to be disqualified for the day. Pratt and Deputy Fief are overheard arguing afterwards, and when Meg and Brian tried to keep it from escalating, Pratt nearly turned her temper on Meg.

Late that night, Meg and Hawk were taking a walk and heard Pratt shouting at someone. When looking for what was happening, Meg saw Pratt severely abusing Ava and confronted her on what Pratt claimed was disciplining Ava’s aggression. Meg planned to turn in a report about the abuse when the weekend was over.

The next morning, Hawk excelled at the training session. He then alerted as if he was making another find. Claire, Meg’s assigned trainer, told her to pursue it. After pinning the location, the diver came back up with pictures showing the remains of Deputy Pratt at the bottom of the river.

The special agent from the Minnesota field office was young and brash. He was going after Meg rather than considering anyone else for several reasons. Rather than risk being reported, Pratt had left a message for her superior officer stating that Meg was abusing Hawk instead. Another deputy claimed Meg was angry when Pratt denigrated Hawk. The clincher was that Meg supposedly steered her dog to find Pratt’s body, as a guilty person might do.

The character portrayals were excellent. The author demonstrated as necessary who each person was, primarily through their behaviors and conversations. Meg and her K-9 partner Hawk are my favorites, along with Brian and Lacey, then those who came camping with them for the duration, including Meg’s partner Todd and his brothers, her sister’s partner McCord, and Brian’s husband, Ryan. Their loyalty to each other is consistent, as is their obvious affection and concern for each other, and appreciating the value of each one’s contributions to the group.

This was a satisfying thriller on every level. The action added incredible life to the story, and I felt almost as if I were there. The author briefly gives reasons behind certain conclusions that are described in a way that is understandable. Each chapter begins with a definition for some process or event that will take place in the chapter. The mystery itself was a challenge to solve. Memories of some prior cases from the past were mentioned. Plot twists and turns showed more about the events in question and the suspects, but this would not be an easy solve. I was unable to figure out who the bad guy was before the team did, which kept the intrigue mounting. Overall, I was completely satisfied with this novel, and highly recommend it and its series.

This book had a lot going for it. It is more procedural and dramatic mystery...than thriller or cozy vibe. The characters are all pretty serious throughou. It lacked the dramatic pacing that I desired at the beginning of the book.

The end was action packed and enjoyable. And series fans will be very happy with some series progressions with the main characters.

There were two areas I thought could be improved upon:
1) there was a lot of asking the female MC "are you fine? it's okay to talk about it" type stuff. But it just got really repetitive. While I did "see" that she was worried from the writing...I didn't really "feel" that she was worried - ie: biting her nails, drumming her fingers, face frowning in contemplation. I felt it lacked descriptors to make me feel she was worried. From only knowing her in this, she is pretty strong and intelligent. So her holding her emotions in, lacking initiative on a plan initially...didn't really seem to jive with her personality based on the type of work she did
2) There were definitions of emergency terms/etc at the beginning of each chapter and I didn't see how they all linked in. It would have been preferable to just include relevant ones at the first 5 chapters as foreshadowing. Get rid of the rest...then we could have had another dramatic scene with the murdered person and some other suspects to improve the drama. As I would have liked a little more build up in suspect list at the outset.

Lastly, there wasn't clear cut "did she or not" related to one issue. and I wish I could have some resolution regarding that. <spoiler>The murder victim is seen abusing her dog, obviously she did. But I would have liked to know if this had been occurring long term or only short term related to book events. I made her a murky murder suspect - and I could not figure out what type of person she was....while all the other characters I could categorize by the end</spoiler>

Wow, this book was a fantastic read that will grab you and not let you go until you are finished reading it. It moves along at a pace which works perfect for the flow of this story, speeding up and slowing down as needed. The characters are amazing and no matter what ends up happening you will love them and want to be there for them. This book is a must read that has to be on your TBR list, there is no doubt about it.

FBI agent Meg Jennings and Hawk are participating in a water search training weekend in the remote Boundary Waters area of Minnesota. Teams from across the country are competing in the challenges. Meg is disheartened when she & Hawk place near the bottom after the first day. But Hawk quickly finds the hide on Day 2 and then alerts to another scent in the water. The team investigates & finds the dead body of Pratt, one of Meg’s fellow competitors. A joint FBI & local sheriff team arrives on scene. Meg becomes the prime suspect & is suspended since Pratt had made an unfounded complaint of animal abuse against her to her bosses. With the help of her FBI colleagues, firefighter boyfriend Todd & his brothers, Meg is determined to clear her name & reveal the real killer.

This is the first book I read in this long-running FBI K9 series. There are obvious relationships and past traumas which have affected the main characters. Meg & Hawk make a great team & I look forward to reading more about them in the future.

I received a digital ARC from Netgalley and Kensington. All opinions are my own.

Still Waters is the 7th book in the FBI K9 series. You do not have to read priors to enjoy this very well written book.Meg Jennings & her search and rescue dog are out for advanced training. Hawk her K9 partner does so well at his job. They make a great team. Not only a mystery story also friendship and some romance. I learned alot of how and what search and rescue dogs do. Very enjoyable story. Thank you to Net Galley, Kensington publishing and of course author Sara Driscoll.

Book #6 in the FBI K-9 series is another 5 star read from Sara Driscoll. She gives the mystery/ thriller genre a different kind of adventure by combining these two dogs and their handlers with the investigative team. You get a different, unique view from them that adds quite a bit to the story.

This was a very good, fast moving thriller that kept my interest right through to the end. That's one of the best recommendations I look for when picking out a title. I know you'd enjoy it as much as I did.

Still Waters (An FBI K-9 Novel Book 7)
by Sarah Driscoll

Still Waters is a fascinating new addition to the FBI K-9 series, which features Special Agent Meg Jennings and her K-9 partner, Hawk. I was absolutely captivated from the very first page. When a competitor is killed during a training exercise, Meg and Hawk are on the case. Not only to find the killer, but also to clear Meg's name since she's suspect number one.

With its fast-pace storyline, intriguing characters, and Hawk (K-9's are the coolest), this book kept me entertained and swiping pages as fast as I could to read what happens next. And it's always fascinating to read about the training K-9's and their human partners go through.
Highly recommend.

Many thanks to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.

This new addition to the FBI K-9 series is another great story featuring the K-9 teams of Special Agent Meg Jennings and her dog, Hawk, and Special Agent Brian Foster and his dog, Lacey. In this story, the teams are participating in a water search training session in the wilds of Minnesota on federal land. What should have been a great weekend because both dogs were doing well, took a terrible turn when one of the handlers was murdered and buried in the lake far from shore. On a training mission, Hawk picked up her scent and a diver found the woman. Unfortunately, Meg had a run-in with the woman the night she disappeared and now Meg is the main suspect. Thankfully, the usual cast of characters are there for support. This is a great mystery to watch unravel as the group sorts through clues and the backgrounds of the other participants. This is an action-packed addition to this great series with danger, tension, and likable characters with a sweet little bit of news. I received a complimentary copy for the purpose of an honest review from Kensington Books through NetGalley. All thoughts are mine only.

As always, a well written story with a great a plot.
FBI Agent Meg Jennings and her k-9 partner, Hawk, are taking part in a weekend water rescue training exercise. Everything is going well when the body of one of the competitors is found.
If you are a dog lover, you should check out this series. Though #7 in the series, it can be read as a standalone. With that said, reading the other books in the series will give you more insight into the characters.
I was kept guessing until the end.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

How do you find a killer in plain sight when the area you are in is unfamiliar?
That's what Meg, Hawk and her team are up against when a competitor is found dead, and Meg is the prime suspect.
Meg, het dog Hawk and Brian, his dog Lacey are up in the frigid area of Boundary Waters National Forest in Minnesota for a training session. They are learning water detection skills and field competition will be taking place.
I live the characters and felt like I was with them on this thrilling adventure.

Thank you NetGalley, Kensington Books and Sara Driscoll for the opportunity to read this book.

What I love the most about this series is you really get alot of great, viable information about search dogs. The training alone is remarkable. These dogs are they key to solving alot of crime, searching for missing people, and alerting their handlers to danger. In this series, FBI Special Agent Meg Jennings and her Labrador, Hawk have a bond unlike no other. Finding the body of a competitor is the last thing they need, especially a competitor who held a grudge against them. Solving this mystery will not only put a murderer behind bars, but will clear Meg and Hawk. This is a book that you won't want to put down.

Still Waters by Sara Driscoll
An F.B.I K-9 Novel #7

I fell in love with Meg and her canine partner, Hawk when I read their first book. It is a love affair that has lasted seven books and is still going strong. I love not only the main characters but all the supporting characters, too, and eagerly wait for the next book to be published so I can read it. Highly recommend this series!

What I liked:
* Meg Jennings: civilian search and rescue dog handler for FBI’s Human Scent Evidence Team, in a relationship with Todd, team player, bright, fit, capable, great deductive skills, and so much more. Would love to have her as a friend.
* Hawk: black Labrador, rescued and trained by Meg, brilliant nose, supportive, part of Meg’s family
* Todd Webb: firefighter/paramedic, Meg’s partner and love interest, supportive, calming, great skills, puts Meg and Hawk first, there when needed, really like him with and for Meg
* Brian Foster: Meg’s human work partner, works with Lacey as his K-9 partner, married to Ryan, good friend, kind, caring, great to have in the series
* Clay McCord: news investigator, bit part of past stories, partner to Meg’s sister-Cara, has had big parts in previous books, hope he will be in many more books
* Craig Beaumont: special agent in charge of the Human Scent Evidence Team, older, wise, stands up for his team – human and canine, seems to be a great person and good leader
* The plot, pacing, setting, and writing
* That I learned something new about how dogs and their handlers work
* That the story was complete by the end and that I am eager to see what will happen in the next book
* All of it really except…

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like
* Knowing that there are evil people like those in this story that harm animals and humans and will kill without compunction

Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

What is there not to like! Another great instalment featuring Agent Meg Jennings and Hawk (her K-9 partner). They are on a water search training weekend/competition, Hawk is doing great, so well that he finds a body sunk in deep water. Not just any body, but a fellow contestant, and one that had it in for Meg. Race is on, find the killer before everyone goes home.
I love this series, and I really enjoy the little tidbits of information at the beginning of each chapter.

Every time I read a book in Sara Driscoll’s F.B.I. K-9 series I fall completely into the world of its story. I am all in, trying to keep pace in a high action story where danger is never far away. The combination of human handlers and their canine partners is thrilling to see, or read about, in how it works. The trust between them is essential, and it pays off in saving lives. Meg Jennings and her Labrador, Hawk, are part of the FBI’s Human Scent and Evidence Team out of Washington, D.C. Meg and Hawk partner up with Brian Foster and his canine, Lacey, in search and rescue efforts. They are called in to find survivors in large- and small-scale cases. Hawk and Lacey are not cadaver dogs, those that search for the dead, but it can turn out that a search and rescue ends up in a body recovery status. Time is always a crucial element in the team’s work, and in reading this series, you feel the urgency of the searches.

Still Waters takes Meg and Hawk and Brian and Lacey to the wild terrain of the Boundary Waters National Forest in Minnesota, more specifically to the waters of Lake Superior which are part of the area. Always wanting their dogs to be at the top of their game, Meg and Brian have signed up for a water skills training competition. While Hawk and Lacy are both unbeatable in their land skills, the water training is new, as is the searching for something dead. The training is the most important aspect of the weekend, but the two handlers also would love for their K-9 partners to excel in the competition part. 

Along for the trip is Todd Webb, Meg’s paramedic/firefighter boyfriend, and his two firefighter brothers. Also accompanying the group for their big camp-out is Ryan, Brian’s husband. Todd has assured Meg that she will love the camping experience, with meals prepared by him and his brothers and an air mattress that she can get a great night’s rest on. It seems like the setup for a perfect weekend of spending time with her amazing K-9 partner and a group of great friends. Well, maybe not so perfect.

Both Meg, with Hawk, and Brian, with Lacey, have top results in the first day’s training, with the dogs being able to locate cadaver tissue in tubes down in the water while in a boat. However, when it comes time for the land to water trials, the competition part, Hawk seems to get confused at one point on the trail, which is completely unlike him. Lacey leads Brian to what he thinks is the top time, but when times are announced, another handler is named in first place. Brian is sure he timed himself correctly, but the judge of the competition rules against him. Something seems off in this competition right awy. The winner of the first day’s trail is Rita Pratt from the Laramie Sheriff’s Department in Wyoming. She is an arrogant, hostile person, unlike other handlers Meg has met. Meg has to step in when Pratt is berating another handler to keep the dogs from becoming agitated. Meg’s interference is not appreciated. Meg has another encounter with Pratt that evening, which will have serious consequences for Meg, maybe even causing Hawk to be taken away from her.                      

Pratt is discovered dead the next day when during the training session, Hawk sniffs out human remains in the water, after already finding the cadaver tissue hidden by the training crew. The F.B.I. agent who arrives to investigate the suspicious death focuses on Meg as the lead suspect, after hearing about her dust-ups with Pratt and that Meg’s dog found the body in a complex search area. It becomes apparent that Meg is going to need help beyond her supporters already there. A call to Clay McCord, her sister Cara’s boyfriend, who is an investigative reporter for the Washington Post and a call to her supervisor, Craig Beaumont assures that she will have the best people working on proving her innocence, as both men head to Meg's training location. There have been strange reactions from people concerning Pratt all weekend, but, unfortunately, Meg’s interactions are the ones most visible. The time is short and the facts are slippery in trying to ensure Meg doesn’t lose her freedom and her dog. And, Pratt’s death won’t be the only murder that weekend.

Still Waters incorporates all the successful elements of the past six books in this FBI K-9 series. The high energy of the humans and dogs working together in a clock-driven suspense plot. The bonds between humans and dogs and between humans and humans that mean the difference between life and death. The sense of community in the world of Meg Jennings, including her co-workers, her boyfriend, her family, and her friends. The settings which are different in each story, and in this story are a fascinating character on their own. The information woven throughout the story about how search-and-rescue dogs and their owners work. The story that always deals with something new, something you probably haven’t read about before. Writing that flows smoothly and puts the reader in the setting, in the situation, and in the lives of the characters. All these elements combine for a story not to be missed. Still Waters is one of my favorite reads this year in one of my favorite series every year.

 

Full Disclosure. I received an advanced copy of Still Waters from the author and from NetGalley for review. I enjoyed it so much, I plan on buying a hard copy, too.