A perfect festive read full of cozy charm and well rounded characters. Grab a. Hot chocolate and a blanket and snuggle in for this winter treat.

Wagging Through the Snow
It’s never a good sign when Melanie’s brother Frank drops by at ten in the morning. He’s the kind of guy who says “‘if you could just do me a little favor” and you know you’re doomed. Nothing ever turns out to be a little favor where Frank’s concerned. This time is no different. Frank just stopped by an auction, and the next thing he knew, he owned a ten-acre Christmas tree farm. Now he needs someone to decorate the little office and by the way, work a few hours selling trees. And there’s the little matter of telling Bob, Melanie’s ex-husband and currently Frank’s business partner. No favor is ever little.
And that was before they found the dead man and his orphaned Maltese.

Here Comes Santa Paws
Melanie’s Aunt Peg can be overbearing, bossy, and generally nosy but she has redeeming qualities too. She’s loyal, loving, and a dog lover beyond compare. When she finds three Aussie puppies in a Christmas stocking hung on her mailbox (it was supposed to be decorative only), she has to find the original owner and, of course, homes for the puppies.

That mystery takes a back seat to finding out who killed Lila Moran and getting Melanie’s ex-husband’s current wife off the hook for murder.

With over 30 books, Berenson is a prolific author and authority on dogs, especially the Poodles who occupy her books. She also writes a spin-off series about Peg and Rose, Peg being Melanie’s Aunt Peg and Rose being Peg’s sister-in-law. The two women used to be friends, then enemies, and now frenemies. After all, they’ve solved a couple of murders without Melanie’s help and nothing bonds like crime solving.
For the dog and mystery lovers on your gift list, Berenson’s books are a good place to start. Get some for yourself too.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year in Connecticut, but Melanie Travis and her brood of Standard poodles finds surviving the holiday season deadlier than expected in these two cozy mystery holiday romps bundled together for your yuletide pleasure . . .
Whats better than one story yes two. This was an easy and fun cozy to read.

This is a pair of previously published stories featuring Melanie Travis, her Standard Poodles, friends and family. Centered around Christmas events, Melanie helps family members and friends solve murders before they’re arrested for the crimes.

In Wagging Through the Snow, Melanie’s brother has purchased a Christmas tree farm, and everyone is talked into helping out during the busy season. And then a body is discovered…

In Here Comes Santa Paws, Melanie gets an urgent call from her friend Claire. Claire has been a personal Christmas shopper for some of the wealthiest people in the area. And then a body is discovered…

These two novellas are easy reads with Laurien Berenson’s signature dog knowledge and the great telling of a story. The style is casual and draws you into solving the mysteries offered.

Always an enjoyable read.

A great 2 for 1 book of Christmas stories. Both have been previously published. They are part of the Melanie Travis series and the dogs are the main attraction. Melanie and her family host 5 standard size poodles that are all champions on the dog circuit. Melanie, with the help of her Aunt Peg must help Claire prove she didn't murder one of her shopping clients. With Christmas right around the corner, Melanie must find out who murdered the mysterious woman who Clair found dead. The second book has Melanie helping run the Christmas tree farm her brother bought. When a dead body turns up of course Melanie must help keep everyone in the family out of jail. Both are fun reads.

Fun, dogs, Christmas and murder. The first novella is set on a Christmas tree farm and is the perfect cosy mystery with the right amount of humor.

This book contains two novels from the Melanie Travis cozy mysteries featuring dogs. Both are holiday-themed and of course feature the loving canines that form a central theme for all the Melanie Travis mysteries. These are cozy stories, without graphic violence, intimacy, or strong language. Readers of this series will find these to be a holiday treat. For those new to the series, the lovable Poodles will take center stage as they help Mel solve two mysteries. Mix together kids, Christmas, and dogs, and a cozy holiday mystery results!

I received this novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

Are you in the mood for a Christmas cozy featuring dogs and a Christmas tree farm? A Furry Little Christmas contains two previously published Christmas novellas--Wagging Through the Snow and Here Comes Santa Paws. Each is the perfect length for an evening of reading. While these stories are part of a longer series, they can easily be read as standalones.

I've read the Melanie Travis Canine Mystery series for years. She is often joined on her investigations by her Aunt Peg and one or more of her standard poodles. Melanie is a likable character who can't leave a puzzle unsolved and often finds herself uncovering secrets someone wants to stay buried all while juggling a job, family and six dogs.
Thank you to the publisher for my ecopy of this book

*Melanie Travis Canine Mystery- 2 stories included
*Easy, fast read
*Loved the characters, especially Aunt Peg
*Melanie solves mysteries without police info-gains insight through talking with people
*Recipes included, I loved that!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

A Furry Little Christmas is a set of two holiday-themed novella-length mysteries featuring canines galore (and Melanie Travis & co.) by Larien Berenson. Released 26th Sept 2023 by Kensington, it's 320 pages and is available in paperback 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.

These are both fully developed novellas and delightfully cozy to read. As always, the author has well developed characters and scene driven plots with well devised mysteries. The denouement and resolution are satisfying in both cases. Both stories are easily read in one sitting (each) and will make a nice interlude and relaxation from holiday stresses.

Both of the stories were previously published in 2017 and 2019 respectively, but this is a new re-format and re-release from the publisher. The book also includes a teaser chapter from the author's tie-in series featuring Melanie's Aunts Peg & Rose, some background info and author's notes which were fun to read.

Four stars. Likely higher for fans of the author. Very well written and worth a look for fans of Donna Andrews, Nancy Atherton, and Laurie Cass to name a few.

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

A Furry Little Christmas written by Laurien Berenson is a Christmas mystery, don't let that gorgeous cover fool you. I fell in love with that cute little puppy, ugh he just warmed my heart so much. As many of you don't know by now, I'M IN LOVE WITH DOGS!!!!!! So, seeing this cover literally made me kick my feet up in the air. This book is part of a series but can be read as a standalone, it's just two novellas put into one book. Christmas ornaments, candy canes, a beautiful puppy, what's not to love? I LOVED EVERY SINGLE MINUTE OF THIS BOOK!!!!!! If you love being a detective and finding out the clues of who killed who, then don't let this book slip through your fingers. At times, I felt like I knew who did what, but with the twists and turns, I was completely shocked. I have never read a book by Laurien Berenson before, but holy moly, after enjoying this one, I won't hesitate to pick up another one of her books. I loved this book, but I felt like it was too short, I just wanted more. It's safe to say I have an obsession with Christmas mysteries now, I feel like I shouldn't love a Christmas book where people die, but man I just enjoyed this book a little too much and I do feel guilty. Please do yourself a huge favor and read this book immediately during this holiday season.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND KENSINGTON BOOKS FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!!

Wagging Through The Snow- Melanie Travis has a demanding teaching job and five poodles scampering around her house. FIVE POODLES? OKAY, I MIGHT BE A LITTLE JEALOUS. With five scampering poodles, a demanding teaching job, a family to take care of, Melanie Travis barely has any energy for the upcoming Christmas rush. Melanie has a blended family, she has a son with her now husband, and a son from her previous marriage. Melanie's ex-husband and her brother run a coffee shop together, but they are now looking for a bigger place. Frankie, Melanie's brother found a new place, but instead of telling his business partner, he just buys this new building. When Melanie and her family go to tour this new building, Melanie's sons hear weird noises, Melanie and her aunt go and check it out. It's a dying man and his puppy. Why would anyone want to kill a man who is struggling with an alcohol addiction? This part truly broke my heart, it's so sad that people have to kill others because of their addiction.

Here Comes Santa Paws- Melanie Travis attempts to deck the halls in a house overrun by five scampered poodles, her event planner best friend, Claire is busy playing Santa for the wealthiest clientele on Connecticut's Gold Coast. Claire has clients where she plays Santa for them and buys their Christmas gifts, these clients give Claire a list of everything they want and she goes and buys these gifts for her clients. When Claire returns to this clients house, Claire stumbles upon her dead body. At this point it may seem like Claire is the main suspect since she was the only there, but that is until the police start their investigation. Claire decides to call her best friend Melanie, since Melanie loves uncovering clues and finding the main suspect. Instead of waiting on the police to do their investigation, Melanie and her nosy aunt Peg decide to start a dizzying investigation of their own. Aunt Peg had such a smart mouth, I loved her so much. But, let me just say Melanie and Aunt Peg had the best noses to sniff out clues and find the real murderers.

Princess Fuzzypants here: I always know I will enjoy the adventures that Melanie and her aunt Peg and their respective poodles encounter. This book gives us two for one, both with a Christmas theme set one year apart. In the first, Melanie’s brother impulsively buys a Christmas tree farm and it is going to be all family hands on deck just to get the place ready for customers. They most certainly do not need to find a body in the woods. They rescue a sweet little dog but their good deeds do not stop there. They uncover the sad tale of the deceased who has wronged many people in his life. Only one of them, however, has been hurt enough to kill him.

In the second, Melanie is called by a frantic Claire who has discovered a body. The dead woman has a complicated and sad life which is a mystery to almost all who knew her. She was not the nicest of people but there is one person who feels so aggrieved that they murder her. Melanie and Peg get involved to save Claire at first but get sucked in by the mystery. In both stories they are confronted by the killer but manage to snoop another day.

Four purrs and two paws up.

This was two cozy Christmas mysteries great for dog lovers! I enjoyed them both and they were fun quick holiday reads.

I love animals in stories and these stories were delightful. The mysteries were good and I love Aunt Peg.
Many thanks to Kensington and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I read Here Comes Santa Paws previously; it is a very well-written story. Ms. Berenson writes delightful cozies that make readers happy. The descriptions of Melanie’s home, family, friends, and, of course, her poodles all combine to give you a sense of home, comfort, and joy.

I had not read Wagging Through the Snow and found it to be equally delightful, well-written, and containing all the elements that make for a wonderful, cozy read. I love the Christmas Tree farm. Who would ever buy such a thing in the age of fake trees and online shopping? Melanie and her family, that’s who! She is ready to go even though she feels it is a crazy idea; she nevertheless backs the decision to purchase the farm and bring it back to the fun, exciting place she remembered from childhood. Finding a man dead on the farm just seems to be power for the course. Finding this killer has tantalizing consequences for more people than you would think. This is a feel-good story that just happens to have a murder in the middle of it, but that doesn’t stop readers from enjoying this story from start to finish.

A Furry Little Christmas by Laurien Berenson contains Wagging through the Snow and Here Comes Santa Paws. These are two previously published A Melanie Travis Mystery Holiday Novellas. I like the author’s writing style. It is friendly and engaging which makes her stories easy to read. The characters are developed and relatable. Melanie’s relatives are certainly entertaining (her brother, Frank is a piece of work and Aunt Peg is a force of nature). Of course, you can always count on Melanie’s youngest son, Kevin, to provide some laugh out loud moments as well as the brood of dogs (especially Bud). I like the silent communication that transpires between Melanie and Faith. The mysteries are fun and suit the length of the story. There are clues to help readers solve the whodunits before the reveal. The reveal in Wagging through the Snow is suspenseful. I loved the heartwarming ending of that tale. I do not know how Melanie is going to get everything done before Christmas in Here Comes Santa Paws. Adding an investigation into the mix does not help. Of course, Melanie does have Aunt Peg to help her. I loved it when Sam asked if he should gather bail money when Melanie leaves the house on a dubious mission. Sam is the perfect husband for Melanie. I have read both tales previously, but I enjoyed reading them again. They are lighthearted and entertaining (I laughed often while reading them). I look forward to Melanie’s next adventure. A Furry Little Christmas contains two cozy Christmas tales with an impulse purchase, tree trimming, a persistent Aunt Peg, precious puppies, a concerned Claire, an extended to do list, family fun, and a happy holiday.

Somehow, I missed that this was a collection of two previously published short novels. As I read the first one, I felt sure I'd read before but goodreads confirmed this was a new book....took me until chapter 5 to realize I HAD read it before. (Sigh) In spite of my self-induced confusion and disappointment that I wasn't reading new, I do love the idea of joining these two Christmas cozies under one cover. Perfect for somebody who loves to read seasonally!

When a series has run as long as this one has, there’s bound to be a few Christmas novels; this is just two of the many in this series and they’re some of my favorites. I am a huge fan of this series and though they focus on the world of dog shows, there’s plenty of other stuff here to keep you interested if that’s not your thing. Melanie and her circle of family and friends are so much fun to be with and there’s never a dull moment, particularly when Aunt Peg is around. The mysteries are the well-paced and keep you guessing until the very end. These are standalones but I always like to start at the beginning of the series to watch the characters (and poodles) grow.

Two fun shorts that will get you into the Christmas mood and feed your need to solve a mystery. In Wagging Through the Snow Melanie is trying to keep up with the holiday rush along with her household. During all the hubbub Melanie is faced with a new business venture that leads to a dead body. Melanie knows she has to figure out who the killer is before she ends up dead herself.
In Here Comes Santa Paws Melanie's event planner friend is working an event for the elites of Connecticut. When a body is discovered Melanie wants to help her friend out and figure out just who the killer is. With the help of her Aunt Peg she jumps into the investigation and hopes to find the killer before anyone else ends up.dead.

This book is 2 in 1...2 Christmas novellas in one cute little package. Short, quick, fun. Love Melanie & her family and I always enjoy the feisty Aunt Peg and the bumbling antics of Melanie's brother Frank. Get a jump on your holiday reading with these 2 fun furry "tales" 😉