The Anteater was framed! But if Lucy, the pregnant Giant Anteater from Belize, didn't kill the man found dead in her enclosure, who did? California zookeeper Teddy Bentley must find the real murderer before her furry friend is shipped off to another zoo in disgrace. Then another human bites the dust, the monkeys riot, and the wolves go nuts. Things get worse when the snooty folks at Gunn Landing Harbor attempt to evict Teddy from the Merilee, her beloved houseboat. That's just the beginning. Her father, on the lam from the Feds for embezzling millions, gets targeted by a local gangster; and Caro, Teddy's socialite and former beauty queen mother who loathes Teddy's dangerous job, starts introducing her to eligible bachelors. But Teddy has already given her heart to Sheriff Joe Rejas, a migrant worker's son. Caro is not pleased. Zoo life, animal lore, and the leaky ups and downs of Central Coast California houseboat living create a thrilling backdrop for murder...Betty Webb, author of the popular Lena Jones mystery series, has been a journalist and book reviewer for the past 20 years. As a reporter, she has interviewed U.S. presidents, Nobel Prize winners, astronauts who walked on the moon, the homeless, and polygamy runaways.
Her Lena Jones detective series - Desert Run, Desert Shadows, Desert Wives, Desert Noir, and Desert Cut - has garnered rave reviews from the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and other prestigious national publications.
Well written cozy (the first in the series). I picked this one up because I had recently reviewed the 5th book in the series as a standalone and enjoyed it a lot.
Despite being read out of order and being the first of a series, it was enjoyable and well written. Most of the time, I give new series a few books leeway before deciding to continue or not. That wasn't necessary here. It's a fun, lively, well written cozy with zoo animals.
