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In this 14th book in the 'Chet and Bernie' series, the detective team investigates the disappearance of a reindeer.
In the Chet and Bernie stories, Bernie Little and his hundred-plus pound dog Chet run the Little Detective Agency in a region of Arizona called The Valley.
The books are narrated by Chet, whose somewhat limited vocabulary, unfamiliarity with idioms, doggie logic, craving for treats, tendency to get distracted, and affection for Bernie (whom Chet considers the smartest, strongest, toughest, best-looking fellow around), set the stage for plenty of smiles.
Bernie is a West Point graduate, military veteran, former police lieutenant, and talented private detective. Chet is Bernie's invaluable partner, always ready to clamp his jaw on perps and drag them off by the pants.
*****
As the story opens, it's Christmas season, and Chet and Bernie accompany their elderly neighbor to a bookstore, where suspense novelist Dame Ariadne Carlisle is promoting her new Christmas mystery 'Bad or Good.' This is book #99 in Dame Ariadne's 'Trudi Tremaine' series and the writer is said to be working on book #100.
During Dame Ariadne's book signing, Chet rescues her gold pen from the jaws of his doggie pal Iggy, which is much appreciated by the author. Afterward, Bernie and Chet are hired to find Dame Ariadne's missing reindeer Rudy, who disappeared from her Colorado estate, called Kringle Ranch. Rudy is Dame Ariadne's muse, and his absence is causing writer's block, and stalling book #100.
The Little Detective Agency is always in financial straits due to two bad business ventures. Bernie - who's very fond of Hawaiian shirts - invested in Hawaiian pants, which now sit in a storage facility .....not one pair sold. Afterwards, Bernie bought into a tin mine, which immediately went belly up.
Finding Rudy the reindeer would net Bernie and Chet more than $50,000. So they take the case, and drive to Colorado in their latest used Porsche, called the Beast.
Shortly after Bernie and Chet arrive at Kringle Ranch, they make a startling discovery. The detectives find Dame Ariadne's personal assistant, Chaz LeWitte - badly injured and unconscious - at the bottom of a gorge called Devil's Purse. Chaz is taken to the hospital, where he's in a coma, and the prognosis isn't good.
Chaz's fall is called an accident, but it 'smells off' to Bernie, who determines that Chaz was pushed. Moreover, this occurrence seems to mirror a decades old tragedy in which Dame Ariadne's boyfriend (at the time), Teddy, was found dead at the bottom of Devil's Purse. The case was never solved and remains on the books.
The Little Detective Agency's job now becomes a twofer: to find Rudy and to discover who targeted Teddy and Chaz. The local sheriff doesn't appreciate Bernie and Chet's interfering on his territory, and makes noises about Bernie not having a Colorado PI license, but the detective partners - backed by Dame Ariadne - carry on.
There's plenty of skullduggery and danger in the novel, and Bernie and Chet demonstrate previously unknown skills, like navigating a double black diamond ski run, which has vertical drops, narrow passages between rocks and trees, and winding paths with sharp turns.
Chet also demonstrates his support dog skills when he bonds with with a non-verbal, disabled child. This convinces the child's mother, a deputy sheriff, to help Bernie and Chet with their investigation.
The book's climax is heart-stopping and dramatic, though the Porsche comes through okay (which doesn't always happen.)
All the Bernie and Chet books contain a lot of humor, but this one is especially fun, with Chet at the top of his game. Here are some examples of Chet's humorous narration:
😄 Someone mentions pissing away money, and Chet observes: "Pissing away money? I'd seen quite a bit of pissing in my career, often in surprising places by surprising people - and let's not forget other creatures, including horses, an elephant name of Peanut, creator of yellow lakes, and once a bear....All that by way of making it clear that I'd never seen anyone piss money, or even piss on money. So something to look forward to."
😄 A man named Hal, who has a generous schnoz, says to Bernie, "You're kind of a nosy bastard down deep, huh?, and Chet notes: "Whoa! Hal said that? Nosy bastard? With a nose like his? Where did he get off? Look, as humans say, who's talking."
😄 Bernie mentions that Chet was running away from a bear, and Chet comments: "What a strange suggestion. I run from nobody, end of story. Although, thinking back, I did once run from a bear, specifically a mama bear on a mountain trail where we'd come between her and her cubs. The look on her face! That was something I'll never forget, and also unforgettable was the way Bernie had run, too. In fact, poor wounded leg or no, he'd blown right by me, maybe the most amazing sight I'd ever seen."
All in all, an entertaining light mystery. Highly recommended, especially to Bernie and Chet fans.
Rating: 4 stars
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