Murder Unleashed (A Dead-End Job Mystery #5) by Elaine Viets

From Anthony and Agatha Award-winning author Elaine Viets—the thrilling mystery series about one woman trying to make a living... while other people are making a killing.

At the Pampered Pet Boutique in Fort Lauderdale, the dogs are treated better than the people—a fact not lost on Helen Hawthorne, who is working at the fabulous and furry canine salon where the wealthy dog owners need a muzzle more than their beloved pets.

And while some things shouldn’t happen to a dog, they do happen to humans—as Helen discovers when she drives out to the lavish home of Tammie Grimsby to deliver a freshly fluffed Yorkie, only to find Tammie stabbed to death with a pair of grooming scissors. In a panic, Helen speeds out of there—but she doesn’t report the murder, lest her own criminal past come to light.

But that doesn’t mean she can’t look into the stabbing on the sly. As Helen sniffs around both the boutique and a growing list of pure breed suspects, she knows that her bark will have to be worse than her bite if she’s going to put the collar on a killer…

Praise for the Dead-End Job Mysteries by Anthony and Agatha Award-winning author Elaine Viets

“A stubborn and intelligent heroine, a wonderful South Florida setting, and a cast of more-or-less lethal bimbos...I loved this book.”—Charlaine Harris
“Brave Viets preps by actually working the jobs she describes in loving and hilarious detail, giving her offbeat series a healthy balance between the banal and the bizarre.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Laugh-out-loud comedy with enough twists and turns to make it to the top of the mystery bestseller charts.” —Florida Today
“Fans of Janet Evanovich and Parnell Hall will appreciate Viets’s humor.”—South Florida Sun-Sentinel
“Wit, murder, and sunshine . . . it must be Florida. I love this new series.”—Nancy Pickard
“A heroine with a sense of humor and a gift for snappy dialogue.”—Jane Heller  (Summary via Goodreads)


I LOVE the Dead-End Job Mystery series by Elaine Viets !!  Murder Unleashed is the fifth book in this series and as soon as you open the book and start reading, you are home.  You feel like you are a tenant at the Coronado Tropics Apartments drinking a glass of boxed wine by the pool.

You will also love the dead end job she has in this book....working at a high end pet boutique where pet owners will spend lots of money on their pets especially getting groomed by a very talented, highly glamourous stylist.  

Unfortunately as is Helen's luck, while returning a dog to it's owner in a guarded community, the owner is found dead and naked lounging by the pool.  As the residents of the Coronado get ready for a hurricane heading in their direction, Helen is on the hunt for the killer.....  Once the debris from the hurricane settles and the rain stops, another customer of the Pampered Pet Boutique is found dead and a famous dog is missing and everything seems to point to Helen !!

I love following around with Helen, Margery and crew and the adventures they go on.  It is never a dull moment while reading this series.  As soon as I finish one book, I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book in the series....especially when Helen is already on her way to the next adventure at the end of the current book.

Review by Missi S.