The Case Of The Puppy Academy: A Sapphic Urban Fantasy Mystery Short Story

Samantha, a former detective, was required to take her hellhound puppy, Shadow, to the Academy for a mandatory 6-hour training and evaluation. Another warden, Aaron, began talking with her since his puppy was also in the class. When they started to the cafeteria later, Lilith Fatuus, Samantha’s boss and the IF Clan heir, met them in a surprise visit. She tried to get Sam to go across the street for better food choices, but Sam didn’t want to leave Shadow alone. Lilith agreed to eat at the cafeteria but complained the entire time and acted like the food was all tainted. Sam was surprised she had even come to the class at all. As she was back early to class, the instructor warned her to avoid Lilith as much as possible. Sam immediately protected her friend and told the instructor to back off and not spread gossip. Then Lilith arrived to talk privately to Sam – her clan ring, a family heirloom, was missing from her finger. Lilith was ready to kill anyone she suspected, so Sam warned her not to throw around accusations since these people were all wardens of powerful families (think mafia). Sam told her to back off and Sam would investigate quietly to find the thief. She already had discovered that two months ago the thefts started – 5 items stolen so far. And the receptionist, Susie, had made a complaint about harassment. But Lilith still refused to leave her side and her volatile temper didn’t make this easy to quietly question staff. When Susie implied that the headmaster himself was the thief, she had even more to check out, along with an unreported theft just the day before! Could she figure this out in the one day Lilith agreed to “wait” -- before Lilith turned it into a serious turf war? This was a very slow book, mostly talking about training the puppies before it incorporated the missing ring mystery. Sam’s “interest” in Lilith was more distracting/annoying than helpful in the investigation. I’m not fully vested in the series yet, but will give it another try on the next book.

The Case of the Puppy Academy is an easy to read Novela that sets the stage for future adventures. There were some humorous moments as well as mini-dramas mostly caused by Lilith, the heir to the IF clan. The mystery part of the story was simple and easily resolved. It was also very entertaining. There appears to be a budding romance in the works that will most likely play out in future books in the series. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Sam has taken her hellhound puppy to training and encounters an interesting group. Thefts are happening and her friend Lilith has lost her ring. If these thefts do not stop, there will be a war, so Sam needs to hurry up and solve the situation quickly. The characters do not have much depth or strong feelings, but their quirky traits are endearing. The story is light hearted and fun to read and the mystery was entertaining. It is very short, so a quick read while waiting for an appointment. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.