It starts with a dog. Andy Carpenter gets a call from a friend who tries to reunite dogs with their owners. Only this time the owner is returning from the dead. Alex Vogel was supposed to have died when his boat exploded. It is certain that his two friends and potential business partners did.

Alex said that the boat was invaded by two men who killed his friends but missed him because he was hiding. He managed to get off the boat in a dingy just before the boat exploded. Fearing for his life, Alex went into hiding until he decided he couldn't stay away from his beloved dog any longer.

Andy gets involved when Alex is arrested for murder. He doesn't think Alex is guilty, after all he is a dog lover. But the prosecution's case is strong, and Andy and his investigators are having trouble finding evidence against anyone else.

However, Andy and his investigators manage to uncover a plot involving the Russian mob, American mobsters, and criminal drug developers.

I really like Andy's snarky and sarcastic voice as he tells the story. I also admire his desire to be a retired lawyer instead of a working lawyer. And I admire his abilities to go the extra mile to help his clients, once he can be convinced to take on another client.

This is the 21st in the Andy Carpenter series. Each books stands alone, and the series does not have to be read in order. ( )

This light read series always involves someone or somedog that needs the ever so witty defense attorney, Andy Carpenter. He eventually ends up defending the wrongly accused despite his wishes to retire and do basically...nothing. It cracks me up every time Edna is mentioned. Edna is Andy's office manager. All she does is do crossword puzzle and cashes her paycheck (jealous!). She hates to work as much as her boss. LOL, aren't they a team? This book can be read as a stand alone. You will get a good recap of Andy and his crew.

In Muzzled, Andy found a new client through his dog rescue, the Tara Foundation. A dog owner wanted to claim his dog back only that the owner was suppose to be dead in a boat explosion. Another fun read. ( )

Andy Carpenters attempts to remain retired are thwarted once again in Muzzled by David Rosenfelt. This time, a friend of his has found a stray dog that appears to belong to a murder victim who died in a boat explosion along with two of his friends. When the not-so-dead murder victim tries to reclaim his dog it sets off a chain of events that once again puts Andy on the case.

The man claims he disappeared because his life was in danger. That would make the boat explosion no accident and leave Andy and his crew hunting for a motive. The fact that he would risk his life and his freedom just to be reunited with his dog means there’s no way Andy can say no to taking the case.

Andy has a penchant for getting himself in trouble during these investigations which makes it lucky that his wife is an ex-police officer and her former partner Marcus is one of the toughest individuals around. This allows Andy to be his smart-alec self, knowing that they are around to bail him out.

The prosecution has a pretty convincing case against Andy's client which means it will take not only Andy's skill but a little bit of luck to exonerate his client and get to the truth.

David Rosenfelt fills the pages with laughter and suspense in nearly equal measure. The supporting characters are always good for a laugh whether it be his wife and her detective friends, his semi-closed law office workers who range from over-eager to those dreading any work at all, and his grifter friends the police chief and newspaper editor, who enjoy Andy as much for his companionship as for his willingness to always pick up their tab at the local bar.

Grover Gardener’s narration is the perfect match for these stories. His voice picks up Andy’s sarcasm and keeps it endearing rather than annoying. His tone conveys the suspenseful parts as well as the love of animals which is a key factor in several characters’ motivations. He also makes Marcus, a nearly nonverbal character, one of the most entertaining characters in the books.

David Rosenfelt and Grover Gardner are perfectly matched making audiobooks the preferred way to read the Andy Carpenter mysteries. Muzzled is another great Andy Carpenter book and not to be missed.

I was provided a copy of this audiobook by the publisher. ( )

Andy comes out of his pseudo retirement to defend Alex, accused of a double murder. Alex claims that not only is he innocent of any murders, he was the intended target and barely escaped with his life. Andy is motivated to take the case, not because he is convinced Alex is telling him the whole truth, but because Alex’s dog, Aggie, clearly loves Alex. And if your dog loves you, you must be a good guy, right? This mystery is a page turner from the very beginning, filled with intrigue, great characters, dogs included, and the expected dose of Andy’s humor. This novel, like the rest of the series, is highly recommended. ( )

Muzzled is #21 of this stand-up comedy/mystery/dog-related legal procedural crime series. We have not read all of them, but it’s not a problem to follow the plots no matter which book you pick up.

Andy Carpenter, the main character, is a “semi-retired” criminal defense attorney in Paterson, New Jersey who hates to work, but keeps taking on new litigation anyway, albeit reluctantly. Usually a case comes to his attention because of some involvement of a dog. Andy, who came into a lot of money from a previous win in court, prefers spending time with his dog rescue foundation to doing legal work, or any work at all, for that matter.

This book begins when a luxury boat explodes off the coast of New Jersey, shortly after a passing vessel saw a dead body on the deck. The luxury boat was registered as having three passengers that day, all from a local pharmaceutical company. The men on board are presumed dead, but then one of them, Alex Vogel, shows up at Andy’s dog rescue foundation to claim his dog, positively identified as Alex’s by a chip. Alex tells Andy that two strangers had come on the boat, shot the other two passengers, and blew up the boat. Because Alex happened to be down below when they boarded, he was able to hide and then jump ship. Alex says he has been lying low because he overheard the two strangers say they were actually looking for him.

Andy agrees to help Alex, mainly because Alex’s dog seemed so happy to see Alex that Andy concluded Alex had to be a good person, and therefore was probably innocent. But the police aren’t so easily swayed, and they arrest Alex for the murder of his two colleagues.

As is typical in these books, more murders follow, as do implications of mob involvement, stock manipulation, and money laundering. The complications in this book weren’t as difficult for me to follow as they have been in the past, and Andy’s sense of humor is always welcome. Also typical is a resolution that isn’t happy for all involved, but seems more true to life because of it.

Evaluation: What could be more fun than Andy’s self-deprecating snarky commentary on everyone and everything? All of the author’s books in this series are quick reads and uniformly enjoyable. ( )