After enjoying "Death by Chocolate Lab" so much I knew I had to request this installment the minute I saw it offered on Netgalley. In "Dial Meow for Murder," the main character, Daphne, once again finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time when she finds the body of a wealthy philanthropist during a Halloween gala at the woman's home. Despite the objections from Jonathan Black, the local detective, Daphne continues to look into the murder and gets into all kinds of predicaments along the way.

I felt this second installment was just as strong as the initial one. I enjoy the interaction between Daphne and her family, as well as her best friend. There is still some sexual tension going on between Daphne and Jonathan, but if the author is planning on hooking them up eventually, she is taking her time which makes me very happy as I am not a fan of insta-love. In addition, Jonathan's ex has shown up in town and it's unclear if there is a reconciliation in the future between the two. 

What I like best about this series is the connection with the pets. The entire town seems quite pet-centric and since it takes place in October, there are lots of pet-centered activities throughout. In addition, we get to see more of Daphne's dog Socrates than in the first book. This book does introduce some new cat characters, as probably deduced from the title, named Tinkleston and Himmelfarb. I mainly mention them because I would love to ask Blake how she came up with these names! 

"Dial Meow for Murder" is a wonderful cozy mystery and is a must read for anyone who enjoys the genre and likes animals to boot. The mystery takes a few twists and turns along the way and because Daphne is a far-from-perfect character, her day to day actions are a lot of fun to read about. This installment has left me anxiously awaiting book #3. 

I received this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

 

This book will be used for my cozy mystery square on my 2017 Halloween Bingo Challenge.