Book Review: Burning Ridge – Nail Biting, Page-Turning K-9 Mystery

Burning Ridge

By Margaret Mizushima

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy for free in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Deputy Mattie Cobb loves what she does. Her K-9 partner, Robo, has helped her out of scrapes with criminals and supports her through the residual trauma from her unhappy childhood. They love and depend upon each other both on and off the job.

Cole Walker, the local vet, has grown very fond of Mattie. Mattie cares for him also, but has learned to keep her emotions in check. What if he finds out about her childhood? She can barely live with the things that happened, especially being abandoned by her mother when she was very young, so it is hard for her to allow Cole into her life despite the strong feelings for him.

When the beauty of Colorado’s mountains becomes stained with murder, it hits Mattie close to home. Dead bodies begin surfacing, some old and one painfully new. Physically and emotionally she will be pushed to the limits – will she ever be the same again once her past comes to light? And will she survive to find out?

Mizushima brings the magnificence of the Colorado Redstone Ridge to life in the pages of her book. The insanity of a murderer is played out amidst tall fragrant pines and longhorn sheep innocently grazing the ridge. The juxtaposition of these images in the readers minds magnifies the best of nature and the worst of man, making both memorable in the twisted tale.

The characters are rich and full. Mattie’s past also includes Mama T, her beloved foster mom. Her sidekicks at the sheriff’s department are interesting. I especially like Rainbow and how yoga helped Mattie survive.

Mizushima has written three previous Timber Creek K-9 Mysteries and this is the first one I have read. It worked perfectly as a stand-alone mystery I was not confused and never felt anything was missing from the story. As a matter of fact, when I got to the last 50 pages, I had to keep slowing myself down because the action was so intense I had to know what was going to happen.

I highly recommend Burning Ridge and cannot wait to read the first three books in this series. If you are a fan of Longmire, you will love this book. If you are a great mystery fan, you will love this book. And last, but not least, if you love dogs – this is the book for you!

Copyright © 2018 Laura Hartman