Review - The Case of the Curious Canine by Tara Ellis

Title: The Case of the Curious Canine

Author: Tara Ellis
Series: Samantha Wolf Series
Pages:
Release Date: December 22nd 2016

Genre: Children's Fiction
Publisher: Tara Ellis Publications
Source: Author
Format: eBook

Buy it: Amazon

Add it: Goodreads

Synopsis: The next best thing to owning your own dog is having a job where you get to take care of them. That’s what Sam figures when she, Ally, and Cassy all volunteer at a local animal shelter. But they don’t expect the trouble that comes along with the work.

When dogs start showing up at the shelter with odd symptoms, the director doesn’t seem concerned. However, strange coincidences start to happen and Sam doesn’t believe that they’re random.

Confronted with the hard decision of following either her heart or her nose for a good mystery, Sam faces an emotional dilemma. Sometimes, the right path is the most difficult and this is one challenge that’s going to take all of her friends to help solve.

My Review: Another amazing book in the Samantha Wolf series. In this adventure the girls are volunteering at an animal shelter where they bathe, walk and help to clean out the cages. While they are volunteering they are also still doing their charity club and are working on a bake sale to help raise money for a women's shelter and the girls are looking after Cora the  5 year old daughter of their neighbour Kendra most nights.

While at the animal shelter someone brings in a cat that they have found and asks about a dog that their neighbour has lost but the shelter haven't seen the dog that they describe, only to find out that a dog that was brought in earlier that day was the one they were looking for, this dog was sick, it had missing fur and red swollen eyes that the vet had determined was an allergic reaction to something it could possibly have eaten, the same day two more dogs with the same injuries get brought in and Sam falls in love with a poodle she names Rocky.

Sam and Ally look after 5 year old Cora one night and when Kendra comes to collect her she is wearing a lab coat and when she picks little Cora up Cora has an asthma attack and Kendra takes off the lab coat that she had forgot that she was wearing and tells Sam and Ally that Cora is allergic to some of the things she has been working with and because she was in a rush to get back to collect Cora she forgot to take it off.

One day Sam is travelling to Cassy's house by herself as Ally is babysitting again and see's a car going really slow and the driver and passenger are acting strangely, when they pass her she spots the same symbol on the side of the car as one that was on the lab coat.

On their next visit to the animal shelter someone comes in and takes one of the sick dogs away claiming that it was theirs but Sam recognizes the man as the one from the car and she believes that he is the one causing the dogs to be ill.

Later on in the story Sam notices that Kendra looks like she has been crying and after telling Ally and Cassy while they are baking with Miss Covington she ends up using Miss Covington's advice to let an adult talk to Kendra rather than talking to her herself and getting into trouble and Ally says she will get her mum to talk to her.

John and Sam go to the lab so that John can ask questions for a school project and so Sam can see if she can recognize any of the people working there as the people who took the dog and Sam ends up wandering off and as she is exploring Kendra bumps into Sam when she is exiting a room where Sam hears dogs barking.

After Mrs Parker has spoken to Kendra she agrees to take Cora to Covington Ranch so Cora can ride the horses and to see if she is allergic to them too. While they are at the Ranch Sam sits with Kendra and after some light conversation Sam gets a phone call from the shelter telling her that Rocky had been collected by his owner and this ends up getting Kendra to tell her all about what has been going on at the lab. The concoct a plan to prove that the owner of the business had no idea about what one of his employees has been up to and this causes Sam, Ally, Cassy and the boys getting caught sneaking onto the property of the lab where Kendra is being held and they get held hostage until the director of the animal shelter finds them and takes the five kids, Kendra and the dogs.

The kids parents come to the animal shelter to collect them after the incident and they get told that they don't think they will be able to help in the shelter anymore but John suggests that they stay as a part of their punishment plus it gives the shelter extra hands as they are struggling with just the three staff members.

The ending of the story is awesome, I won't spoil it but it is great.

This installment is due to be released on December 22nd so click the link above to pre-order now

Currently Reading: Hunted by Sarai Henderson
Read In 2016: 34/35