Scents and Sensibility

This “creative and whimsical” (New York Journal of Books) entry in the Chet and Bernie Mystery follows Chet and his human PI companion, Bernie Little, as they investigate a mysterious case of illegal cactus smuggling.

When Private Investigator Bernie Little and his canine companion Chet return home, they encounter some alarming developments. First off, Bernie’s wall safe—normally hidden behind the waterfall picture in the office—is gone. And next door, old Mr. Parsons is under investigation for being in possession of a saguaro cactus illegally transplanted from the desert. Bernie and Chet go deep into the desert to investigate. Is it possible that such a sweet old man has a terrible secret in his past?

Chet and Bernie discover bad things going on in the wilderness, far worse that cactus smuggling, and all connected to a strange but innocent-seeming desert festival called Cactus Man. They unearth leads that take them back to a long-ago kidnapping that may not have been a kidnapping and threaten a ruthless and charismatic criminal with a cult following, a criminal who sees at once what Chet and Bernie mean to each other and knows how to exploit it.

“Charmingly offbeat” (Publishers Weekly), Scents and Sensibility is a drool-worthy mystery that will have readers everywhere begging for more.