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Pit Perfect by Renee George

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Wednesday evening, I finished reading Pit Perfect Murder by Renee George. It is the first in her "Barkside of the Moon" paranormal mystery series, which features cougar shifter Lily Mason and her adopted pit bull, Smooshie.

After her brother's murder is solved in Paradise Falls, Lily uproots herself from the only home she's ever known to go to Moonrise in search of the only family she has left--her father's estranged brother. Uncle Buzz had no idea he had a niece, nor that the rest of their family were all gone. However, he cautions her about trying to assimilate with humans, as he's had a tough go of it. Lily has no choice but to stay when her vehicle conks out and needs some work. When she's almost run down in the street and rescued by a pit bull, Lily meets Parker Knowles. He runs a local pit rescue, and he offers her a place to stay. Lily ends up adopting the pit and names her Smooshie.

While she's still adjusting to all of the changes in her life, Lily comes across the body of the town harridan, who's been murdered at the edge of Parker's property. Parker is taken into custody, but Lily is certain he didn't kill Katherine, and she sets out to prove it. She's aided by her peculiar gift, which is that people tend to open up around her and tell her things they would not normally divulge so blithely. Lily soon finds herself learning more about her new neighbors than she wanted to, but can she sift through the information to find a killer?

This was a cute story. Lily is a likable character, as are most of the people she meets. The pace moved along well, leading to an exciting end. Some threads were left hanging, but it's the first in a series, so that's understandable. Annoying, but understandable. Also, I got the impression that this series is a spin-off of something else...? Not sure, but the author frequently referenced Lily's BFF, who works with Paradise Falls PD.

Favorite line: I suspected that with the sheriff's forced diet, he was more hangry than angry.

I'm vacillating between a 3-star and a 4-star rating, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt and go with four.