Best in Snow by David Rosenfelt

Best in Snow by David Rosenfelt
Narrator: Grover Gardner
Series: Andy Carpenter #24
Published by Macmillan Audio on October 19, 2021
Source: NetGalley
Genres: Mystery, Legal
Length: 6 hrs 52 mins
Pages: 320
Format: Audiobook
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In this Christmas mystery, lawyer Andy Carpenter and his golden retriever, Tara, are on the beat after a body turns up in the snow and a journalist is nowhere to be found.

Christmas has come early to the town of Paterson, New Jersey, in the form of a snowstorm that left over two feet of snow on the ground. Lawyer Andy Carpenter likes snow – to a point – but he misses the walks he takes his dogs on every day.

When Andy’s golden retriever, Tara, goes to play in the snow and instead discovers a body, Andy ends up on the phone with the local newspaper editor. The murder victim is Mayor Alex Oliva, who had an infamous relationship with the newspaper. Last year a young reporter published an expose, and Oliva had him fired for libel. Now, the young reporter – and prime suspect – is in need of a lawyer.

Andy agrees to take the case, though it’s not looking good this holiday season. The snow is piling up – along with the evidence – in the next Christmas mystery in this best-selling series from David Rosenfelt, 'BEST IN SNOW'.

Best in Snow is the first Andy Carpenter mystery I’ve picked up. I couldn’t resist the adorable cover and Grover Gardner as narrator. It worked fine as a stand-alone for me, although I’m sure I would have known more about Andy and the other recurring characters had I read the series from the beginning. At 24 books, that’s not going to happen.

This time around, Andy finds a dead body while walking his dogs. A former reporter for Andy Carpenter is an almost retired defense attorney with more than enough money, so he can pick and choose his clients- unless his friend and newspaper editor asks him to help out a former reporter charged with the mayor’s murder. Then he doesn’t get much of a choice.

Andy is clever and sarcastic and downright funny, all of which Gardner pulls off perfectly. The dialogue is entertaining and the dogs are all adorable. The plot was well-done, with plenty of twists and turns, another body, and enough clues if you can put them together.

I don’t read legal mysteries very often and I’m not sure why. I usually enjoy them. We’ve got the drama in the courtroom of whether Andy will be able to convince the jury of his client’s innocence. We’ve got peeks into the official investigation provided by the prosecution and Andy’s friends on the force. But of course, Andy and his team are the ones that figure out what’s going on. Crooked politicians, organized crime, football, and food, Best in Snow has a bit of everything. I’ll probably go back and listen to a few more in the series.