Unleashed by Emily Kimelman Review

Title: Unleashed

Author: Emily Kimelman

My Rating: 3.5/5

Part of a series? Yes, this is book one of the Sydney Rye series

Genre(s): Mystery, Dogs, Chick lit, Crime, Adult themes. 

Description/Blurb:

When the series begins Sydney Rye is named Joy Humbolt. She does not like people telling her what to do, so it comes as no surprise that she was just fired from her last job. When she buys Charlene Miller's dog-walking business on Manhattan's exclusive upper east side, it seems like the perfect fit: Quiet environment, minimal contact with people.

But then one of her clients turns up dead, and Charlene disappears. Rumors say Charlene was having an affair with the victim--and of course, everyone assumes Joy must know where she is. Joy begins to look into the crime, first out of curiosity then out of anger when there is another murder and threats start to come her way.

When police detective Mulberry is assigned to the case, Joy finds a kindred spirit--cynical and none-too-fond of the human race. As they dig deep into the secrets of Manhattan's elite, they not only get closer to the killer but also to a point of no return. One last murder sends Joy Humbolt hurtling over the edge. Her only chance of survival is to become Sydney Rye.

My review: 

It took me a while but I've finally worked myself up to reading Unleashed. I was a bit worried about something horrible happening to the dog leaving me a blubbering wreck but it wasn't too upsetting on the animal front, the human front was a different matter but that’s easier to handle.

I finished the book last night and it’s taken me a while to figure out how I feel about the book as a whole. I loved the character of Joy, she felt like the everyday person you'd meet on the street, her move from witness to investigator wasn't an instant one and while it wasn't a completely gradual transformation it was slow enough to appreciate the situation Joy was in and understand why she might be curious. After all, the investigating starts with gossip and who doesn't like to hear the latest gossip?

A couple of things didn't sit quite right with me though, the motive behind the murder and how the person spotted near the seen managed to get away without being seen seemed very much like the sort of thing you'd find in a children's book which made me do a little bit of a double take when the clues started to come together. I'm not saying that these parts weren't well written though, because they were and the momentum of the story does pull you along so you don't have any real time to wonder where Kimelman came up with the motive.

Overall I'd say that this book is quite a fun read, it's not overly long (I managed to finish it by using it as bedtime reading for a couple of nights) or complicated. There are just enough characters that Joy can have relationships with other people and progress the story but few enough characters that it doesn't take long for the reader to remember who is who. Also Joys rescue dog Blue is a little bonus to any dog owners, the way his actions are described are spot on and I think most dog owners can relate!

I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes a mystery that isn't all darkness and gore or somebody who just fancies an interesting/quirky read.