Book Review: Dog Dogs

After attending a family wedding in Chicago, young widow Bella Jordan is returning to the guesthouse she runs in Lily Dale - the quirky upstate New York lakeside village famous for its spiritual mediums - when she catches a glimpse of the impossible at the airport: her late husband Sam.

A former science teacher, Bella is grounded in facts and logic. She doesn't believe in ghosts. But even when she's back home with the competing distractions of her quirky guests, small son Max, resident pet cats and a very unexpected litter of puppies, Bella can't find a good explanation for what she's seen.

The situation gets even stranger when her psychic friend Odelia tells her that she made contact with Sam's spirit and he shared a significant name: Kevin . . . Bacon! Bella doesn't know what to think, but when she glimpses Sam again and things start to vanish around her, she knows she has to get to the bottom of the strange happenings - even if that means letting go for good.

Dog Days, the sixth book in A Lily Dale Mystery series by Wendy Corsi Staub, will be published on July 2, 2024. Severn House provided an early galley for review.

Full disclosure up front: I have known the author for quite a long time. We both grew up in the same small town (not far from Lily Dale itself), graduated from the same high school (one year apart), and attended the same church with our families. I am proud to say I knew Wendy long before she became a best-selling author with over five dozen books under her belt.

Of course, I know of Lily Dale too which, as noted in the book, is just ten miles from where we grew up. Surprisingly, I've never been to the Dale, but that is okay. Wendy very much knows it and brings it visually to life in the pages of her novels. She also fills it with a cast of interesting characters. While I have not read any of the previous books in this series, it was very easy for me to get into the world of Bella and her neighbors. This story has a light, cozy vibe to it while still maintaining those spiritual elements that are the hallmark of the western New York community where it takes place.

After reading this one, I am encouraged to check out the earlier titles in the series.