Gone to the Dogs

Miss Piggy, everyone's favorite vamp-turned-mutt, is back for another matchmaking adventure! Shipped off to Arizona to work as a pet therapy dog, Piggy now lives with Nell Jordan, a freelance journalist living a hand-to-mouth existence writing human interest stories and volunteering for her pet therapy group, "Hearts of Gold." When one of the most curmudgeonly patients on their visiting route dies, Nell is shocked to learn that he's left $12 million...to Piggy! Miss Piggy's all-too-human-spirit is thrilled by her nouveau riche status, but foiled by her doggy exterior—and by the presence of Dan Travis, Nell's new boyfriend. Piggy's convinced that Dan's only after Nell's—er, Piggy's—money, and is determined to break them up. But Dan has secrets bigger than that, and as he falls harder and harder for Nell, they threaten to blow up in his face.

Publishers Weekly

Piggy, the corpulent Corgi that starred in Carmichael's two previous romantic capers (Diamond in the Ruff; Finding Mr. Right), is back, and she'll have readers wagging their tails in delight before this playful romance is over. In her previous life, Piggy was Lydia Keane, a leggy blonde whose less-than-perfect life warranted reincarnation as a squat little dog. Suffering through a diet imposed by her new owner, do-gooder Nell Jordan, Piggy searches relentlessly for crumbs and shares the task of narrating, the juxtaposition of her human thoughts and doggy desires providing endless entertainment. But when Piggy inherits a fortune from an old man she visited as a therapy dog, she must forgo chew toys and focus on protecting her starry-eyed owner from hunky P.I. Dan Travis, who happens to be the grandson of Piggy's benefactor. At the request of his aggrieved mother, Dan finds himself investigating Nell and, unexpectedly, falling for her. But Nell has a secret that threatens to tear the couple apart. A villain intent on kidnapping Piggy adds some suspense, but it is Carmichael's scenic descriptions of the northern Arizona setting, insider's peek into the world of therapy pets and loveable characters, both human and otherwise, that make this lighthearted romp worth savoring. (Jan.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Emily Carmichael is the award-winning author of over twenty novels and novellas, both historical and contemporary. She lives in Arizona with her husband and a houseful of dogs, and is currently at work on the next “Hearts of Gold” novel.