Gathering Mist

Starred review from June 1, 2024

Just days before her wedding to veterinarian Cole Walker, police Deputy Mattie Wray must fly to Washington's Olympic Peninsula, where a celebrity's nine-year-old son has disappeared from a film set; the skills of Mattie's search-and-rescue dog Robo are needed to comb through the region's rainy forests, trails, and creeks. While working, the search teams learn that other boys have disappeared from the area in the last few years. Then one of the dogs and several searchers are poisoned by arsenic-tainted water. Fearing for Mattie and Robo, Cole flies in to act as veterinarian for all the dogs. When they realize that the missing boy was probably kidnapped and didn't just wander off, their search becomes more desperate. Mattie fears that it will be the cadaver dogs that discover the boy, rather than Robo and the other air-scent dogs. VERDICT The sequel to Standing Dead sends Mattie and Robo to a difficult search environment. The story of the search, and the setting, are beautifully developed in a mystery that builds in intensity and suspense. Readers who enjoy Sara Driscoll's "FBI K-9" books will appreciate the emphasis on search-and-rescue dogs in Mizushima's series.--Lesa Holstine

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2024
When a child goes missing in the wilderness, even more sinister crimes are uncovered. Deputy Mattie Wray and her K-9 partner, the German shepherd Robo, are summoned from Timber Creek, Colorado, to Washington state for an ultrasensitive search-and-rescue mission. River Allen, the 9-year-old son of actress Chrystal Winter, has wandered away from the movie set where his mother is filming a new movie and into the region east of Olympic National Park. Winter's revelation that she recently received death threats raises the possibility that this was an abduction and not a simple disappearance. Other questions surround the matter, like why nanny Sally Kessler wasn't with River at the time. The timing is very bad for Mattie, who's a week away from her wedding to faithful beau Dr. Cole Walker, but duty calls. Mattie and Robo are part of a large operation involving multiple other pairs. Mizushima's ninth Timber Creek K-9 mystery rolls slowly, with rich descriptions of the rugged terrain and the procedural details of a large-scale search-and-rescue mission, particularly those involving K-9 partners. There are interviews with the handful of individualists who live in the area, including the reclusive Edward Campbell and the blind Cecil Moore. The restless Cole, who has a contentious relationship with his family, joins Mattie and Robo on the rugged mission. A dark discovery changes the search and amps up its urgency. Series fans will likely be pleased that the novel ends sweetly, with the anticipated wedding. Tidy procedural with a canine accent.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 15, 2024
When a celebrity's nine-year-old son, River, vanishes from an isolated film set, K-9 Search and Rescue team Mattie Cobb and her partner, Robo, are sent to Washington for the search. Despite steady rain disturbing evidence and obscuring River's trail, Mattie's instincts scream that foul play is involved. Those suspicions are confirmed when a SAR dog becomes dangerously ill and her veterinarian fianc�, Cole, recommends testing for poisons. With Cole on his way to help protect the dogs, Mattie discovers remains of a campfire made from arsenic-treated wood. Nearby, homesteaders reported hearing screams, but couldn't find the source. As disturbing leads hint at child trafficking, Mattie and Robo race toward a deadly confrontation. Mizushima's Timber Creek K-9 series (introduced in Killing Trail, 2015) offers compelling, cozy storytelling, absorbing search and rescue details, and sensitive portrayals of disturbingly realistic topics like animal harm and child abuse. Fans of Mizushima's will find similar cozy justice appeal in the working dog thrillers of Sara Driscoll and Virginia Lanier.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.