I always say criminal books are not my genre, but when one is written as well as this one was, I MUST read it. I have not read the prior book in this series. I would love to do so. This is a story about Mace Reid, who is hired to hunt for dead bodies, and try to determine the cause of death. He has several entertaining cadaver dogs. The pack is called The Finders. His smartest dog is named Vira. He has an ex, a girlfriend, and a huge network of friends in his field. The question is, who are the professionals and who are the criminals? You will LOVE this book if you love dogs, detective stories, drama, action, who done it type books or thrillers. Warning, it does have some graphic violence described in gory detail. I read it over 3 days because of that. Otherwise, I would have read it straight through in a day, it was THAT GOOD! ( )

Fun series and book two was just as enjoyable as the first. I love the dogs more than the people but that might just be a mirror of real life. The mysteries tend to be a more serious than most cozies but still a fun read. ( )

Good sophomore effort in the new series about Mace Reid and the Finders, his troupe of cadaver dogs. Mace and his wunder-dog Vira are on the trail of criminals once again. Good solid story with enough light-hearted touches to keep the story moving. For example, in order to order to scope out one scene, Vira has to go "undercover" as a drug sniffing dog (since the body was much too fresh to need a cadaver detection dog!). Thanks to Minotaur Books for access to a digital ARC via NetGalley.

When people ask Mason “Mace” Reid what he does for a living, they just do not understand why he trains dogs to hunt for the dead. Reid trains “human remains detection” dogs for the Chicago Police Department. He also testifies in court, so by necessity, he keeps detailed records of what he sees, what his dogs find, and everything of interest that happens along the way. Reid is casual, lighthearted, and informative as he talks to readers, but mostly he talks to himself and to his dogs. Alternating chapters present events and situations from other perspectives, giving a different view to the whole investigation and bringing out unsavory details that Reid does not yet know.

Readers get to know Reid and his procedures well, but readers really get to know the dogs; they are what he talks about the most. He does, however, have some significant personal issues. His ex-wife is engaged to a man Reid describes as a “Ken” doll. His past relationship with a fellow cop is on hold due to his own lack of commitment to her; their relationship, both with each other and with the dogs, evolves as the story progresses.

The focus of the story is, of course, the dogs and their intuition -- what they find or do not find. The pace is steady, and the dogs prove their ability to find what people cannot. However, a dog’s identification alone does not a conviction make, so there is much to be done to prove the identity of the killer. Reid’s life becomes complicated, and the situation deteriorates into politics at its nastiest.

“The Keepers” is a captivating story with humor, comedy, and crime. I received a review copy of “The Keepers” from Jeffrey B. Burton, St. Martin’s Press, and Minotaur Books. It has a complex story, believable characters, and, of course, the dogs. “The Keepers” is the second book in the “Mace Reid K-9 Mystery” series. I recommend that new readers go back and read the first book in the series, “The Finders.” I actually liked the first book bettr. ( )

Mason “Mace” Reid, in his late twenties, specializes in training and guiding dogs for human remains detection. These “cadaver dogs,” as Mace explains, can find human remains in the ruins of an earthquake or a fire or a building collapse as well as inside a shallow grave. But one of Mace’s five dogs, a golden retriever named Vira, has an additional ability. When Vira encounters a dead body at a crime scene, she also picks up the scents left behind by the killers. She then reacts aggressively when encountering the guilty party, a person often unknown before Vira’s identification.

This is why Mace’s police friend, Kippy Gimm, tries to get Mace and Vira to accompany her and her partner, Dave Wabiszewski (“Wabs”), to homicide investigations. While they suspect Vira’s skill won’t hold up in court, it provides enough information for the cops to go after whoever Vira has pointed out.

When Vira “fingered” some high-up figures in the Chicago power establishment in a recent string of gruesome murders, the team of Mace, Kippy and Wabs knew they faced a significant challenge. Who were they to go up against “The Keepers”?

“The Keepers” was the name given by (fictional) Mayor Carter Weeks of Chicago to the corrupt politicians, bureaucrats, mobsters, and their cronies in Chicago that “kept the populace of the Windy City down” and subservient. Mayor Weeks had run on a platform of reform, to root out the Keepers and bring integrity and accountability back to the city. Alas, he had an uphill job.

Mace, Kippy and Wabs had to find someone to trust in “the Corruption Capital of America” to help bring the guilty to justice. They had to do it quickly and quietly, because these truly bad people were determined that no one prevent them from carrying out their unsavory agendas.

The tension becomes almost unbearable as the race between good and evil comes to a head and the story gets well and truly scary.

Evaluation: My husband, who spent most of his life in Chicago, appreciated all the references to places in the city, which he deemed quite accurate (unlike in one of his favorite shows, Chicago P.D.). And of course he enjoyed watching when I read the book (after he did) and I had to stop and scream at several junctures. This gritty thriller will appeal to those who love good crime stories, especially those full of facts and trivia about the art of forensics. ( )