Right from the Gecko (Reigning Cats and Dogs Series #5) Book

Surf’s up . . . and so are the stakes when veterinarian and amateur sleuth Jessica Popper escapes to the land of hula, hibiscus, and geckos for a professional conference. The last time she and boyfriend Nick Burby touched down on the island of Hawaii, Nick caused a volcanic eruption when he unexpectedly popped The Question to commitment-phobic Jess. But this trip proves just as dangerous when Jess befriends an ambitious young reporter whose body later washes up on the sand . . . and someone thinks Jess holds the clue to the killer’s motive.

There’s no end of suspects among the exotic flora and fauna, from the victim’s journalistic rivals and a mystery boyfriend to an eccentric beachcomber and a governor’s aide with ties to a controversial biotech firm bringing progress to paradise. One of them is a killer with the chameleon-like ability to stay hidden—and if Jessica doesn’t uncover hula-dunnit in time, she’ll be saying aloha . . . permanently.

Publishers Weekly

The last time readers saw full-time vet/part-time sleuth Jessica Popper and her lawyer-to-be boyfriend Nick Burby, she was rejecting his marriage proposal on a Maui beach. Baxter picks up her popular mystery series 18 months later, after the stubborn pair have resettled into comfortable couplehood, but puts them, improbably, on a flight right back to Maui this time for a veterinarians' conference, 10 days of R&R and, hopefully, a little romance. Their vacation gets sidetracked when the body of young reporter Marnie Burton washes up on the beach, and Jessie having just met Marnie the day before decides to take a closer look. As she brings to light the shady dealings of a biotech firm and a plethora of quirky suspects, readers will forgive the unlikely return trip, if only for Baxter's rich sense of setting. Fans might be less forgiving of Baxter's decision to do away with the usual menagerie of critters (with the exception of an orphaned cat), but her shift in focus pays off with a robust cast and a trickier whodunit. (Apr.)