cover image Confessions of a Canine Drama Queen

Confessions of a Canine Drama Queen

Stefanie London. Canary Street, $18.99 trade paper (352p) ISBN 978-1-335-49821-2

London wraps up her Paws in the City series (after Pets of Park Avenue) with a cute romance that doesn’t break new ground, but charms nonetheless. Celebrity dog groomer August “Auggie” Merriweather is great with animals, but less successful with men. She turns to a matchmaker for help, but her blind dates can’t compare to her best friend Leah’s brother, Keaton Sax, a Wall Street financier who buries himself in increasingly ethically questionable work to fulfill a promise to his late wife that he would “get to the top.” Despite workaholic tendencies, Keaton is always available to Leah, even if it means taking her dog, Molly, to a weekend-long competition in upstate New York while she recovers from a multiple sclerosis flare-up. Given he’s not much of a dog person and Molly is a talkative, stubborn husky, he begs for Auggie to accompany him and help out. Forced to share the only remaining hotel room, Auggie and Keaton finally act on their mutual attraction, with Molly’s presence doing little to inhibit their inevitable relationship status upgrade. Their ensuing romance is just as adorable as the misbehaving canines who often steal the show. It’s a worthy series finale. Agent: Jull Marsal, Marsal Lyon Literary. (Aug.)