Suspect

I’ve been a fan of Crais’s Elvis & Joe series for years, so I was delighted to see that he brought a dog into a new series as a main character. Another book with traumatized characters, this one demonstrates the redemptive power of canine love.

LAPD officer Scott James is recovering from an assault in which his partner was killed, and he almost lost his life. He’s barely fit to return to duty until he’s paired with his new partner Maggie, a bomb-sniffing German shepherd that lost her handler in Afghanistan. Their partnership offers healing for both, and I love… show more.

Though I love Crais’s Elvis Cole series, this standalone featuring LAPD officer Scott James and his K9 partner, Maggie, is terrific.

Maggie is a German shepherd who has survived tours of duty sniffing out explosives in both Iraq and Afghanistan. When James’s partner is killed, Maggie becomes his new partner. Crais successfully writes chapters from Maggie’s point of view, and we root for her and her new two-member pack.

I found the chapters written in Maggie’s POV genuinely moving.

This book opens with Maggie, a German shepherd's point of view, while on patrol in Afghanistan. She is an explosives detection dog (EDD) who watches her alpha die in an attack and is herself strafed multiple times by sniper fire. Returned to the USA, she ultimately ends up in the LAPD K-9 program for possible law enforcement retraining. Scott James, an LAPD patrol officer, suffers from PTSD after he’s shot numerous times and his partner killed. James wanted SWAT but is offered K-9 and chooses Maggie, instead of the dog assigned to him.

Throughout the book, Crais gives us Maggie’s… show more.

I just know you're gonna love Maggie. She's smart, experienced and utterly devoted to her partner. Surprise! Maggie is an 85-pound black-and-tan German shepherd. While working with her military handler Pete, in Afghanistan, an IED explosive killed Pete, and Maggie was shot. Maggie recovers but her world revolved around Pete and Maggie is desolate. 

Fast forward to present day Los Angeles. Maggie gets a new handler, LAPD Detective Scott James. It takes time for them to bond, but soon Maggie is devoted to him; they are “pack.” They eat together, play together, sleep and work together. Scott also suffered… show more.

In Suspect by Robert Crais, all seems hopeless for LAPD-K-9 officer Scott James who can’t work, can’t sleep, and can’t manage his anger after the brutal death of his partner. Maggie, a German shepherd back home from Afghanistan, is in the same boat - traumatized and nearly broken after losing her handler in a deadly attack. These two damaged souls are partnered up and knowing that this may be their last chance to return to the land of the living, begin to form a reluctant bond. Scott’s and Maggie’s connection strengthens as they are thrust into an investigation that could… show more.

In this thriller, both the police officer and his newly assigned K-9 partner are suffering PTSD from horrific things they endured on the job. The police officer’s partner was killed months earlier as they tried to take down some criminals, and he can’t get past the survivor’s guilt. The dog, a German shepherd, lost her previous handler to an explosive that severely wounded her, as well. I loved how the book showed that all sentient creatures suffer and grieve, often in very similar ways. Animals are capable of incredible emotional depth.