REVIEW of HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG ABOUT MURDER by Emily Soderberg

 

 Publishing Date: October 21, 2025

Science Fiction Crime & Mystery
Amateur Sleuths
Women Sleuths (Books) 

 

 

AN INHERITANCE PUTS NIKKI IN THE DOG HOUSE -- AND THE BIG HOUSE IF THE POLICE HAVE THEIR WAY 

 

The call seemed way too good to be true. Out of the blue, the very wealthy Mrs. Van de Meer called Nikki Jackson-Ramanathan and stated her interest in hiring Nikki as a pet therapist for her late husband’s dog, Reginald. In fact, the passing of Mr. Van de Meer had made front page news, and while Nikki was saddened by the tragedy, she was happy about the opportunity that presented itself. After all, the young woman’s goal was to switch careers and go from calligrapher to behaviorist. All she need do is meet in person with the recent widow and be subjected to the sniff test to make sure she was suitable for the job … so why was she still sitting in her kitchen?

 

The drive to the massive estate went quickly. Next? The cozying up to the family, but the very creepy vibe in the air prevented Nikki from becoming besties with the relatives who seemed way too anxious to prosper from Mr. Van de Meer’s death. Luckily Nikki was saved by Mrs. Van de Meer whisking her to a private office to divulge the dog’s peculiar behavior since the passing of his beloved master. It didn’t take much analyzing. Reginald was in mourning … the howling all night was a classic sign. With the introductory talk over, the matriarch made it crystal clear that she wanted Nikki to administer bereavement counseling. Nikki reciprocated by making it a thousand-times clearer that she accepted. And to prove how motivated she was, she prescribed a brand new exercise routine to rid the dog’s depression. The regime had just kicked in when a second tragedy struck. Mrs. Van de Meer was found murdered in bed. Nikki was shocked … just as shocked as discovering Mrs. Van de Meer had written Nikki into her will. It meant Nikki becoming filthy rich overnight, and being in the enviable position of buying a dream house or anything else she desired. But nothing is for nothing—and when looked at in the harsh light of day—it also meant that Nikki had been given an excellent motive to exterminate Mrs. Van de Meers. Yes, it could be that it was just a matter of time before the police tagged Nikki as chief suspect and dragged her off to jail unless … unless she beat the police at their own game and found the real killer first.

 

Thus begins HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG ABOUT MURDER: A MYSTERY by author Emily Soderberg. A stimulating concoction of murder, mystery, and delving into psyches, we find that the dog’s inner workings are much simpler than ours. The storyline interesting enough to pique our curiosity, the gluttony of mischief of the players stirs our own inner hound into working on solving this case. And with a cavalcade of suspects that are nicely fleshed out, and an investigation delving into a past “accident” that may or may not have anything to do with the present one, we have plenty to process.

 

It’s all good fun as the clues come fast and furious, but then it’s what author Emily Soderberg has fashioned this story to be. This is my first-time reading Ms. Soderberg’s work, and I found this entry enjoyable. The mystery is well-written and edited. The pacing is also good, but I would say it’s the tidy pile of plot and clues that is the star of this particular show.

 

Final take: I would definitely recommend HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG ABOUT MURDER: A MYSTERY by Emily Soderberg. It was very entertaining, and with an interesting and unique plotline. I also found Nikki Jackson-Ramanathan to be a great lead character. Think her background and profession will allow stories to take a myriad of different directions. So a big thank you to Ms. Soderberg, NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for an advance copy that let me play detective. It’s always fun as is finding a new author to love and I’m giving this one 4 stars! 

 

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