Murder at the Red Dog

By John Herrmann

"Herrmann is a first-rate writer...His characters are] three-dimensional and] Murder at the Red Dog is a well-written story with a great plot."
--Midwest Book Review

"In a marketplace that prefers formula over innovation, Herrmann's tale of the contemporary West breaks away from the pack...Readers seeking...depth in their entertainment must be sure to acquire this one."
--G. Miki Hayden, author of Writing the Mystery

"Murder at the Red Dog is] not only an interesting read, it is] an old-fashioned romp of a mystery."
--The Missoulian

" Herrmann's novel] is complex, with enough development to keep even the seasoned reader guessing."
--Luke Croll, Books 'n Bytes

The scene is a northwest Montana mountain community, the crime, the double murder of the owners of a roadside tavern located ten miles from the nearest village. A county prosecutor with eyes on the governor's mansion railroads a young Indian man employed by the victims. But a local newspaperman, Brew Moore, sees it as a set-up and in his digging and travels, turns up a federal cover-up. Why would the FBI and CIA care about the affairs of Kootenai Falls, Montana, and what has the federal government got to hide?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0595291899
• ISBN13: 9780595291892
• Release Date: August 2003
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Length: 168 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.2" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

A native of Kootenai Falls speaks

What a delightful treat! Colorful and descriptive characters,masterful plot twists, well written and enormously satisfying.The Red Dog does exist in NW Montana and so does the storyline and suspense. All of my children and siblings will find copies of this book in their Christmas stockings.

Fun to Read

The Red Dog Saloon in Kootenai Falls, Montana, is the site of the brutal gun slaying of the two owners. A couple of days later, another execution-style murder takes place in a nearby town. Rural America has gone on one of its periodic killing sprees and former New York newsman Brew Moore, who has settled here his border collie Jessie always by his side, feels impelled to investigate when anti-Indian sentiment rears its ugly head.Former East Coast newsman John Herrmann, owned by his own border collie Mackie, and living across the street from a saloon in backwoods Montana where they sell a t-shirt advertising Murder at the Red Dog, knows the local topography and mores well. In this meticulously crafted first novel, which is, we hope, first in a series, Herrmann has drawn mightily on that local background. Who else would know that the drink of choice in a Montana tavern is Moose Drool Brown Ale or the extent to which the pro-white anti-everything-else sentiment continues to dominate the rugged West?Herrmann suits his tone and pacing to the novel's structure--and somehow even to the locale he so lovingly depicts. Brew Moore is a man who has found Nirvana in a new home but who still looks back over his shoulder at the life he left behind, wondering if he's entirely done with it. But Brew has Jessie to consider, a dog whose pastimes are split between little romps in tending sheep and sharp-toothed protection of her beloved human. At last, refreshingly, a mystery with an approach intended for adults emerges, rather a relief in a market geared to unreal characters in situations that leave truth far behind.Strong on characterization as well as plot, Murder at the Red Dog ends with a few surprises--logical ones, given the setting. In a marketplace that prefers formula over innovation, Herrmann's tale of the contemporary West breaks away from the pack. Here's a small press author who ought to find a major following. Readers seeking a bit of depth in their entertainment must be sure to acquire this one.

a first rate mystery...

Protagonist Brew Moore is a character with a flair. A tea-sippin' Yankee who goes West and drinks Moose Drool beer. New Yorkers love stories about one of their own who leaves NYC and moves to the boonies. The dog and sheep herding scenes are authentic and convincing. Once, as Brew and his dog, Jessie, are leaving the cabin, Jessie looks over at the sheep huddled against a shed "pretending they weren't there." And the dialogue of the old assistant coroner is as good as anything I've ever read.

A Compelling Read

Several times in the last few days I've tried to get some work done, but each time I felt compelled to keep reading _Murder at the Red Dog_. I finished this book in less time than protagonist, Brew Moore, takes to bed down an attractive young woman he is trying not to be smitten by. The book is full of quirky characters and the sardonic wit of the been-there-done-that Moore whose vision appears almost as sharp as that of his perceptive border collie, Jessie. I'm not generally a mystery reader, but I absolutely loved this evocatively told tale. Bravo! Encore!

A WONDERFUL DEBUT!!

Brew Moore is a big city journalist who flees the NY skyline to find peace and serenity in Kootenai Falls, Montana. He soon finds out that there is no such thing as peace and serenity anywhere. As a reporter on the town newspaper he is asked to cover a double murder at the Red Dog Saloon. The investigation leads him to discover some of the intriguing residents of this picturesque town. Their diverse backgrounds give his story many dimensions. The location offers a sense of place that actually makes the setting one of the characters. It is a fine puzzle which is well planned and thought out. This is the first mystery by John Herrmann and hopefully it will not be the last. He has written several award nominated short stories and it is great to see he has now given us a full length mystery to savor.