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Chet and Bernie Mystery #0.1
A Cat Was Involved
Spencer Quinn’s first original e-short story reveals how everyone’s favorite detective duo—Chet the Dog and P.I. Bernie Little—came to meet before their first big case in Dog On It.As fans know, Chet first met Bernie on that fateful day when he flunked out of K-9 police school. The details of that day though have always remained a little vague (like so much in Chet’s doggy brain). All we know is that Chet had been the best leaper in his K-9 class, but for some reason he failed his final leaping test...and that a cat was involved...and that there was some blood. But whose? The test, the cat, the blood—all pieces of a puzzle that, when solved, will bring down a dangerous gang of thieves—and signal the start of a beautiful friendship.This fateful day has been alluded to in every book in the series, and now fans of Chet and Bernie will finally get to find out what actually happened. For these two beloved characters, it was something like love at first sight—and, for Chet, at first smell, too.
64 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 12, 2012
636 people are currently reading
2087 people want to read
About the author
Spencer Quinn
48 books2,099 followersSpencer Quinn lives on Cape Cod with his dog Audrey, and is hard at work on the next Chet and Bernie adventure.
Spencer Quinn is a pseudonym of author Peter Abrahams.
Series:
* A Chet and Bernie Mystery
Spencer Quinn is a pseudonym of author Peter Abrahams.
Series:
* A Chet and Bernie Mystery
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 385 reviews
August 1, 2022
A Cat Was Involved
(Chet and Bernie Mystery)
By Spencer Quinn
I loved how this story unfolded. It introduced the characters in a unique fashion and it was mostly told by the point of view of the dog, Chet. Since Chet is a smart dog but still a dog, he can't talk. So many chances go by if only Chet and Bernie knew each other's cues better.
Excellent mystery for such a small story and a great taste of what is to come!
(Chet and Bernie Mystery)
By Spencer Quinn
I loved how this story unfolded. It introduced the characters in a unique fashion and it was mostly told by the point of view of the dog, Chet. Since Chet is a smart dog but still a dog, he can't talk. So many chances go by if only Chet and Bernie knew each other's cues better.
Excellent mystery for such a small story and a great taste of what is to come!
January 22, 2023
3.5 Stars. A short 42-page story that explains why Chet failed his final test to become a K-9 police dog.
There are more than a dozen full-length books in this delightful series. This is a departure from the typical detective/dog team storyline. This partnership comprises Private Detective Bernie Little, his canine friend and faithful partner, Chet, in investigations just outside Phoenix. The fact Chet failed the leaping test has been mentioned in books in the series but never explained until now. We know that Chet blamed a cat for his failure in what should have been a test easily accomplished.
This unique, witty crime series is narrated from the perspective of Chet. This clever look into a dog’s thinking was believable and hilarious. He adores and idolizes Bernie with unconditional love. Chet can sometimes understand Bernie’s conversations but may misinterpret and be confused about what is happening. His thoughts infuse the story with good humour. Chet is an obedient and highly intelligent animal, but his energy and high spirits may interfere. He was set to graduate as a K-9 dog but failed his final test due to an unfortunate incident involving a cat. This was a happy day for Chet, as that was the time he met Bernie.
There are more than a dozen full-length books in this delightful series. This is a departure from the typical detective/dog team storyline. This partnership comprises Private Detective Bernie Little, his canine friend and faithful partner, Chet, in investigations just outside Phoenix. The fact Chet failed the leaping test has been mentioned in books in the series but never explained until now. We know that Chet blamed a cat for his failure in what should have been a test easily accomplished.
This unique, witty crime series is narrated from the perspective of Chet. This clever look into a dog’s thinking was believable and hilarious. He adores and idolizes Bernie with unconditional love. Chet can sometimes understand Bernie’s conversations but may misinterpret and be confused about what is happening. His thoughts infuse the story with good humour. Chet is an obedient and highly intelligent animal, but his energy and high spirits may interfere. He was set to graduate as a K-9 dog but failed his final test due to an unfortunate incident involving a cat. This was a happy day for Chet, as that was the time he met Bernie.
June 13, 2013
Rating: 3.5* of five
The Publisher Says: Spencer Quinn’s first original e-short story reveals how everyone’s favorite detective duo—Chet the Dog and P.I. Bernie Little—came to meet before their first big case in Dog On It.As fans know, Chet first met Bernie on that fateful day when he flunked out of K-9 police school. The details of that day though have always remained a little vague (like so much in Chet’s doggy brain). All we know is that Chet had been the best leaper in his K-9 class, but for some reason he failed his final leaping test...and that a cat was involved...and that there was some blood. But whose? The test, the cat, the blood—all pieces of a puzzle that, when solved, will bring down a dangerous gang of thieves—and signal the start of a beautiful friendship.
This fateful day has been alluded to in every book in the series, and now fans of Chet and Bernie will finally get to find out what actually happened. For these two beloved characters, it was something like love at first sight—and, for Chet, at first smell, too.
My Review: Here's what you need to know...it's exactly as much fun as you'd expect it to be; it's got the trademark Chet narration that leaves nothing to a human imagination except why we don't get to think this way; and it breaks from the canon of history set up in the first two books about Bernie's marriage and Chet's place in it.
Like all !&$^!%(^%!$*$$(^$)&%)^(%*!$ ebooks, I can't quote anything to you because how? But the story's only 39pp or so, and it blows by faster than one actually wants it to, and it costs a whopping ninety-nine cents. It's actually not necessary to read from a series standpoint, but heck, for chump change, buy it, read it, and smile for a half-hour. Sounds like a win to me!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The Publisher Says: Spencer Quinn’s first original e-short story reveals how everyone’s favorite detective duo—Chet the Dog and P.I. Bernie Little—came to meet before their first big case in Dog On It.As fans know, Chet first met Bernie on that fateful day when he flunked out of K-9 police school. The details of that day though have always remained a little vague (like so much in Chet’s doggy brain). All we know is that Chet had been the best leaper in his K-9 class, but for some reason he failed his final leaping test...and that a cat was involved...and that there was some blood. But whose? The test, the cat, the blood—all pieces of a puzzle that, when solved, will bring down a dangerous gang of thieves—and signal the start of a beautiful friendship.
This fateful day has been alluded to in every book in the series, and now fans of Chet and Bernie will finally get to find out what actually happened. For these two beloved characters, it was something like love at first sight—and, for Chet, at first smell, too.
My Review: Here's what you need to know...it's exactly as much fun as you'd expect it to be; it's got the trademark Chet narration that leaves nothing to a human imagination except why we don't get to think this way; and it breaks from the canon of history set up in the first two books about Bernie's marriage and Chet's place in it.
Like all !&$^!%(^%!$*$$(^$)&%)^(%*!$ ebooks, I can't quote anything to you because how? But the story's only 39pp or so, and it blows by faster than one actually wants it to, and it costs a whopping ninety-nine cents. It's actually not necessary to read from a series standpoint, but heck, for chump change, buy it, read it, and smile for a half-hour. Sounds like a win to me!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
August 8, 2022
Dog On It begins
Review of the Recorded Books audiobook (2013) of the Kindle eBook original (2012)
Sometimes you just want some light fun reading and what is better than a dog story for that? A Cat Was Involved (2012) is author Spencer Quinn's prequel short as to how his canine & human detective duo of Chet and Bernie first met. The popular series of Chet and Bernie Mysteries has been ongoing since 2009 and the 13th novel Bark to the Future is released tomorrow August 9, 2022.
Chet has flunked out of official police K9 school due to the distraction of a cat which he knows is the unwilling catnap victim of a carjacking. When his police handler gives him to Bernie for overnight safekeeping before consigning the flunkout to an animal shelter, the hunt is on and a duo and a career are born.
You have to be willing to go with the artistic license of giving dog Chet the narrator duties with all the unrealistic anthropomorphic reactions that go with it. But it does provide for extended humour as our canine commentator observes the foibles of humans, all the while thinking about where his next treat is coming from.
I read/listened to A Cat Was Involved through a $1 Audible sale from late July 2022.
Review of the Recorded Books audiobook (2013) of the Kindle eBook original (2012)
Sometimes you just want some light fun reading and what is better than a dog story for that? A Cat Was Involved (2012) is author Spencer Quinn's prequel short as to how his canine & human detective duo of Chet and Bernie first met. The popular series of Chet and Bernie Mysteries has been ongoing since 2009 and the 13th novel Bark to the Future is released tomorrow August 9, 2022.
Chet has flunked out of official police K9 school due to the distraction of a cat which he knows is the unwilling catnap victim of a carjacking. When his police handler gives him to Bernie for overnight safekeeping before consigning the flunkout to an animal shelter, the hunt is on and a duo and a career are born.
You have to be willing to go with the artistic license of giving dog Chet the narrator duties with all the unrealistic anthropomorphic reactions that go with it. But it does provide for extended humour as our canine commentator observes the foibles of humans, all the while thinking about where his next treat is coming from.
I read/listened to A Cat Was Involved through a $1 Audible sale from late July 2022.
February 1, 2020
Chet is a police dog in training who has had quite a past. On his last day of testing, he failed a jumping test and got kicked out of K-9 school. Yes, there was a cat involved. This novella tells what happened from Chet's side of the story and how he became Bernie's partner in their P.I. agency.
I liked the writing style ... it's written in first person perspective, from Chet's point of view. I had Spencer Quinn’s first original e-short story reveals how everyone’s favorite detective duo—Chet the Dog and P.I. Bernie Little—came to meet before their first big case in Dog On It.
As fans know, Chet first met Bernie on that fateful day when he flunked out of K-9 police school. The details of that day though have always remained a little vague (like so much in Chet’s doggy brain). All we know is that Chet had been the best leaper in his K-9 class, but for some reason he failed his final leaping test...and that a cat was involved...and that there was some blood. But whose? The test, the cat, the blood—all pieces of a puzzle that, when solved, will bring down a dangerous gang of thieves—and signal the start of a beautiful friendship.
This fateful day has been alluded to in every book in the series, and now fans of Chet and Bernie will finally get to find out what actually happened. For these two beloved characters, it was something like love at first sight—and, for Chet, at first smell, too.
I read the first in the series, Dog On It, when it came out in 2009 and thought it was cute.
I liked the writing style ... it's written in first person perspective, from Chet's point of view. I had Spencer Quinn’s first original e-short story reveals how everyone’s favorite detective duo—Chet the Dog and P.I. Bernie Little—came to meet before their first big case in Dog On It.
As fans know, Chet first met Bernie on that fateful day when he flunked out of K-9 police school. The details of that day though have always remained a little vague (like so much in Chet’s doggy brain). All we know is that Chet had been the best leaper in his K-9 class, but for some reason he failed his final leaping test...and that a cat was involved...and that there was some blood. But whose? The test, the cat, the blood—all pieces of a puzzle that, when solved, will bring down a dangerous gang of thieves—and signal the start of a beautiful friendship.
This fateful day has been alluded to in every book in the series, and now fans of Chet and Bernie will finally get to find out what actually happened. For these two beloved characters, it was something like love at first sight—and, for Chet, at first smell, too.
I read the first in the series, Dog On It, when it came out in 2009 and thought it was cute.
January 4, 2019
A delightful little audiobook, just one hour long, and the narrator was excellent. My first by the author but I’m gonna read or listen to all of the Chet and Bernie mysteries. Chet is a dog BTW and he tells the story. Really delightful!
May 2, 2022
This short story explains how Chet flunked out of the police canine school and how he and Bernie came to be a team. It wasn’t Chet’s fault that he failed the last test; he was distracted by what turned out to be a bigger case. It’s a delightful tale, told by Chet, and who, since he is a dog (although an extraordinary one), doesn’t always understand human nature and language. This fun tale is the “purrfect” beginning.
December 19, 2012
I loved this prequel! Of course, Chet is one of my favorite characters anyway. The only small odd thing was the ex-wife; in the books, Chet is clear that Bernie and the wife are together when Chet first joined the household, but at the time this book starts, the ex is already an ex. No matter, minor detail, I still loved it. It was certainly odd having a story where Chet isn't yet worried about finances! This was also my first foray into the world of ibooks, which was an experience unto itself!
September 13, 2012
Readers of the Chet & Bernie series know that PI Bernie acquired his canine partner, Chet, after Chet flunked out of police K-9 school and that a cat was involved in this. In this delightful short story, Chet tells us just how it all happened. A fun read!
February 8, 2021
Very cute short story.
January 6, 2020
This is my first outing with Chet, narrator of our story. He is about to finish K9 school and become a police dog when he witnesses the theft of a car with a cat inside. He is unable to tell anyone what he saw but as he is about to take his final test, he sees the missing cat and goes to investigate, causing him to fail his exam. Local PI Bernie dog sits him befor Chet is to be sent to the pound but on hearing the story of Chet and the cat, he starts to piece together the details of the car theft, and sets out with Chet to solve the crime.
I love Chet! He is smart and friendly, but his obsession with food is never far away from his thoughts as the story progresses. It was a fun short story to read and I would like to read more about Chet. I'm just not so sure about Bernie, a washed up PI with a drink problem. I do have the first full book in the series which I might try at some point.
I love Chet! He is smart and friendly, but his obsession with food is never far away from his thoughts as the story progresses. It was a fun short story to read and I would like to read more about Chet. I'm just not so sure about Bernie, a washed up PI with a drink problem. I do have the first full book in the series which I might try at some point.
December 31, 2023
A Cat Was Involved by Spencer Quinn was the short story starting the Chet and Bernie series I have grown to love. If you are a fan of these books, be sure to read how Chet and Bernie became partners. As always, this is told from Chet’s very funny perspective. Enjoy.
October 29, 2021
I really enjoy cozy mysteries, and this seems like that kind of a book series. A dog protagonist sounds wonderful!
February 10, 2024
4 Stars. Above average .5 short story. I love dogs so...
February 24, 2017
Spencer Quinn tells his stories with the voice of Chet, a dog who never made the police K-9 squad but has all that training. It is a cute and sometimes devastatingly effective way to present a case for investigation. I reviewed Dog on It and liked it a lot with its humor and perspective.
This is a short story about how Chet met Bernie (the P.I) as he was washing out of police training. It's a bit of back-story only meant for those who are already into the series. It has no real mystery. It hardly can stand on its own, and three stars is strictly from a fan's point of view.
I liked it, like I like one M&M. It reminds that I would like to have more but it really isn't very satisfying in itself.
This is a short story about how Chet met Bernie (the P.I) as he was washing out of police training. It's a bit of back-story only meant for those who are already into the series. It has no real mystery. It hardly can stand on its own, and three stars is strictly from a fan's point of view.
I liked it, like I like one M&M. It reminds that I would like to have more but it really isn't very satisfying in itself.
September 17, 2019
The POV is that of a dog, which I didn't care for. It was short, with a simple "mystery", although it felt like the wandering musings of a dog. I have no interest in reading anything further in this series. I do look at my dog (fur-baby) differently, and her gazes and barks hold yet another layer, perhaps of understanding (though I don't ever think she'll experience the wonder of sitting in the front seat of a Porsche:)
July 18, 2020
I finished the first book in this series last week, and quickly ordered the next three in the series, it was that good. I found this e-story in the Kindle store, and it is as good as Quinn's full length novel.
Chet, the canine partner in the Little Detective Agency, narrates the story, and along with his human partner, Bernie, they are a wonderful pair.
07/16/2020: Read again
Chet, the canine partner in the Little Detective Agency, narrates the story, and along with his human partner, Bernie, they are a wonderful pair.
07/16/2020: Read again
February 20, 2022
I had to start this book a few times to get into it (even though it literally was less than an hour of an audiobook). Just couldn’t get connected with the characters. Maybe because I read this first as opposed to one of his others. And OK cup of tea.
August 14, 2014
A short story prequel to Dog On It that tells us how Bernie and Chet met and explains the mystery as to why Chet never graduated from K-9 school. Amusing, fun and recommended
January 28, 2016
Just a little short book to explain how Chet and Bernie go together. I love these characters!
March 30, 2016
HILARIOUS!
May 21, 2024
This was a cute and quick read. It starts off with Chet trying to finish his training to become a police dog. While the cops stopped for donuts, Chet witnessed a car being stolen that happened to have a cat in it. Shortly after, the owner of the car walked out and noticed her gone. She wrote a police report, and everyone went on with their day. Chet went to go do the leap test when he saw the cat and went to it, failing the leap test. He failed the test as well and was going to end up at the pound the next morning. This is where Bernie comes in, and together, they solve the crime of the missing cat and car. Bernie and Chet become partners.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2024
Well, that was super short, and super cute! I just love Chet, and unfortunately haven't been able to read them in chronological order. This is apparently the very first introduction novella, and it doesn't disappoint. It details how and why Chet flunked out of K9 school and how he came to live with Bernie. Lots is packed into this very short book! Very well worth the time to read!
December 30, 2022
Although there was more mature language in this than I would have liked, this was a fun short story told from the perspective of the canine detective. I will look into reading more from this series.
February 8, 2024
So this was a 48 page book to get you started on the series. I already know I’m going to love this series.
March 22, 2024
The wonderful story of how Chet and Bernie get together.
September 19, 2025
Nice to know how it all began.
April 8, 2023
This short story--only available on Kindle and as an audiobook--shows how Chet and Bernie met and became partners. It's been hinted at in the novels so I enjoyed learning how and why Chet flunked and how a cat was involved. I love this story--and Chet.
March 17, 2025
Lots of fun.
March 4, 2022
Fun to read; told from the prospective of Chet, the dog.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 385 reviews