Dog of Deliverance: A Golden Retriever Mystery by Neil S. Plakcy
About Dog of Deliverance
Dog of Deliverance: A Golden Retriever Mystery
Cozy Mystery
21st in Series
Setting - Pennsylvania
Publisher : Independently Published
Publication date : June 30, 2025
Print length : 246 pages
Paperback ISBN-13 : 979-8287443207
Digital ASIN : B0FCD4DRD2
When his golden retriever Rochester discovers a body behind the bounce house at Stewart's Crossing's first Purim carnival, Steve Levitan finds himself juggling two dangerous investigations that will test both his computer skills and his courage.
Eastern College President Babson asks Steve to use his hacking expertise to investigate Austin Graynor, a star academic whose impressive credentials might be hiding a darker past. What Steve discovers about the professor's history with female colleagues creates an urgent dilemma about academic power and deadly consequences.
He’s distracted, though, by the murder of Yakov Shmerler, a diamond dealer who was supposed to marry eighteen-year-old Hadassah Schildkraut. Hadassah fled her restrictive Orthodox community to stay with friends of Steve’s. As he helps his detective friend Rick Stemper investigate Yakov’s murder, they uncover secrets that reach from Pennsylvania to the isolated community of Kiryas Lev in New York's Catskill Mountains.
Hadassah's escape has made her a target. Her blog exposing corruption in her hometown threatens powerful men who've built their authority on others' silence. As both investigations converge on themes of hidden identities and the courage to challenge corrupt authority—echoing Purim's ancient story of Queen Esther—Steve must protect those speaking truth to power while helping bring dangerous men to justice.
About Neil S. Plakcy
Neil S. Plakcy is the author of over 70 novels in mystery, romance, and adventure. His golden retriever mysteries are inspired by his English Cream goldens, Brody and Griffin, who are constantly sniffing around for food or affection.
Guest Post
Here's a 500-word guest post about dogs in mysteries compared to Lilian Jackson Braun's cats:
Following the Leader: What Lilian Jackson Braun Taught Me About Animal Sleuths
When I first conceived my Golden Retriever mysteries featuring Steve Levitan and his dog Rochester, I had one clear goal: to do for dogs what Lilian Jackson Braun had brilliantly accomplished for cats in her beloved "Cat Who" series. Braun showed us that animals don't need to be anthropomorphized or given supernatural powers to be compelling mystery solvers—they just need to be authentically themselves.
In Braun's novels, Koko and Yum Yum didn't speak or perform impossible feats. Instead, they exhibited perfectly normal feline behaviors that their observant human, Jim Qwilleran, learned to interpret as clues. When Koko knocked books off shelves, it wasn't random mischief—he was highlighting important information. When he sat on specific letters while Qwilleran was reading, he was literally pointing to clues. These weren't magical cats; they were cats being cats, but cats whose natural instincts and behaviors provided crucial insights.
This approach fascinated me because it respected both the animals' intelligence and their essential nature. Braun understood that cats are naturally curious, observant, and drawn to things that are out of place. She simply channeled those authentic traits into mystery-solving gold.
I wanted to capture that same authenticity with Rochester, but through distinctly canine behaviors. Dogs experience the world primarily through scent, so Rochester's nose becomes his greatest detective tool. When he finds a piece of plastic near a murder victim, it's not because he's been trained to look for evidence—it's because something about that scent intrigues him. When he paws at a medallion hidden in grass, he's following his natural instinct to investigate interesting smells and textures.
Dogs are also pack animals with strong protective instincts. Rochester's ability to sense when people are threatening or deceptive isn't mystical—it's the same skill domestic dogs have used for thousands of years to protect their families. His body language, his growls, his decision to position himself between Steve and potential danger, all stem from normal canine behavior.
Perhaps most importantly, dogs are empathetic creatures who naturally comfort those in distress. When Rochester seeks out grieving relatives or sits quietly beside frightened witnesses, he's not following some detective protocol—he's doing what golden retrievers do best: providing emotional support to humans who need it.
What Braun taught me is that the most compelling animal characters don't need to be turned into furry humans. They're most powerful when they remain true to their species while their human partners learn to "read" their natural behaviors. Qwilleran became a better detective by understanding how cats think. Similarly, Steve becomes more observant by paying attention to what Rochester's nose tells him, where Rochester's protective instincts kick in, and which people Rochester trusts or distrusts.
The magic isn't in giving animals human abilities—it's in recognizing that animals already possess remarkable skills that can complement human investigation. They notice different things, process information differently, and respond to situations in ways that can reveal truths we might miss.
Braun showed us that cats could be perfect mystery companions without losing their essential "catness." I hope Rochester proves that dogs can do the same while remaining authentically, joyfully canine.
Sometimes the best clues come not from what we think, but from what we instinctively know—and animals are the masters of instinct.
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