Probable Claws by Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown

Started: 7/8/18
Finished: 8/2/18
Year: 2018
Pages: 319
Genre: Mystery
Grade: B-
Reason for reading: review for LibraryThing.com
Blurb (from book jacket): "With the New Year just around the corner, winter has transformed the cozy Blue Ridge Mountain community of Crozet, Virginia, into a living snow globe. It's the perfect setting for Mary Minor 'Harry' Haristeen to build a new work shed designed by her dear friend, local architect Gary Gardner. But the natural serenity is shattered when out of the blue, right in front of Harry and Deputy Cynthia Cooper, and in broad daylight, Gary is shot to death by a masked motorcyclist.
"Outraged by the brazen murder, Harry begins to burrow into her fiend's past-and unearths a pattern of destructive greed reaching gar back into Virginia's post-Revolutionary history When Harry finds incriminating evidence, the killer strikes again.
"Heedless of her own safety, Harry follows a trail of clues to a construction site in Richmond, where the discovery of mysterious remains has recently haltered work. Aided as always by her loyal, if opinionated, companions, crime-solving cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and Tee Tucker the Corgi, Harry hunts for a link between the decades-old dead, the recently violently deceased-and ancient secrets that underlie everything. And while other deaths are narrowly averted in a flurry of fur, the killer remains at large-ever more desperate and dangerous. the deep-rooted legacy of corruption that's been exposed can never be buried again. But if Harry keeps pursuing the terrible truth, she may be digging her own grave.
Opinion: I usually enjoy Brown's books that involve the cats and dogs. This one I'm on the fence about because within the present day story, there is a back story that never seems to fit. The antics of Mrs. Murphy, Pewter and Tucker are great like always and they continue to play an important part of the story. The present day mystery is a decent one but the ending seemed rushed and out of character for Harry. If you have been a fan of Brown's other books in this series, I would pick up a copy of this but be forewarned that I did not think that it was as good as some previous ones in the series.