[Raine Stockton Dog Mystery 09] • Home of the Brave

The Fourth of July in the Smoky Mountain community of Hanover County, North Carolina means parades, picnics and fireworks. For dog trainer Raine Stockton and her high-spirited golden retriever Cisco it also means a chance to show off their repertoire of tracking, agility and obedience skills at Camp Bowser Wowser, a weekend retreat for dogs and kids less than an hour from home. But there's a new dog in town, and Raine and Cisco find themselves unexpectedly upstaged by a flashy K-9 addition to the sheriff's department. Belgian Malinois Nike and her handler, Jolene, are part of a new government-funded program for law-enforcement agencies, and though Raine admires Nike's talent almost as much as she resents Jolene's arrogance, she can't help wondering why the Department of Homeland Security would send such an expensive gift to their sleepy little mountain community. Sheriff Buck Lawson has his hands full with an upcoming election, a bizarre murder, and a special appearance by a celebrity politician at the Fourth of July parade, and he is not about to look a gift horse-or dog-in the mouth. But when things go horribly wrong at Camp Bowser Wowser, the scattered puzzle pieces begin to form a terrifying picture. In a desperate battle against an enemy whose face they can't even see, Raine, Jolene, Cisco, Nike and Buck must work together and reach for depths of courage they never knew they had to defend their way of life, and save the lives of those they love.