The main character, Charlie, is in a bad place in her life. Her boyfriend has taken off with his personal trainer and her London flat has been badly damaged in a gas leak explosion. She is in no mood to celebrate Christmas and is having a hard time even being nice to her cousin Jez, who has scooped her out of the hospital and transported her to Devon and Cozy Canine Cottages, Jez's dog sitting service. After a few days there, Jez gets an opportunity to go meet her internet dating interest and she convinces Charlie to take over canine care while she travels.
Charlie's is a fish out of water story. She's a city girl in the country, a computer worker confronted with lots of biological processes, a determined grinch in the holiday season, and a disliker of dogs running a kennel. Unlike Ebenezer Scrooge, she does not encounter ghosts. Instead, she has a collection of mutts with special needs and neighbours she wants to figure out. As she tells one of her London friends, dogs mostly eat, sleep, and poop. What's to be interested in? She is reluctantly attracted to the equally cranky vet, Cal. Both of them have brutally blunt communication styles, so they manage to offend each other every time they meet. Instead of a meet-cute, they have a meet-crank.
Now, I have some sympathy for Charlie, being relatively unexcited about Christmas and having zero desire to live with a dog. (I'm a former rabbit owner, they're my critter.) But you can't live with animals and remain indifferent to them (unless you're a monster) so Charlie's destiny is clear. She may still be a bit squeamish about administering suppositories to an elderly, constipated dog, but at least she has come to feel sympathy for him.
Charlie could just maintain the status quo, but she takes on an enormous deaf Great Dane and a valuable show dog in addition to the regular denizens of the kennel. Then the heating in the dogs' quarters goes out just before Christmas when it's impossible to get a repairman. All the various dogs join Charlie in the house. Plus, she must also deal with the handsome owner of the Great Dane and try not to ruin her chances with the handsome vet.
Lots of amusing situations, as Charlie figures things out. The ending is predictable because, hey, this is a romance. You know where things are going to end up but doggie adventures provide plenty of entertainment while we take the trip.
No comments:
Post a Comment