Yellow Dog Party: Yellow Dog Party: A Thomas Black Mystery

"Yellow Dog Party" is the sixth Thomas Black mystery by Earl Emerson. Floyd Boyd, Jimmy Canfield, Denny McCallum, and Rex Ronquist hold an annual beer bash and party in honor of Canfield's yellow dog who was killed by a Ritz Cracker truck. They call it the Yellow Dog Party. These 4 friends who are successful businessmen ask PI Thomas Black to find 4 women with whom they want to have "dream dates." When Black finds the first woman, she is in a coma in an Oregon hospital. As he and friend Kathy Birchfield are leaving the hospital, they are abducted by 3 masked men. Kathy is able to run, but Thomas is assaulted and hung from a tree. Luckily for him, the branch snaps and he is spared. He begins to hunt down these 3 men and find out why they wanted to kill him. As he searches for the other 3 women, it becomes clear that one of the 4 men has an ulterior motive. Then Denny McCallum is found murdered in a hotel room. This novel also deals with the relationship of Thomas Black and Kathy Birchfield. Kathy announces that she is engaged to her boyfriend, Philip. With the possibility of losing her, Thomas finally tells her that he loves her and they kiss. The next books will have to deal with this situation. "Yellow Dog Party" is one of the best of the Thomas Black novels and is highly recommended.

I have read all of the Earl Emerson books. The Yellow DogParty is by far the best. The plot is extremely strong and the depth at which the writing goes is endless. Check this book out.