Meet Mason "Mace" Reid and his crime-solving partner Elvira (Vira for short), a golden retriever with extraordinary canine skills. They live near Chicago and assist law enforcement in human remains detection. For mystery writers, finding a dead body is usually not the end of the story; it is only the beginning. THE FINDERS, which kicks off Jeffrey B. Burton’s Mace Reid K-9 series, is certainly a mystery novel in that vein.

Dogs traditionally have been wonderful companions for detectives in mysteries. Since they can't speak, they never steal witty observations from their human partners. They also provide the built-in plot device of walks with their owners, granting the sleuth the opportunity to review investigations and often come to important insights and solutions. Early in THE FINDERS, readers are introduced to Mace Reid, a skilled dog trainer who maintains a team of human-remains detection dogs. Also known as cadaver dogs, they have unique senses of smell allowing them to distinguish among human remains, animal remains and a wide range of other scents that normally might be distracting. They assist law enforcement in all types of death investigations, from man-made and natural disasters to homicides and suicides. Reid’s cadaver dogs share their names with title characters in well-known songs: Elvira, Delta Dawn, Maggie May and a male German Shepard named Sue.

"All the elements are present for a fast-paced mystery, and THE FINDERS shows promise for many future adventures."

Unfortunately, things do not go well on their first assignment. Reid’s team is searching for the remains of Kari Jo Brockman, who was abducted several months previously and believed to be a potential victim of a serial murderer known as the Velvet Choker Killer. The killer gets his name from a black choker placed over strangulation marks of victims. Called to the scene of a search, Vira immediately alerts officers to a body, and they begin the evidence-gathering task. But then she attacks a young man who is apparently near the scene observing the investigation, which causes him massive injuries. Her vicious, unprovoked attack will require that she be put down.

Eliminating one of the main characters in the opening pages of a budding mystery series is not a recommended practice. Reid seeks a reprieve for Vira, and THE FINDERS begins a journey that will bring both into a confrontation with a serial killer portrayed by the media as Everyman. Burton allows readers into the killer’s mind while also keeping his true identity part of the plot.

This maiden mystery is set in the Chicago area, and Burton has done an admirable job of capturing the details and flavor of the Windy City and its surrounding suburbs. Perhaps a little too much time is spent traversing the Cook County highway system, but hopefully subsequent mysteries will focus on notable Chicago landmarks. Burton also has introduced a potential romantic interest for the recently divorced Reid, Kippy Gimm, a Chicago police officer and fellow dog lover. All the elements are present for a fast-paced mystery, and THE FINDERS shows promise for many future adventures.