Virginia Lanier gets the fourth adventure of her heroine, Jo Beth Sidden, off to a brisk start, and keeps up the pace with her canine trackers all the way to a thrilling conclusion in the murky interior of the Okefenokee Swamp. Jo Beth is a steel magnolia who talks as tough as she is, packs a gun, and saves her softest feelings for man's best friends. In Blind Bloodhound Justice she solves a 30-year-old crime in less time than it takes to train a posse of law enforcement officers in the fine points of handling search and rescue dogs. That process alone is worth the read, but Lanier's fans have a lot more in store for them: another confrontation with her crazed, abusive ex-husband Bubba, a continuation of her on-again off-again romance with handsome sheriff Hank Cribbs, and the miraculous recovery of a blind-from-birth bloodhound who has a special place in Jo Beth's heart. Lanier's first mystery, Death in Bloodhound Red, was published when she was 63 years old, and it won a passel of awards, including the Agatha, Macavity, and Anthony. A southern Georgia resident, she writes so knowledgeably about the Okefenokee that the reader can feel the pull of the quicksand and the sting of the chiggers, and while her heroine is a bit too sharp-tongued and belligerent to be particularly lovable, her canine characters are totally captivating. --Jane Adams


From Publishers Weekly
Lanier's fourth spine-tingling foray into Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp with dog trainer Jo Beth Sidden and her crew lives up to the promise of her debut, Death in Bloodhound Red (1995). As part of his medical parole, convicted slayer Samuel Debbs has to report to Sheriff Hank Cribbs. Debbs says he didn't commit the crime for which he received a life sentenceAa double murder during a kidnapping 30 years ago. Not willing to reopen the case but curious about the crime, Hank taps Jo Beth's avid curiosity, tempting her to look into the case. As she balances her job as a trainer and tracker (with one particularly harrowing search in the swamp for a mother and baby), Jo Beth reads the files on the case. She learns that two baby girls were snatched from a nursemaid, and that one of babies and the nanny were killed. Debbs was arrested and convicted; later, when the wealthy father of the surviving girl died, she became ward of the slain child's dad. He and the now grown woman are returning to Georgia. Jo Beth visits Debbs, who shakes her conviction in his guilt. Like the bloodhounds she trains, Jo Beth tracks down everyone involved in the case and finally locates the truth. Lanier shows an increasing mastery of plot and pacing to complement the established sass-appeal of the endearingly ornery Jo Beth. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From School Library Journal
YA-Jo Beth Sidden gathers her well-trained employees, her knowledge of the natural environments of Georgia, and, of course, her bloodhounds as she searches for the children of two different kidnapping events. Although both crimes happened locally and involved murder, they occurred 30 years apart. Jo Beth ultimately finds the answers, but not without several adrenaline-pumping moments. Lanier weaves the dual plots together, switching attention from one incident to the other and then back again, all the while layering these events with what is currently happening in Jo Beth's life as well as slipping in some clues about what will become the second surprise ending. The author conjures up both the beauty and dangers of the land. Completing the small-town setting, she includes gossipy details as well as family relationships that act as the community's dependable code for social, financial, and status levels. A colorful procession of secondary characters includes feisty older female do-gooders, the town drunk, an ex-con, some rednecks, Jo Beth's deadly ex-husband, and a resident lunatic. Lanier makes them all memorable in their human mix of good and evil. Exciting and often surprising, this deftly crafted installment in the Jo Beth mysteries leaves readers hoping for more.Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VACopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Series sleuth Jo Beth Sidden (The House on Bloodhound Lane, HarperCollins, 1996) uses her trained bloodhounds for help in solving a 40-year-old double murder. A rural Georgia atmosphere and down-to-earth prose make for good reading. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


New York Times Book Review
"Virginia Lanier's Southern mysteries have one irresistibly appealing ingredient: dogs...Jo Beth deserves a good scratch behind the ears for running a crackerjack occupation."


From AudioFile
Part of a series, BLIND BLOODHOUND JUSTICE features bloodhound breeder and trainer Jo Beth Sidden, a Southern gal who solves mysteries on the side. This lightweight novel may teach you more about bloodhounds than you really want to know. Moreover, you may not find the thirty-year-old murder Jo Beth tries to solve all that compelling. Reader Kate Forbes is more earnest than competent, making Jo Beth's Dixie accent cloying. She also fails to distinguish consistently among a politically correct crew of other characters. On balance, some listeners might find this audiobook a modest amusement. T.H. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Kirkus Reviews
Finally, an authentic mystery for Jo Beth Siddenthough one as remote as ever from her bloodhound-raising skills (A Brace of Bloodhounds, 1997, etc.). This time, shes to check out the claims to innocence of Samuel Debbs, who was convicted 30 years ago for kidnapping two babies and murdering one of them (and their nursemaid to boot) but whos now been freed on a medical parole so he can die at home. Most of the witnesses to the crime are long dead, of course, and Jo Beth's in no hurry to get around to the others, especially when there's her ex-husband Bubba, still as homicidally frisky as ever, to worry about, and a brand-new kidnaping that'll take her and one of her beloved hounds into Okefenokee Swamp for a heartstopping chase. The new kidnaping doesn't have anything to do with the rest of the story, but it utterly outclasses the lackadaisical Q&A it interrupts, especially since the solution to the ancient mystery is cribbed from an even more ancient American classic. Readers who aren't partial to dogs will appreciate the way Lanier's canines, the real detectives here, actually earn the regard that lesser authors' dogs are paid; others may wish that Lanier could either integrate her gripping tracking sequences into a more suspenseful plot or dispense with detection altogether and commit herself to a full-dress chase novel. Other bonuses for readers who stay the course: Jo Beth's unsentimental toughness and her endless network of down-home Georgians. Not everybody will consider this last plus a plus. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


)Times-Union (Jacksonville, FL)
"An action-packed, sometimes humorous, always entertaining read...An intriguing plot, colorful characters and vivid descriptions of small-town life bordered by an unforgiving swamp, places Lanier at the top of the list of storytellers in the mystery genre."


Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Jo Beth and her dogs are barking up the right tree. ..Readers...will be amply satisfied."


Amazon.com
"Her canine characters are totally captivating."

FROM THE PUBLISHER

This isn't the first time that Jo Beth Sidden's life has gone to the dogs. She is a gutsy Georgia peach who trains and sells bloodhounds. She also suits up herself and heads into the dankest swamps and redneck junctions of the rural South looking for stashed drugs, missing children, and convicts on the run. But her latest case has a trail so cold there isn't a scent for her trusty hounds to trace. The crime is thirty years old. Two baby girls were kidnapped and their nanny murdered. The estate owner's daughter was discovered safe in a nearby church. The other, the gardener's child, was never found. The man convicted of the two crimes was a vagrant who stuck to his plea of innocence. Now, he's been released from prison for health reasons after serving three decades of a life sentence. The local sheriff is concerned about the effect of the convict's return on the community. So he turns to his best friend, Jo Beth, to dig out the long-buried secrets of this mystery.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Lanier's fourth spine-tingling foray into Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp with dog trainer Jo Beth Sidden and her crew lives up to the promise of her debut, "Death in Bloodhound Red" (1995). As part of his medical parole, convicted slayer Samuel Debbs has to report to Sheriff Hank Cribbs. Debbs says he didn't commit the crime for which he received a life sentence, a double murder during a kidnapping 30 years ago. Not willing to reopen the case but curious about the crime, Hank taps Jo Beth's avid curiosity, tempting her to look into the case. As she balances her job as a trainer and tracker (with one particularly harrowing search in the swamp for a mother and baby), Jo Beth reads the files on the case. She learns that two baby girls were snatched from a nursemaid, and that one of babies and the nanny were killed. Debbs was arrested and convicted; later, when the wealthy father of the surviving girl died, she became ward of the slain child's dad. He and the now grown woman are returning to Georgia. Jo Beth visits Debbs, who shakes her conviction in his guilt. Like the bloodhounds she trains, Jo Beth tracks down everyone involved in the case and finally locates the truth. Lanier shows an increasing mastery of plot and pacing to complement the established sass-appeal of the endearingly ornery Jo Beth.

Library Journal

Series sleuth Jo Beth Sidden ("The House on Bloodhound Lane", HarperCollins, 1996) uses her trained bloodhounds for help in solving a 40-year-old double murder. A rural Georgia atmosphere and down-to-earth prose make for good reading.

AudioFile

Part of a series, BLIND BLOODHOUND JUSTICE features bloodhound breeder and trainer Jo Beth Sidden, a Southern gal who solves mysteries on the side. This lightweight novel may teach you more about bloodhounds than you really want to know. Moreover, you may not find the thirty-year-old murder Jo Beth tries to solve all that compelling. Reader Kate Forbes is more earnest than competent, making Jo Beth's Dixie accent cloying. She also fails to distinguish consistently among a politically correct crew of other characters. On balance, some listeners might find this audiobook a modest amusement. T.H. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

Finally, an authentic mystery for Jo Beth Sidden, though one as remote as ever from her bloodhound-raising skills ("A Brace of Bloodhounds", 1997, etc.). This time, she's to check out the claims to innocence of Samuel Debbs, who was convicted 30 years ago for kidnapping two babies and murdering one of them (and their nursemaid to boot) but who's now been freed on a medical parole so he can die at home. Most of the witnesses to the crime are long dead, of course, and Jo Beth's in no hurry to get around to the others, especially when there's her ex-husband Bubba, still as homicidally frisky as ever, to worry about, and a brand-new kidnaping that'll take her and one of her beloved hounds into Okefenokee Swamp for a heartstopping chase. The new kidnaping doesn't have anything to do with the rest of the story, but it utterly outclasses the lackadaisical Q&A it interrupts, especially since the solution to the ancient mystery is cribbed from an even more ancient American classic. Readers who aren't partial to dogs will appreciate the way Lanier's canines, the real detectives here, actually earn the regard that lesser authors' dogs are paid; others may wish that Lanier could either integrate her gripping tracking sequences into a more suspenseful plot or dispense with detection altogether and commit herself to a full-dress chase novel. Other bonuses for readers who stay the course: Jo Beth's unsentimental toughness and her endless network of down-home Georgians. Not everybody will consider this last plus a plus.