The Spotted Dog, by Kerry Greenwood

Who wouldn’t want to live in Insula, a delightful apartment building in Melbourne’s CBD with a roof garden and an array of intriguing inhabitants? Intrepid baker and sometime detective Corinna Chapman wouldn’t move anywhere else despite, or perhaps because of, the mysteries it seems to attract. This seventh Corinna tale involves a former soldier suffering PTSD whose dog has been napped; several strange break-ins at Insula; and the possible involvement in both of violent Armenian or Azeri criminal gangs. Throw in a wronged and damaged lass in a wheelchair, a young religious fanatic and a troop of actors and there is plenty to occupy Corinna and her lover Daniel. The usual ingredients of delicious food, generous gin & tonics and a plethora of cats add value to the twists and turns of the story. Good fun fare.