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The Vampire and the Case of the Cursed Canine by Heather G. Harris, Jilleen Dolbeare Narrator: Alyse Gibbs
Series: The Portlock Paranormal Detective #4
Published by Hellhound Press Limited on July 5, 2024
Genres: Mystery, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Length: 7 hours and 58 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Library
Purchase Links: Amazon*Libro*Kobo*Chirp*B&N
Goodreads
Spells, hexes and curses.
Curses are falling on this town like rain in London. Just when I think I’ve found a link between the hexed victims, someone else shows up jinxed too. It feels like the devil is playing darts with my paranormal town, and if the dart lands on you, you get whammied with a curse.
Frankly, I haven’t got a clue how to find the perpetrator. Realistically, it probably isn’t Beelzebub. My sole lead is pointing me at the traveling black market that has just landed in Portlock. That’s all fine and dandy — if I can find out where it is. Weirdly, no one is willing to talk to the cops about the highly-illegal-market. I’m persona non grata, which I’m kind of used to, being a slightly-less-than-undead vampire.
On top of everything, my overbearing British mother has come to visit me in Alaska. Stuck in my shoebox house together, we might actually have to deal with some of our issues. Ugh, what fresh circle of hell is this? Thank goodness I have Connor MacKenzie, vampire leader and sexy lumberjack, to run to when the going gets tough.
I’m juggling things — badly — when I discover my dog is cursed too. The question is, what would I do to save my hound? The answer: anything and everything. The world can burn for all I care, as long as I can save my pup.
Dive into this fast-paced urban fantasy series if you love mystery, humour, found family and a slow-burn romance.
Also in this series: The Vampire and the Case of Her Dastardly Death, The Vampire and the Case of the Wayward Werewolf, The Vampire and the Case of the Secretive Siren, The Vampire and the Case of the Baleful Banshee
The Vampire and the Case of the Cursed Canine is book four in The Portlock Paranormal Detective series by Heather G. Harris & Jilleen Dolbeare and narrated by Alyse Gibbs.
Each book gives us a new case and mystery to solve.
The Vampire and the Case of the Cursed Canine finally delivers the reveals and answers I’ve been waiting for. I love the character dynamics; every relationship feels real and well-developed.
This installment dives deep into Bunny’s history. While the revelations about her parents add great depth to the plot, they are a lot for her to handle. View Spoiler » It will be interesting to see how she processes this trauma in future books.
Fluffy remains a fantastic companion for Bunny, but I’ve always had a sneaking suspicion there was more to him than meets the eye. This installment finally confirms those theories and reveals his true nature. The plot itself is incredibly fast-paced, and I’m still really impressed by the quality of the audiobook—it’s easily my favorite way to consume this series.
Audio: Alyse Gibbs continues to deliver a masterclass in narration for The Portlock Paranormal Detective series. Her ability to give each character a distinct, recognizable voice is incredible, and her pacing is spot-on—it kept me hooked from start to finish. I highly recommend the audiobooks for anyone looking to fully experience the Portlock atmosphere
Overall, this is a fun and entertaining listen. While the series might not be a ‘top-tier’ masterpiece for me, there’s something addictive about the world and characters that keeps me hitting play on the next installment.
Rated: 3.5 Stars
Was this review helpful? If so, please consider liking it on Goodreads (Angela)!
The Vampire and the Case of the Cursed Canine helps me check off several reading goals this month. It fits the March TBR Tackle prompt for a “blue or green cover” and counts toward the Library Love Challenge as a Hoopla borrow. Additionally, it contributes to my Audiobook Challenge and Beat the Backlist goals, while also satisfying the “Locked Away” prompt.
About Heather G. Harris
Heather is an urban fantasy writer and mum. She was born and raised near Windsor, which gave her the misguided impression that she was close to royalty in some way. She is not, though she once got a letter from the Queen’s lady-in-waiting.
Heather went to university in Liverpool, where she took up skydiving and met her future husband. When she’s not running around after her children, she’s plotting her next book and daydreaming about vampires, dragons and kick-ass heroines.
Heather loves to travel and once spent a month in Thailand. Thai food remains a firm family favourite. It goes without saying that Heather is a book lover. She grew up reading the likes of Brian Jacques and Anne McCaffrey.
About Jilleen Dolbeare
Jilleen Dolbeare is the author of the Shadow Winged Chronicles, an urban fantasy series about a shape-shifting bush pilot in Alaska.
She loves riding horses, warm ocean beaches, and long walks in the mountains, none of which she can do in the Arctic, so she writes.
Her activities are riding her four-wheeler on cold ocean beaches (often frozen or covered with ice), and long walks to and from work when it’s 40 below—in the dark. She does keep her stakes sharp for those vamps that show up during the 67 days of night.
Jilleen lives with her husband and two hungry cats in Barrow, Alaska where she also discovered her love and admiration of the Inupiaq people and their folklore.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2026 Audiobook Challenge
- 2026 Beat the Backlist Challenge
- 2026 COYER Out To Lunch Again
- 2026 Library Love Challenge
- 2026 TBR Tackle Challenge
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