Book excerpt: "A mongrel dog named Freaky, the corpse of a man with a seemingly endless list of aliases, and a handful of tips from an anonymous woman caller. With these elements hard-nosed Inspector Petra Delicado and her sentimental sidekick, Fermin Garzon, begin an investigation into big-money dog smuggling. Their best leads come from the most unlikely sources: a ruggedly handsome vet; a blond bombshell who trains guard dogs; an eccentric university professor; and a haughty dog groomer. At times, these two world-wise detectives are at a loss, but Delicado and Garzon are not the sort of cops that rely on hunches. They methodically pursue their investigation, drawing the reader into a complex and sordid story in which passions and profits turn men into beasts and animals into victims. Dog Day is set in a Barcelona that few visitors to the city will ever see, a Barcelona that lurks beneath the surface of one of Europe's most dazzling cities. A broken heart, a new monstrosity, and another dead body accompany every step through this demimonde."--BOOK JACKET.