The Cat Who Brought Down the House (2003)

I didn't care for this story as much as others. I could be that I had already read it years before and that's why I kept having the nagging feeling that I knew what would happen! ( )

This was a good book, however I did not like it as much as I thought I would. If you like "cozy" mysteries this is a book I can recommend reading. ( )

Koko is once again on the case!

Thelma Thackeray is returning to her hometown, Pickax, after living in glamourous Hollywood for 55 years. One of a set of twins, offspring of Milo Thackeray the potato king. She is coming back to live the end of her life where she grew up. She has bought one of the select old homes on Pleasant Street and has plans for the old Opera House building. Life seems good.

Thelma is a little more splashy than the locals, wearing unusual hats, the owner of 5 African Grey parrots and wearing fine but colourful clothes. But she is delighted to be back.

Her twin brother, Thurston, had become the local veterinarian but had since sold his practice and retired. The thing is he had died in a hiking 'accident' a year or so ago. He left a son, Dick, who was going to help his Auntie Thelma with her project.

While Qwill is learning the history and getting to know Thelma and the people with her, he keeps getting the feeling that there is something else going on. Koko seems to know it too and keeps trying to give Qwill clues.

Like others in this series, I enjoy the fast read and the characters. Koko and Yum Yum are always great to read about, and learning more about some of the citizens of Pickax is interesting. ( )

I don't think anyone reads the recent Lilian Jackson Braun "Cat Who" books for the gripping mystery or suspense. Long time fans of the earlier books might read them simply to check in with characters so well written that they feel like friends and neighbours. That's why I recently acquired this book and spent a lovely day outside reading it. It felt a bit like a holiday, reading up on what everyone in Moose County is doing and hearing about the latest exploits of Koko and Yum-Yum. I've never been a big fan of Quill's significant other, Polly, but even so, it was a nice trip "400 miles north of everywhere". ( )

I used to love Cat Who books. They were never very good mysteries, but I liked the characters. Sadly, they became worse over time and this book is a pointless shambles. The publishers should be ashamed to put this out. If you want to try a Cat Who, pick one of the first ten she wrote. ( )