Book 91, 2020

A Night's Tail by Sofie Kelly

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



Yesterday evening, I finished reading A Night's Tail, which is the 11th book in author Sofie Kelly's "Magical Cats" mystery series. The main characters are Kathleen Paulson, librarian, and her two cats, Owen and Hercules.

Kathleen is delighted that her brother, Ethan, is spending some time in Mayville Heights, along with the members of his band, the Flaming Gerbils. Kathleen is busy spending time with Ethan, working at the library, going to her tai chi classes, making time for boyfriend Marcus, and helping to organize a quilt show at the library. The last thing she needs is another murder on her plate, but that's just what happens when an abrasive businessman, whom one of Ethan's friends had an altercation with, is found dead in a meeting room of the hotel where he was staying. Ethan knows Derek wouldn't have killed anyone, and he asks Kathleen to prove Derek's innocence. Kathleen would rather stay out of it and let Marcus and the rest of the police force handle the case; however, she can't help but be curious. After all, Lewis Wallace had a lot of enemies, and it seems there's no shortage of suspects.

Meanwhile, Kathleen is wavering over whether to tell Marcus that not only do her cats have special abilities, but so does his cat, Micah. Kathleen has seen Micah disappear, a talent she shares with Owen. It's not so surprising, considering all three cats came from the feral population at Wisteria Hill. Kathleen knows she needs to come clean, but there never seems to be a good opportunity to do so.

It's going to take all of her skills at research, along with some help from Hercules and Owen, to find out who killed Wallace.

Very good book. Lots going on, and just when I was certain I knew "whodunnit"...( MAJOR Spoiler Alert!!! )

Favorite lines:
♦ "Why am I explaining myself to a cat?"
♦ "My living room has been invaded by ginormous hockey players who can somehow fly down the ice at lightning speed and swat a little piece of frozen rubber into a net but can't walk across the floor without bumping into something."
♦ "I had to deal with a cookie emergency," I said. // "As in we don't have any?"

Excellent characterizations, well-crafted plot, and a great surprise ending. Five stars!