Publication Date: 08/05/2014
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Obsidian Mystery
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Pages: 304
ISBN-10: 0451415426
ISBN-13: 978-0451415424
(Received for an honest review from Obsidian Mystery)
Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Indiebound
Leann Sweeney on the WEB: website, blog, twitter, facebook, goodreads
Books in the series:
Cats In Trouble
1. The Cat, the Quilt and the Corpse
2. The Cat, the Professor and the Poison
3. The Cat, the Lady and the Liar
4. The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon
5. The Cat, the Mill and the Murder
6. The Cat, the Vagabond and the Victim
Coverart: Click the Image for a larger, clearer view of the covers in this series.
Excerpt from, The Cat, the Vagabond and the Victim, courtesy of Amazon's Look Inside feature
Synopsis:
Heir of the cat...
When Clyde the cat travels two hundred miles back home only to find his former owner dead, the story makes national news. While everyone seems eager to tell Clyde’s incredible tale, someone needs to step up to care for him. Because the media attention is creating chaos at the local shelter, cat quilter Jillian Hart agrees to foster the loyal orange tabby, hoping his location is kept secret.
But while the media circus around Clyde continues, Jillian learns the real story behind his owner’s death—he was murdered. Why would an eldery man already dying from a serious illness become a murder victim? As the local police search for an answer, Clyde makes another escape. Jillian is drawn into the case when she finds Clyde has returned to his home again—and he’s found another body. When the motive behind these murders is finally revealed, Jillian understands Clyde is in danger of becoming the next victim, and she must help find the killer before the claws really come out.…
Thoughts:
Mystery lovers and cat enthusiasts a like will fall in love with Leann Sweeney's latest Cats in Trouble book, The Cat, The Vagabond and the Victim. Bodies abound, as readers are introduced to a cat that likes to travel and a family that likes to fight. Sweeney's brand of quirky characters and felines sets this one apart and gives readers a one of a kind reading experience!
What I liked:
Leann Sweeney must own cats. There is no other way she could get the interactions between the cats in her Cats in Trouble series, and her human characters down so perfectly. I always enjoy seeing how she is going to use a cat in each of her books in the series. In The Cat, The Vagabond and the Victim, readers meet, Clyde, a lovable feline that wants nothing more than to return to his owner, Mr. Jeffers. Unfortunately, Mr. Jeffers is over 200 miles away and dead. Clyde was certainly the star of the show. He reminded of those animals you see on TV that somehow manage to find their way home despite desperate circumstances. It was a great idea and it really worked in this book. Readers can't help but love Clyde and wonder exactly how he factors into the murders.
Another of Sweeney's many writing talents, is her ability to write her human characters to be just as endearing has her feline characters. The more I learn about Jillian, the more I like her. She is quick when it comes to figuring things out and following the clues that she has been given. She has a presence about her that makes her believable. I like her process, as well. Most cozy heroines go about solving their mysteries in a similar manner in each book. Not, Jillian! She is varied and full of surprises.
While the mystery is obviously the reason most readers start reading a cozy mystery, there is a lot more going on in most of them. I was glad to see that Jillian and Tom's relationship is still going strong and that we not only get to meet new characters in this book, but we still get to keep up with the other characters from previous stories. I don't need to know their life story in each book, but a nod now and then makes the series seem more cohesive and enjoyable to read.
What I didn't like:
I didn't like it that I couldn't figure this one out! LOL... It was carefully plotted and Sweeney knew exactly what she was doing. I thought I was following all along, but the surprise at the end was completely opposite of what I thought was going to happen. "Foiled, again!"
Bottom Line:
This is a great mystery for both cozy and cat fans. Clyde is lovable and very loyal. The suspects and family of Mr. Jeffers were a lot of fun to read about and Jillian's life continues to be just as interesting as each mystery Sweeney writes about her. Engaging characters, awesome feline interaction and a well thought out mystery, make this one a must read!
The Cat, The Vagabond and The Victim is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.
I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag!
About the Author:
Giveaway Details:
The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of The Cat, the Vagabond and the Victim by Leann Sweeney.
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~ The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight EST, September 3rd.
1. Please leave a comment about cool cat names you've used or heard.
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34 comments:
my mother's cat: rambo
Thanks SO much for this awesome review! It is so nice when a reader/reviewer understands the writer this well! Awesome Debbie--and well written!
Can't wait to read it!
We had a cat named Flea. Won't do that again since he got a bad case of them!
One of our cats is named Macchiato, because it's my son's favorite drink and the other one is named Kitty Slut, that's because she's only friendly when she wants food. That's the name she came with and we kept it but call her Kitty.
scarletbegonia5858@gmail.com
The coolest cat name I know is "Joey," because it belongs to the cat who has held my heart for the past 15 years!
skkorman AT bellsouth DOT net
I adopted a shelter cat named Malachi---thought it was a real different name and kept it.
suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com
I adopted a shelter cat named Malachi---thought it was a real different name and kept it.
suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com
My son's cat is named "M". That's pretty unusual.
In the past I had cats named Marshmallow (Marshie for short), Sheba, Spooky, Fluffy, and Pumpkin. My current cats are named Muffin, Wiggles, Suzie (a.k.a. Suzie Q), Brownie, and Tippy (a tabby and the tip of her tail is white).
Great question!
We had a cat named Sweet Pea. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com
I like the name Ozzy for a cat. My cats names are Chester and Bailey.
my email address is Kemokittyis1@yahoo.com I am sorry I did not include it in my previous comment.
many years ago, I knew someone who named her cat, Amadeus.....this was during the craze for Mozart........
My friend had a cat named Castillion. He was tuxedo cat.
My uncle had a cat named Bootsie.
dotkel50 at comcast dot net
i call my boyfriend Ass Face (yeah we have very weird pet names for each other) and he found a little gray kitten at the fire station and brought it home. i decided to call it Ash Face.
kmichellec87(at)yahoo(dot)com
Great interview; looking forward to reading this latest mystery and getting to know the traveling cat! It isn't as much the names we've had for our cats sometimes the nicknames, too...Puss and Vinegar, Muffin Man, Ker-Plops, Button Nose....the way we see them after they realized they were here to stay. Jeaniedannheim (at) ymail (dot) com
I named my little dwarf cat bones. She has a deformity in her chest where a bone pokes out. I also have 2 other cats. There names are spongebob and gary. My daughter is a fan of spongebob. Candace7399@aol.com
I just adopted 4 kittens, Inky, Smokie, Dusty and Sparky.
One of our many cats we had when the kids were growing up was Tony. I never did tell anyone who I named him after... <3
Our cat is named MadeLion,but we call her Maddie. Just like kids, we call her by her full name only when she is in trouble!
My favorite cat names are Cupcake and Cookie.....
afarage(at)earthlink.net
We haven't had too many cats around here, but the current one is a beautiful multi colored male cat named Jasper.
Thanks for stopping by Leann! I really enjoyed the book.
Mr. Jones was the neighbor's cat growing up. He had been a stray. Thanks!
My cat named Ryder, goes with our dog Harley. So we have Harley Ryder!
Mizu and Pubba.
haven't heard any cool ones
I love cozies with cats in them! When I name my cats I take it very seriously, usually, currently we have an orange tabby named Prince Harry because he's a redhead and he runs around naked! But we also have a flame point Sameer who was scared of everything when we got him so I found the name Chula, a Thai warrior (back from Siam times), and the cat has become very brave and defends himself. The other cool part about the name Chula is that it means pretty in Spanish and he is one very pretty kitty.
I am a subscriber.
My husband named our Maine Coon cat Bugsy because he said he had some "bugs in his hardware!" He is pretty crazy!
Digicats {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net
I had a cat named Penny Lane.
I have a cat named Loxley but one of my husband's friends always calls him Leonitus.
I like to think I have used interesting cat names over the years.
We had Deja and Vu, two long haired tabbies.
My present barn cats are named Merlin and Lance and Robin and Sparrow
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