The Cat Who Turned On and Off
In December the weather declared war.
I believe this is the third mystery in the Cat Who series by Lilian Jackson Braun. Unfortunately, my library did not have the second book in the series. So it is still a mystery to me how Jim Qwilleran came to have a second Siamese cat. (Koko and Jim became good friends in the first novel, The Cat Who Could Read Backwards. The second cat is named Yum Yum. As you'd expect, both cats have PERSONALITY.)
Jim Qwilleran, our human hero, is in search of a heartfelt story with the potential to win a contest at the paper. It's Christmas time, and, well, his cats have gourmet taste in food. And at the start he's living in a hotel room. So does he need the extra money? Of course he does! So he has a moment of inspiration. Why not do a series of articles about Junktown? This neighborhood has become a bit shabby looking in recent years, though to hear things from the residents' point of view, it's because they can't get treated fairly. They would rebuild and repair--if they were allowed to. (But that's a whole other story.) So this district has more than its fair share of antique stores. And so even though Jim Qwilleran isn't especially fond of antiques, he's going to do everything it takes to win this prize. Visiting these stores, talking with their owners, attending their auctions, it's not quite enough. He decides to live there, to see this community from an insider perspective. And this leads him into yet another mystery! For he discovers that the previous tenant of his new apartment was murdered in his antique shop. So he's curious and then some!
I liked this mystery. I am just loving the Cat Who series. I know it's only the second novel I've read in the series, but, well, it feels like love to me!
© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Category Article 1968, adult fiction, adult mystery, Cat Who Mysteries, library book, Lilian Jackson Braun
