Customer Reviews

Cat Under Fire (Joe Grey)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The concept of cats who can think and talk like people is a bit frightening. I'm not sure I want to think about what my five would have to say if they could! Apparently this ability comes from some sort of Celtic/Egyptian/Italian folklore/mythological roots. Sometimes however, Joe or Dulcie will say or think something that seems just a bit beyond belief for a cat even with this super ability. And more than once they demonstrated physical abilities that seemed unlikely even allowing for their being able to conceive of doing them. But this may be nit picking. After you get used to the idea, this is a good mystery. I have to admit I fell for a couple of red herrings. Dulcie is certain that the young man in jail for murder is innocent and she gets Joe Grey involved in a big way. Along the way they encounter all sorts of strange characters and a very nasty dog. Their escapades make for an enjoyable reading experience (just be sure to check your ideas about what cats can and can't do at the door). All things considered, if I had to choose, I think I would stay with Midnight Louie, Carol Nelson Douglas' street wise cat in Las Vegas. I prefer my cats a little more cat like and a little less people like. Fortunately I don't have to choose, I can have BOTH! Enjoy Murphy's Joe Grey and Dulcie then go check out Midnight Louie as well, you won't be disappointed.

I throughly enjoyed reading this as will many other lovers of the felines and crime solving genre. The characters are real and very lovable, and in all her books the author also creates intriguing little 'sub plots' which will pull you in if the main one does not. Humor mixed with tenderness--if you can handle that combination, this book is for you.

When a prominent artist is burned to death in her own studio, the two cat detectives can't believe it to be an accident. They set out to find out exactly what happened and like always they are into everything and keeping their house mates worried about them and Captain Harper off balance because he thinks the cats are involved in his anonymous tips. He doesn't want to admit, even to himself, that he believes simple little cats could do these unusual things. Joe and Dulcie are always kitty on the spot when something happens and to find clues to crimes. This is a good, interesting book. The author deserves credit for coming up with such an unusual series of stories.

I was out looking for just anything to read, and found this series to be the most enjoyable. I love they way she describes the cat's mannerism.

Joe Grey's markings make him always seem to be scowling, and in this second volume of his adventures, the suddenly-sentient tomcat may have some reason to be doing so. His feline girlfriend Dulcie has decided that solving one murder wasn't enough: she wants to clear a man accused of another. Sitting on the sill of a jail-cell window, she has listened as Rob Lake, on trial for the murder of a well-loved local artist, pours out his heart to her, and she's convinced he's innocent. What's more, she's become possessed with the desire to figure out why humans kill wantonly. And she's been having strange dreams featuring the victim's missing white cat, Binky. In vain Joe argues that human motivations aren't their business, and that their last "case" wasn't a matter of choice; they were trying to protect themselves against the sinister Welshman who knew their secret and threatened their lives. Dulcie insists that a political appointee in the Molena Point PD has done a sloppy investigation and that Binky is appearing to her for a reason, trying to tell her something. And because she's his friend, the only other talking cat he knows about, Joe is drawn into the search for truth too. As the two felines discover the victim's hidden diary, manipulate an elderly neighbor into providing the police with vital information, help foil a mass burglary scheme, and discover the clues that point to the motive and identity of the murderer and the location of the dead woman's purloined paintings (thought destroyed in the fire that helped kill her), they settle more and more into the role of unofficial police auxiliaries. And they learn, too, that their abilities aren't the only strange but proveable aspect of life in Molena Point. Murphy maintains the momentum of Cat on the Edge: A Joe Grey Mystery and introduces an important new character, Charleston "Charlie" Getz, niece of Clyde Damen's friend Wilma Getz. For those who love cats and realize that the proverbial feline curiosity would make a sentient one a natural crime-solver, this book is not to be missed.

I'm never disappointed in Shirley Rousseau Murphy's cat mystery books! That's more than I can say for a lot of others.

I probably shouldn't give this book a number rating because I was not aware when I tried to start this series that it was a fantasy mystery series. Anyway, not my cup of tea at all. People turning into cats, and cats talking and making telephone calls! Sorry, I can't say anything more about this book, but I will not continue the series.