Customer Reviews

The Cat Who Smelled a Rat

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I was astounded when, in reading the covers of Lilian Braun's latest episode in her tales of James Qwilleran that "The Cat Who Smelled a Rat" was Volume 23. I went to her shelf and, sure enough, I had read them all. While they really are mystery stories, I don't really read them for that. Rather, over the history of the series, I have become addicted to life in the far north town of Pickaxe.

I love wandering through the town with Qwilleran, meeting the many quirky characters, sharing in the gossip, reading Qwill's columns over his shoulder and, above all, interpreting the mystic messages of Koko the detective cat. As, I'm quite sure, will any mystery lover who needs a break from the noir fiction that makes up so much of modern mystery writing.

This time Pickaxe is in the throes of an autumn drought, trying to prevent brush fires and waiting impatiently for 'The Big One', the first big snowstorm of winter. When a volunteer fire watcher is murdered at one of Moose County's famous mine shafthouses the mystery begins. Be prepared for an Haiku contest, an elopement, curling and many delicious meals consumed at Pickaxe's seemingly inexhaustable supply of restaurants and inns.

Of course, the real heroes of all Braun's stories are Koko and Yum Yum, Qwill's faithful Siamese sidekicks. Koko, by virtue of superior intelligence and wit, works dilligently to provide Qwilleran with the clues needs to discover the villain and reveal his nefarious scheme. Koko limited to growls and 'Yows' resorts to plant destruction, apple hockey and general chaos in order to keep Qwill on track.

If you've been following this series for as long as I have you will need no encouragement to read this new volume. For those of you who have never travelled to Pickaxe before, prepare for a lot of fun - all 23 volumes are well worth reading!!

This is one of the best books in the series. But it shouldn't be the first one you read. It doesn't give a lot of background information for the first time reader to understand what is going on in the novel. All in all it was one of her best yet. Even with the help of the two cats I had no idea what was going on until the very end. If you are a fan of the series you should definitely buy this book. But if you have never read a "Cat Who" book before this isn't for you. Buy an earlier novel in the series; then buy this one.

Another delightful mystery by Lilian Jackson Braun...Qwilleran is able to solve the mystery with the help of Koko, his Siamese cat. A famous rare bookstore located in Pick Ax unexpectedly burns to the ground and the owner is killed. Although he always joked about it, the owner leaves the bookstore to Qwilleran in his will. Qwilleran is thoroughly surprised and plans to build a memorial to him in the town library. Throughout the story, Qwilleran cannot believe that the fire was an accident. Koko confirms his suspicions by leaving a series of cat-like clues. Koko eventually leads him to the suspect after he smells-out the biggest clue.

My first intro to "The Cat Who..." series was "The Cat Who Saw Stars" and consequently I purchased each book in the series (some hardback, some paperback)and read them in order -- it's the best way to achieve full appreciation of the series and Ms. Lilian Jackson Braun's skills. Upon finishing the latest available installment I've pre-ordered next year's edition with high hopes. I'm noticing, as others have, that the writing of some later titles veers away from the style present in earlier books. So, I was relieved with "The Cat Who Smelled a Rat" because it definitely harks back to the earlier writing style of the series. I'm beginning to suspect Ms. Braun is a bit ahead of most of us, i.e., have any other readers dedicated to the series started noticing the slow progression of Qwilleran's life as if it is an integral subplot? Also, particularly intriguing are this title's references to unknown information from his childhood combined with Qwill's reflections upon his relationship with Polly. I'm going to start over and read the series again, a first for me. Because I suspect Ms. Braun has laid a framework throughout the series regarding Qwill's personal evolution through the years that has gone past even a dedicated reader like myself. Ms. Braun has received accolades for her writing yet I feel she surpasses in skill and talent even the best of compliments she has so far received. This great author is telling LAYERS of stories, weaving a beautiful tapestry of not only Qwill's adventures but of his personal journey through life. In a few of the later books, I felt a sense of isolation from the character which is what I think others felt when wondering if possibly a ghostwriter was involved. Now, I'm not so sure it wasn't intentional. Definitely something is going to occur between Qwill and Polly in the next installment!! Great reads.... Highly recommended series.

I've read and own all the books in this series and one of the things that I love about it is that you are guaranteed a no sex/no blood/no gore/no violence read. I think this is a good thing.

However, there is too much of a good thing. I read this book and kept waiting for it to take off. It felt like that the story meandered and Qwill would just go to the store and find a clue, go to the mailbox and find a clue, go to the bathroom and find a clue. There was no sense, for me, of there being a search or quest for the truth. It was as if the clues and information was falling off a tree at just the right moment.

Also, the character of Polly is really getting on my nerves. The Polly is jealous/Qwill baits her/she gets mad and goes home/they make up later plot device of character development has really gotten old. It seemed formulaic. All this namby pamby fumbling around between Qwill and Polly needs to stop and they needs to move their relationship forward somehow. In one of the earlier books, Polly is threatened by an attacker or has a heart attack and Qwill rushed to her side. At least they were in touch with their feelings and did something about it. If Qwill is dissatisfied with his relationship with Polly then he should change it. This is fiction, after all.

The book just never engaged for me. I found myself wishing for a hurricane or the Big One to come along and stir these people up.

I've just reread "The Cat Who Smelled a Rat." In it, Jim Qwilleran is still in fine mettle. This mystery, No. 23 in the "Cat Who" series, is the last one most fans will enjoy. In this book, Qwill still remembers small details from previous novels. He's still interested in the mysteries around him, and he does some active snooping around. He's still a bit of the Lothario despite himself. And he still has faith in Koko's awesome powers.

Starting with the next book, the mystery gets solved almost by accident. Qwill becomes a parody of himself, and the novels start to get worse and worse. Eventually, the books begin to get facts wrong and characters begin to act, well, out of character or just inexplicably drop out of sight. (The latter must be hard to do in a small town 400 miles north of anywhere.) Whether Lilian Jackson Braun, now approaching 90, has lost her touch, or whether they're being ghost-written, I leave to you to judge. But the books become just dreadful.

I recommend that readers go out on a high note and stop after No. 23. It's been a good run.

She's just phoning in the plots now, folks...very little if any thinking goes into this series anymore....but I still love every one of the books....you don't need a plot when you have Jim, the cats and the wonderful denizens of Pickaxe!

I absolutely love "The Cat Who" series and have read all 23 in the series. The latest "Cat Who" however was severely lacking. This book seemed to skim over details such as meals, settings, conversations etc., that in the other books made you feel like you were a part of the action. I found myself turning the pages back in many instances, to make sure that I had not skipped a few pages of dialog. I was also shocked to find that most of the women in this book were portrayed as being very jealous, catty and shallow! ...

I am a fan of 'The Cat Who' series. This book is a celebration of personalities and old wives tales. The mystery is almost secondary to the colorful characters that populate Moose County. I loved the 'waiting' for the big one, the snowstorm that will usher in winter with a bang. It was almost like waiting for Godot. In an odd way I felt worse about the destruction of a bookstore than I did about the murder victims. While I do not think this is the best in the series, I did enjoy it. But as some on the other reviews on this page have suggested I would not recommend it to a reader new to the series. I would suggest they start with an earlier book. But for fans like me who have read them all this is a must read book.

They say cats have nine lives. Some have more than one score if we count the feline centered mystery series penned by the ingenious Lilian Jackson Braun. Her latest and 23rd cat caper again proves that there's no such thing as a purr-fect crime when Koko, the Siamese sleuth is around.

With "The Cat Who Smelled A Rat" we return to Pickax City in Moose Country during a season of drought. Residents are hoping for a really big blizzard to cover the dry land. When several mysterious fires occur, volunteers from the Citizens' Fire Watch get to work, and Koko proves that she's no mere puss in fireman's boots as she and newsman James Qwilleran are hot on the trail of the rat behind all the ruckus.

Obie Award-winner George Guidall gives a sharp, vibrant delivery of this entertaining tale. To date, he has recorded more than 400 audio books; his expertise is obvious in this rendering. Five saucers of cream to both Braun and Guidall!