Cats Prowl at Night (Mapback) [Paperback]

A. A. Fair (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Dell; 1st Printing edition (1943)
• ASIN: B000G7INVA
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,204,062 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Bertha tackles a murder case without Donald, November 21, 2004

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Cats Prowl at Night (Hardcover)

In this story, Bertha is on her own, as Donald Lam is vacationing in Europe. A man (Everett Belder) comes to her with a problem. Some time ago, he was facing a judgement, so he transferred his assets into his wife's name. The ploy worked, but now he is in difficulty, as he needs to pay off a debt and things are not well between him and his wife. The man Belder owes the money to is also in financial difficulty, so Belder wants Bertha to act as a go-between and arrange a reduced payoff.
Belder is a bit of a womanizer and his mother-in-law and sister-in-law are greedy and want to break up his marriage. There are a few other devious women in the mix; in this case all of the crooks are female. An anonymous person is also writing letters to Belder's wife, telling her of his actions with women, "as a friend." The plot quickly changes from one of marital intrigue to murder when two of the women are found dead. Although the situations have been constructed to give the appearance of accidents, it is clear that they were most likely murdered. It is also clear early on that a woman committed the murders. However, there are so many that it is difficult to identify the perpetrators(s).
The best part of the story is the interaction between Bertha and police Sergeant Frank Sellers, the lead detective on the case. His actions towards Bertha are very heavy-handed, her response is typical Bertha, and yet it is clear that they very much like each other. In the end, despite her mistakes and battles with Sellers, Bertha manages to help determine the guilty parties and Sellers wraps up the case. After the case is closed, Sellers shows his affection for Bertha and she has no ready response to his advances.
I don't consider this one of the strongest Donald Lam-Bertha Cool stories, simply because Donald is absent. The subtle and thoughtful style that he uses in solving his cases is the strongest thing that appeals to me in the stories and it was absent. While Bertha doesn't go around pounding on or shooting people, she is the verbal equivalent of a tank.

5.0 out of 5 stars Diabolical Murder Mystery, February 21, 2007

By 

Acute Observer (By the Shore NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cats Prowl at Night (Paperback)

Cats Prowl at Night, by A. A. Fair

Sales Engineer Everett Belder goes to see Bertha Cool about an uncollected judgment from a judgment-proof person; his wife has the property. Belder wants Cool to make a deal for less than the full amount. His creditor George Nunnely needs money quickly to keep out of jail! Chapter 2 shows Bertha's skill at diplomatic mediation. Belder's wife Mabel received an anonymous letter that can make trouble (Chapter 3). Bertha tries following Belder's wife, but she loses the car (Chapter 4). Belder's mother-in-law Theresa Goldring and her daughter Carlotta showed up; Mabel has missed seeing them (Chapter 5). Bertha is awakened by pounding on her door; Sergeant Sellers tells her a body was found in Belder's house. Bertha tells all to Sergeant Sellers (Chapter 7). Chapter 8 discusses the portable typewriter used for that poison pen letter. Could someone across the street from the office have observed Belder?

Imogene Dearborne, Belder's secretary, has filed a defamation of character suit against Bertha since Bertha's comments led to Imogene being fired (Chapter 10)! Chapter 11 is a short tutorial about a defamation suit. A stranger visits Bertha to get information; she is Carlotta's real mother (Chapter 13). Bertha retraces the route Mabel Belder took, and discovers where Mabel's car was hidden. Bertha now knows what happened (Chapter 16). Sergeant Sellers recapitulates the known facts, and the likely suspect (Chapter 17). There is a question of who gets the inheritance (Chapter 18). Bertha continues to dig up facts (Chapter 19). [Note how people assume the name given over the telephone is correct?] Sergeant Sellers shows up at Bertha's office to arrest Belder for murder. Another policeman guards Bertha in her office, they may or may not arrest Bertha as an accessory (Chapter 21). Bertha returns to Belder's house, discovers something, and is discovered (Chapter 22). When Sellers shows up the case is concluded (Chapter 23).

Some of the elements in this story were repeated in later novels of Erle Stanley Gardner.