Curiosity Thrilled the Cat: A Magical Cats Mystery [Mass Market Paperback]

Sofie Kelly (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 1, 2011 | Series: Magical Cats (Book 1)

When librarian Kathleen Paulson moved to Mayville Heights, Minnesota, she had no idea that two strays would nuzzle their way into her life. Owen is a tabby with a catnip addiction and Hercules is a stocky tuxedo cat who shares Kathleen's fondness for Barry Manilow. But beyond all the fur and purrs, there's something more to these felines.

When murder interrupts Mayville's Music Festival, Kathleen finds herself the prime suspect. More stunning is her realization that Owen and Hercules are magical-and she's relying on their skills to solve a purr-fect murder.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Signet; Original edition (February 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451232496
• ISBN-13: 978-0451232496
• Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 1.4 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #38,265 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sofie Kelly: Six Quick Questions

Sofie Kelly is the pseudonym of young adult writer and mixed-media artist, Darlene Ryan. Sofie/Darlene lives on the east coast with her husband and daughter. In her spare time she practices Wu style tai chi and likes to prowl around thrift stores. And she admits to having a small crush on Matt Lauer.

How did you get started as a writer?
I've been writing forever. (I won third prize in a poetry contest in third grade.) I wrote radio commercials for years and lots of bad short stories that I couldn't get published--for good reason--they were awful. But the more I wrote, the more I learned.

Did you always want to be a writer?
No. I wanted to move to California, become a director and marry Michael Cole from The Mod Squad, which gives you an idea of how old I am. I think I became a writer by evolution. I went from writing commercials and short stories to writing articles and eventually books.

Was English your favorite subject in school?
It wasn't--which always surprises people. My favorite subject was math, at least until calculus came along.

Where do you get your ideas?
Everywhere. It could be something I hear on the news. It could be something someone says to me, or something I overhear. (Yes, I'm guilty of eavesdropping in public.) And I like to watch people and make up stories about who they are and what they're doing.

What's the secret to writing a book?
The secret to writing a book is...that there is no secret. Writing a book is like everything else in life, you have to show up and do it. There may be writers who wait for inspiration to hit and then the words just pour out, but I'm not one of them. I work from an outline and I write a certain number of words each day. Some days it's easy. Some days I keep clicking on the Word Count and moaning, "Am I done yet?"

What do you like to read?
The short answer is everything. I read a lot of mystery and paranormal, but if something about a book intrigues me--the title, the subject, sometimes even the cover art--I don't pay any attention to the genre. I tend to read more than one book at a time and one of them is usually non-fiction.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Cat-ivating Tail :) February 8, 2011

By Lori Caswell TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Kathleen Paulson needs to change her life NOW, her boyfriend goes away for two weeks and comes back MARRIED!!

Kathleen chucks her life in Boston and accepts a job in Mayville Heights, Minnesota, to supervise the renovation and modernization of their library. This turns out to be no small task, but the job is just the kind of distraction she needs.

Not long after her arrival in town she allows to stray cats two snuggle their way into her life. She names the tabby Owen and quickly learns he is addicted to catnip. The other is a stocky tuxedo cat she names Hercules. Hercules loves Barry Manilow music as much as Kathleen, but Owen hates Barry, no matter the song and has no trouble showing his distaste. It doesn't take Kathleen long to learn the cats are very special, maybe even magical.

Life in quiet Mayville Heights takes a drastic turn when a guest of the Wild Rose Summer Music Festival is found dead. For some reason all the clues seem to point to Kathleen. It is then she finds out just how gifted her four legged feline friends are when they help her work to clear her name and quickly bring this caper to a close.

I LIKED IT !!!!

The first thing that really drew me into this book was the cover, the cat's piercing eyes. I have been trying this year to acknowledge the cover illustrators and designers, because book covers today are truly small works of art. There is no information on the artists for this cover but click on the picture, the cats eyes alone will have you wanting to read the story.

The characters of Mayville Heights are so easy to enjoy from the quick wit of Roma, veterinarian by day to human doctor in a pinch, or coworker Abigail's sarcasm, and Detective Gordon's dry sense of humor. Add to that, loving neighbor Rebecca along with the newly transplanted Kathleen, the antics of her "magical" cats and so many more true characters in every sense of the word. There is someone for every reader to love or even hate as I do, the maddening contractor in charge of the renovation. As a former construction worker it took pure restraint not to jump right into the pages and slap him "up aside the head"!

You can't go wrong with a cozy if you have characters like these, a really good mystery, the perfect setting of a library and magical cats. A wonderful debut for what I know will be a "purrfectly" "cat-invating" series. This author has written several young adult books and has now left a paw print in the cozy mystery world with this story and I am happy to welcome her and will anxiously awaiting her next feline escapade.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Obsidian/NAL, a Division of Penguin Publishing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars I was Thrilled with the Cats and more... February 11, 2011

By L. Rigod

Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Curiosity Thrilled the Cat by Sofie Kelly was a debut novel in a new series coined "A Magical Cats Mystery." I do not know, for sure, that the cats were thrilled, but, I most certainly was.

A new Librarian, named Kathleen has moved to Mayville Heights, MN to oversee the restoration of the town's Historical Carnegie Library. She finds wonderful friends, and two rather talented cats there to greet her.

Alas, the next surprise is a dead body, the guest Conductor for the Wild Rose Summer Music Festival. Kathleen becomes a suspect and it is up to the small town to clear her name. Not so easily done when people are not whom they said they were, nor are the cats.

I laughed out loud in several places and even giggled at a story about a neighboring family, "The Bartletts," which had to be true. Us avid readers will thrill at that name.

This mystery was entertaining from page one until the ending. I enjoyed everything about it.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars cute and quick summer read July 15, 2011

By Erin

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is by no means a future classic. The ending was easy to figure out, and the magical cat thing never really jived with me. It seemed like the cats were added later simply to spice up an otherwise dull mystery.

However, the book was cute. Anyone who enjoys easy-going mysteries, independent women, and of course, CATS, will enjoy this book. I found the main character a little annoying at times. But at others, I identified with her completely... especially some of her 'crazy cat lady' moments.

I will gladly recommend this to girlfriends. And I'm sure I will read Sofie Kelly's next magical cat mystery. I guess I was just expecting a little more...