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FlabberGassed: A Mister Puss Mystery by [Michael Craft]

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Michael Craft

FlabberGassed: A Mister Puss Mystery Kindle Edition

by Michael Craft (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

51 ratings

Book 1 of 3: Mister Puss

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A weight-loss miracle ... a dashing gay architect ... a talking cat.

What could possibly go wrong?

In the idyllic little town of Dumont, Wisconsin, wealthy widow Mary Questman adopts an exotic stray cat, Mister Puss, who begins to talk to her. At least she thinks so. Mary's young friend, gay architect Brody Norris, soon finds another reason to worry about Mary's judgment when she decides to help finance a bizarre weight-loss enterprise called FlabberGas, the invention of a flamboyant local dermatologist, Dr. Francis Frumpkin.

Brody's skepticism is partially overcome when Dr. Frumpkin commissions him to design the first of a planned chain of FlabberGas clinics. But then, during a public demonstration of Frumpkin's gimmicky new treatment, a volunteer is gassed to death in a hideous mishap that turns out to be no accident. It was murder, all right. Suspects abound. And Brody is drawn into the role of amateur sleuth, assisting Sheriff Thomas Simms.

Funny and tender, thoroughly tangled, with a chilling motive at its core, the mystery comes to a jolting conclusion when Brody pieces together tiny, overlooked details and helps Sheriff Simms name the killer. Along the way, though, Brody himself gets a little help--or so it seems--from the chatty Mister Puss.

FlabberGassed is the first book in the Mister Puss series.

Print length

232 pages
Language

English
Publication date

September 10, 2018
File size

2538 KB
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Books In This Series (3 Books)

Complete Series

Mister Puss

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1
FlabberGassed: A Mister Puss Mystery
Michael Craft

(51)

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$4.95
2
ChoirMaster: A Mister Puss Mystery
Michael Craft

(43)

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$4.95
3
HomeComing: A Mister Puss Mystery
Michael Craft

(23)

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$4.95

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Crisp, lively prose ... colorful cast of characters ... a well-drawn setting, perfect for an exuberant murder mystery ... delightfully offbeat."

- Kirkus Reviews

"The new 'Mister Puss' mystery series opens with one of the most intriguing introductions seen in the mystery genre ... Readers used to the usual progression of a murder mystery will find many exceptional twists in this story, from a feline character to a gay architect's involvement in a case demanding skills that he fears he may not possess. FlabberGassed is quirky, original, and a delightful read."

- D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

"Craft's return to the genre of gay mysteries is handled masterfully. Craft keeps the reader guessing until almost the very end as to who the killer is, and the reason for the dastardly deed ... At turns humorous, sexy, and even poignant, FlabberGassed is an entertaining read with a likeable protagonist, a tranquil town disrupted by a chilling crime, a colorful cast of characters, and a snarky cat; what's not to like?"

- Keith John Glaeske, Out in Print

"Dumont could very well become as beloved by its fans as St. Mary Mead and Cabot Cove. Fans of offbeat ambiance, animal-centric tales, and unforced diversity will find much to enjoy in FlabberGassed."

- Kristopher Zgorski, BOLO Books Review

"As a reader, I don't usually reach for a cozy. My tastes run dark, usually procedurals, thrillers, and noir. That being said, I gave myself over to Craft's delightful prose and warm wit, finding myself charmed by this quirky and insightful mystery ... The mystery is engrossing chiefly because of Craft's sensitivity to character."

- John Copenhaver, Lambda Literary Review

From the Author

While FlabberGassed represents an entirely new direction for my writing (a book-length cat mystery), it also marks a return to the genre for which I have been best known in the past (gay mysteries). FlabberGassed: A Mister Puss Mystery is intended as the first installment in a new series that brings together several aspects of my prior novels that longtime readers will probably recognize.

For example, my first Mark Manning mystery, Flight Dreams (1997), prominently featured Abyssinian cats, a breed I know and love. Further, the fictitious setting of small-town Dumont was developed throughout the last five volumes of the Mark Manning series and then figured centrally in my short-story collection, Inside Dumont (2016), long after Manning had left town. Inside Dumont also introduced the character of Brody Norris, a gay architect with a clever knack for problem-solving.

The idea for a mystery series based on the whimsical premise of a talking cat started to develop for me after I published a prize-winning short story, "Mister Puss," in 2017. Encouraged by reader feedback, I decided to feature the chatty feline as a quirky supporting character in a new series with a distinctive subtitle bearing the cat's name instead of the sleuth's. The original short story--revised and condensed--now stands at the beginning of FlabberGassed as something of a prologue.

As to Mister Puss himself, there's a lingering question throughout the book: Does the cat really talk? I have tried to leave the answer open-ended. Realistically, we know the cat is not capable of human speech, but he does seem to communicate--through his purr, somehow--first to Mary Questman and eventually to our sleuth and narrator, Brody Norris. Ultimately, then, it's left to each reader to decide how much "suspension of disbelief" can be allowed.

But here's a clue: the story is more fun if you just go with it. I hope you'll enjoy reading FlabberGassed as much as I enjoyed writing it.

ASIN : B07DP837VG
Publisher : Questover Press (September 10, 2018)
Publication date : September 10, 2018
Language : English
File size : 2538 KB
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Not Enabled
Word Wise : Enabled
Print length : 232 pages
Lending : Enabled

Best Sellers Rank: #227,239 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #186 in LGBT Mysteries
- #258 in LGBTQ+ Mystery
- #3,534 in Gay Fiction

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51 ratings

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Ulysses Grant Dietz

An elegant, captivating beginning to what will surely be a wonderful series.

Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2018

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FlabberGassed (A Mister Puss Mystery)
By Michael Craft
Questover Press, 2018
Five stars

What an elegant mystery. What an absurd idea made irresistible and almost mystical at the hands of a gifted writer. A talking cat? Yes, or at least a cat rather beyond the ordinary cats one has known previously. And this cat has no exotic, portentous name; because a dear older lady – a real lady – names him casually, offhandedly, when he wanders into her life. Mr. Puss. The best cat in all of modern fiction.

If Miss Marple were to be transformed into a thirty-something gay man in a small Wisconsin town, that would be Brody Norris. Brody, an architect in partnership with his significantly older husband, Marson, has rooted himself deeply into the life of Dumont, Wisconsin. He knows all the players. He is friends with the people he must consider suspects in the startling murder he witnesses. Brody is a good, loving, intelligent man, and he finds that there is always something more to learn in life.

Like talking cats.

Beneath Craft’s beautifully wrought prose, which perfectly reflects Brody’s self-assured, benevolent heart and mind, there is a dark thread. Set against today’s surreal political reality, Brody’s investigation is forced to probe behind the smiling, polite facades of American Midwesterners. He has to look for things he really doesn’t want to see, and in doing this learns something about himself.

Michael Craft’s narrative is controlled, carefully measured, even when the plot itself is dipping into the worst of human nature. Brody Norris’s is a cultured voice, modulated with his own moral integrity and personal honesty. When you see through the eyes of a good person who knows his own flaws, everything around you takes on a clarity of perception.

This is an old-fashioned book, but a very contemporary one at the same time. It is the tantalizing beginning of what I hope will be a substantial series. Now that I’ve moved to Dumont, I really do want to get to know the people who live there. Not to mention Mr. Puss. I’m a dog person. But by the end of this I was yearning for a cat.

2 people found this helpful

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Mark M

Michael Craft brings craft to a fine new series

Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2018

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Author Michal Craft’s name is well suited to him: he brings craft to his writing, with an eye for the meticulous and a sense of humor that undergirds it all. In FlabberGassed, he combines his talent for mystery with his skill as a writer of literary fiction.

Set in fictional Dumont, Wisconsin, FlabberGassed tells the story of an eccentric man named Dr. Francis Frumpkin with an eccentric idea: miracle weight loss through an invention called FlabberGas. Also central to the plot is a local woman named Mary Questman and a cat, Mr. Puss, who inserts himself into her life and communicates with her in a most unusual way.

Enter young architect Brody Norris his husband, Marson Miles. Brody is quickly hired to design a chain of FlabberGassed clinics, and the mystery begins. I won’t say more, except that a murder occurs, as it must, and the identity of the murderer becomes central to an intricate plot woven with characters who make Dumont such an interesting place to imagine. Suffice it to say I had no idea who the killer was until it was revealed, and given the distinctive natures of the people who inhabit this unusual place, it could have been any of several.

This is the first in the Mr. Puss series, and if FlabberGassed is any indication, readers, like Mr. Puss himself, are in for treat after treat.

2 people found this helpful

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Madam Pince (Book Review Gal)

The Cat is on the Case

Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2019

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Architect Brody Norris and his husband, Marson Miles, are are concerned about their friend Mary Questman on two fronts: that she’s been duped by a shady physician, Dr. Francis Frumpkin, who claims that hyperbaric oxygen will help patients lose weight; and more seriously, her claims that her new cat, Mister Puss, talks to her. The Abyssinian just showed up at Mary’s door one morning and insinuated himself into her life, and the couple fears she’s taken her love for the exotic cat a bit too seriously — especially when Dr. Frumpkin claims Mister Puss approved her plan to invest in his chain of weight-loss clinics.

It doesn’t help that Frumpkin has hired Brody to design the clinics, which he envisions as franchises across the country.

Brody and Marson are relieved Mary backs out of demonstrating the hyperbaric chamber, but surprised to learn the advice came from Mister Puss. Then the doctor’s son-in-law, Dr. Jason Ward, steps in and, to everyone’s horror, dies during the presentation.

Which is when Mister Puss whispers to Mary that Brody should help Sheriff Thomas Simms solve the murder.

And then Mister Puss whispers a few facts to Brody.

Suspects multiply like the castor beans local reporter Glee Savage grows in her backyard. Which clue will help Brody slot all the others into place and solve Dr. Ward’s murder?

While the humans ponder and search, Mister Puss is on the job in this engaging first novel in Michael Craft’s new cozy mystery series. Dumont, Michigan has a new detective, and he’s a four-footed genius.

One person found this helpful

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Brian T.

A great mystery - and much more!

Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2019

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I planned for this book to last me a week or more of quiet, bedtime reading. It barely made it through the weekend. I had-to-know the culprit - and Michael Craft kept me guessing until the very end.

Mystery solved, I slowed down and read the book a second time at a more leisurely pace - just to enjoy the craftsmanship of the writing and to find the clues I missed. What a rich story, full of very human but very likable (mostly) characters! I recommend you get to know them, too.

In the cosmos of cats with amazing powers, Mister Puss has quickly earned a prominent place. I’ve co-habitated with several intuitive felines in my time. Mister Puss embodies them all, with just a touch more of the exotic that we all know is deep down in every cat.

Another compelling sub-plot is the interactions between gay characters in a small town, where the need to find others is very compelling, but also challenging to established intimacies. The personalities are all very believable – I want to come over to the Loft for cocktails, too!

2 people found this helpful

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rotmanpr

Michael Craft has struck gold

Reviewed in Canada on October 8, 2018

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With the new Mr. Puss mystery series, the prolific and clever Michael Craft has struck gold, introducing a wholly believable new feline character, and extending the characters in Inside Dumont, his novel in stories published in 2016 (check that one out too). Craft, who is fast making small town Dumont, Wisconsin, his own personal Yoknapatawpha County, the legendary Faulknerian locale. Previously known for his witty Mark Manning and Claire Gray gay-themed detective series, Craft's extension of his finely honed mystery writing is a real winner. As a somewhat reluctant cat owner, I can fully understand how it might talk to you and tell you what to do, as she slinks and slides around the house, going always at her own pace. Even so, Brody Norris, previously seen in Inside Dumont, continues the tradition of an amateur sleuth coming to the rescue of something very strange. And if you like ingenious murder methods, Flabbergassed has come up with something quite unique. Mr. Puss' intervention isn't overdrawn; it's subtle and believable, and of course requires humans to complete the job. As for the writing, it's unerring; excellently detailed, drawing a portrait of gays living in a straight world and doing just fine, thank you very much. I especially loved some of the vocabulary Craft injected into the writing, which is not overly adorned but on target, and precise. I definitely look forward to the next Mr. Puss mysteries, as I enjoyed his other two previous series. Congratulations, Mr. Craft! You've got a winner in Flabbergassed.

Charles S.

Dans les flots incessants de nouveaux polars

Reviewed in France on November 16, 2018

Verified Purchase

J'ai de plus en plus de mal à terminer et même souvent entamer des polars. Sans doute la prolifération des titres, souvent médiocres quand pas mauvais, fait-elle beaucoup pour que vous hésitiez dans l'achat d'un énième titre. Mais celui-ci vaut vraiment l'effort. J'avoue que l'intrigue m'a suffisamment surpris pour que j'espère lire un prochain épisode de la série dans un futur proche.

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