Reviews

The Cat Who Lived High by Lilian Jackson Braun

wombat_88's review

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

tabithar's review against another edition

2.0

Meh. This is far from the most engaging of the series but occasionally the author seems to tease her readers and that adds some humor. Unlike most of the recent books, Qwill is "down below" for most of the book and the friendly folks from Moose County (as well as the story line) seem to suffer for it. I recall reading some randomly from later in the series and enjoying them so maybe this was just a slump. Its worth reading for the continuity.

Side note: I did enjoy Coco playing a modified Scrabble with Qwill.

staticdisplay's review against another edition

4.0

I didn't remember reading this before, so a lot of the story came as a surprise to me! Qwilleran heads down south to "Junktown," a crime-infested urban center where he's been asked to preserve a historical building. This leads to a series of conversations where Q is mostly asking people how to spell their names and weather delivered with a summary of the day's grisly slayings. Funny, if you don't take it too seriously. There's also a lot about sensuous mushroom paintings and a bunch of colorful characters

Spoiler

, including a woman who drunkenly flashes Q and whose despair prompts him to share his own tormented past

. It felt a bit more "mature" (and less cozy) than I think the later books are, although that might be a side-effect of the urban setting. The cats are especially catlike. I love these characters, as I've mentioned before, just because of nostalgia & also the quality of the writing (even if the resolution of the mystery comes a bit out of the blue).
* * *
2023: re-reading the series in order (I managed to miss this one, but now I'm caught up). the idea here: you can't go home again. love this series.

rheak's review

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

numberonehowdareyou's review against another edition

mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

govmarley's review against another edition

3.0

Qwill and the kitties head back down below. Back to the big, crime-ridden city to save a historic hotel Junktown. That pesky, sexy mustache keeps him in high demand with the ladies, as usual, but could it be that Qwill is finally ready to settle down? Polly is too good for him. The cats are too good for him. But the mystery was ok and I was surprised to see how it all played out.

Qwill remains a pompus ass, but I love this series regardless. Glad we will be back in home for the next book. 3 stars.

fibrejunky's review against another edition

3.0

Qwill and his companions move back Down Under to save a grand old building from developers. Chaos ensues.

raven_acres's review against another edition

Section A-2

catladyreba's review against another edition

2.0

Not a bad entry in the series, but the ending was much too abrupt and disjointed.

dairine's review

4.0

Definitely one of my favorites. Braun has fun with character work, and she's also quite adept at making a good setting a character as well.