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A review by stephbookshine
Magical Mystery Paws by Mandy Morton
4.0
*I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
First and pawmost I need to note that the characters in this book are cats (which should really be obvious from the title, series and cover, but you never know!).
These are cats that wear ponchos and mini-skirts, drive buses, play guitars and cook delicious Jamaican jerk chicken (with a sprinkle of catnip to mellow the mood). They also clean their whiskers with their paws, sleep curled up on chairs and other surfaces, and take a fairly practical attitude to life and death. So still cats, basically.
I wasn’t sure quite how I would feel about anthropomorphised cats solving mysteries and playing music gigs, but actually it works. It works so well that the characters’ felinity is of as little importance as their breed, sexual orientation or age…it might have a small influence on their actions and behaviours but is irrelevant to the plot and to their characterisation as a whole. I like that.
In fact, at times I suspected the cats’ primary function was to allow the author to exercise her punny bone! Names of characters, places and well-known phrases are all opportunities that the author does not miss to slip in the purrfect feline pun. It added a light-heartedness to the writing that made me smile as I read.
Cats aside, Magical Mystery Paws is a cosy mystery and a well-written one. We have our small clowder of suspects and our curiosity-led amateur sleuths. There are clues and interviews, leading to a big showdown and the final reveal. To my own personal annoyance, I spotted one twist but guessed the actual murderer wrong…a good sign, as that means the author had me fooled!
This book is the fifth in the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency series, and not only will I be tracking back to pick up the first four books, but I will be eagerly awaiting the next release. Recommended for fans of cosy mysteries with their (rough) tongue firmly in their whiskered cheeks!
These days, some of the names resonated with both Hettie and Tilly – cats who had left the earth prematurely and been part of some of the high-profile murder cases that had landed on their desk at the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency. Teezle Makepeace and Mavis Spitforce now rested under nearby trees, no longer burdened by the cares of everyday life; although that made them sad, Hettie and Tilly were proud of the fact that – thanks to them – their murderers were tucked away beyond the consecrated ground, unrecognised by any headstone, and as if they had never been. Justice had been served.
– Mandy Morton, Magical Mystery Paws
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2018/07/08/magical-mystery-paws-mandy-morton/
First and pawmost I need to note that the characters in this book are cats (which should really be obvious from the title, series and cover, but you never know!).
These are cats that wear ponchos and mini-skirts, drive buses, play guitars and cook delicious Jamaican jerk chicken (with a sprinkle of catnip to mellow the mood). They also clean their whiskers with their paws, sleep curled up on chairs and other surfaces, and take a fairly practical attitude to life and death. So still cats, basically.
I wasn’t sure quite how I would feel about anthropomorphised cats solving mysteries and playing music gigs, but actually it works. It works so well that the characters’ felinity is of as little importance as their breed, sexual orientation or age…it might have a small influence on their actions and behaviours but is irrelevant to the plot and to their characterisation as a whole. I like that.
In fact, at times I suspected the cats’ primary function was to allow the author to exercise her punny bone! Names of characters, places and well-known phrases are all opportunities that the author does not miss to slip in the purrfect feline pun. It added a light-heartedness to the writing that made me smile as I read.
Cats aside, Magical Mystery Paws is a cosy mystery and a well-written one. We have our small clowder of suspects and our curiosity-led amateur sleuths. There are clues and interviews, leading to a big showdown and the final reveal. To my own personal annoyance, I spotted one twist but guessed the actual murderer wrong…a good sign, as that means the author had me fooled!
This book is the fifth in the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency series, and not only will I be tracking back to pick up the first four books, but I will be eagerly awaiting the next release. Recommended for fans of cosy mysteries with their (rough) tongue firmly in their whiskered cheeks!
These days, some of the names resonated with both Hettie and Tilly – cats who had left the earth prematurely and been part of some of the high-profile murder cases that had landed on their desk at the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency. Teezle Makepeace and Mavis Spitforce now rested under nearby trees, no longer burdened by the cares of everyday life; although that made them sad, Hettie and Tilly were proud of the fact that – thanks to them – their murderers were tucked away beyond the consecrated ground, unrecognised by any headstone, and as if they had never been. Justice had been served.
– Mandy Morton, Magical Mystery Paws
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2018/07/08/magical-mystery-paws-mandy-morton/