Review: The Cat Who Went Underground

The Cat Who Went Underground by Lilian Jackson Braun
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Vacation time for Q & the gang. We are going back to the cabin in the woods for the summer.

Qwill and the kitties are "roughing it" in the K cabin. But not really, because Qwill is a freaking millionaire, yo. But he continues to keep it real by staying frugal by eating in diners and riding a mountain bike around. Polly Purebred is living it up in merry old England on a librarian exchange, so Qwill thinks about putting the mack down on various young ladies, but somehow resists. And Qwill decides the historic cabin needs an addition, so he hires some folks off the books and gets the results you would expect. And has all sorts of problems with the plumbing and heating, and of course the young female plumber seems to crush on old man Q. Can't resist those mustachioed bucks, eh? Then a few people disappear, end up dead, and Koko once again solves the mystery while Yum Yum daintily eats from a crystal bowl. Yum Yum, you are dim but pretty.

As usual, three stars. I knew who was guilty from the beginning but was totally wrong about why. On to the next!

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Review: The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare

The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare by Lilian Jackson Braun
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

More Qwill and the kitties solving crimes in the sleepy village of Pickax, where there must be a murder every week. Qwill needs to hook up with Jessica Fletcher because they both are murder magnets. Moose County's a rough place to live, people.

The newspaper's publisher has died. Accident, or murder? Well, since it's a cozy I'll let you figure it out. Qwill is on the case, and trying to be a mustachioed ladies man about town, but the cats continue to thwart him. Go, cats. Qwill is ridiculous. Polly is way too good for you. Still the same cast of characters you know and love, with Arch, and Mrs. Cobb, and a million Goodwinters.

A fun, easy series. Really enjoying reading through them all again. 3 stars.

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Review: The Cat Who Played Post Office (The Cat Who #6)

The Cat Who Played Post Office by Lilian Jackson Braun
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Qwill and the cats are getting settled into the K Mansion, some people are murdered, and Qwill continues to be on the prowl as a mustachioed ladies man. This last part is the least believable.

Qwill moves into the Klingshoen Mansion, as part of his incredibly lucky inheritance. He seems to be dating the town doctor while constantly asking her cousin, the lawyer, out to dinner, drinks, whatever. Really, Qwill? Get over yourself. You are NOT a ladies man. I refuse to believe it.
Anyway, I digress. He discovers one of the former maids left town without taking her things, and he realizes something's fishy. Or at least Koko realizes something's fishy, and leads Qwill to the clues, as usual. Smart kitty! And then lots of things happen, including murders, and the crime is solved. Hooray!

Extra bonus fun: Mr. Q brings Mrs. Cobb up north to be his housekeeper. She's awesome and I'm glad she's back in the series. Now let's get Arch Riker up there permanently (you know it's coming!) and the gang can all live happily ever after.


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A Charming Spell (Magical Cures Mystery #4)

A Charming Spell by Tonya Kappes

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


I know I said I was done with this series, but apparently I am a glutton for punishment. Plus I own books 4 and 5, so I guess I need to finish up what I have.

June is inexplicably still village president with absolutely no qualifications for the position and is doing the job you would expect. Oliver is still missing his memory of June and the magical world. Why did we hit the reset button in book 3? Oh, right, because the plot wasn't working. Anyway, June is still incompetent, and self-centered, and eating those damn Ding Dongs. And sticking her nose in everyone's business. I can take annoying from my characters. What I can't take is stupidity. She makes bad decisions, puts herself and other in danger, and is consistently selfish. She lost me completely when she chose to pick on Oliver's new girlfriend. Very "Mean Girls", and is the perfect example of why June is a bad character. I pretty much hate her at this point.

Aside from the atrocities of the plot and characters, these books are riddled with typos and grammatical errors that are unforgivable and make the books read like a high school writing project. The dialogue is stilted and amateurish, and the plots are inane. Don't waste your time and money on this series--there are much better options out there.

P.S. Every time I had to read, "Hidden Hall A Spiritualist University" (which was about 100 times) I wanted to gouge my eyes out. The name is stupid and you don't need to write out the full name every. damn. time.



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The Cat Who Played Brahms (Cat Who...#5)

The Cat Who Played Brahms by Lilian Jackson Braun

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


It's vacation time for Qwill and the cats as they head up to Moose County, 400 miles from anywhere, to stay in Aunt Fanny's cabin for some R&R. Qwill's apartment building has been sold and it is the perfect time to take a few months off, relax, and start writing that novel. But things don't go as planned. Of course they don't, otherwise we wouldn't have a cozy to read, would we?

I think this book is where the series takes a fun turn. We get Qwill out of the city and away from the crazy newspaper beat, and we see a different side of him here. The first three books in the series were written by Braun in the late 60s, and she returned to it in the book before this one in the mid 80s. Her decision to change things up is apparent starting with this book. With age comes wisdom, I guess, and it works here.

Koko is still in charge and solving crimes, while Yum Yum sits there and looks pretty. Qwill makes several comments in this book about his penchant for young career women in their 30s while creepily stroking his mustache like a villain. He has never been written as an appealing character to me so this made me chuckle. And the ending gives the series new direction and completely new ways to grow and change the characters. Here's to new beginnings!



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The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern (Cat Who...#2)

The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern by Lilian Jackson Braun

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Hop in my time machine back to 1967. A place where you don't have cell phones, the internet, and it's perfectly acceptable to smoke a pipe. People still read newspapers to get their news. Meet Jim Qwilleran, old-time investigative reporter now taking on the interior designer beat. Meet Koko, Siamese cat and crime fighter. Together they stick their noses where they don't belong and save the day. And in the end, they bring pretty lady Yum Yum into the family and everyone is happy.

These books are dated, for sure. But I like Qwill and his crime fighting kitties. I read these books back in the early '90s and while the mystery is simplistic they are still an enjoyable hour or two diversion. I think the series really hits its stride when Qwill relocates to Moose County, so if you start at the beginning, stick with it. There are lots of books in the series if you like it. Cute and harmless.



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Kneading to Die (Pawsitively Organic Mystery #1)

Kneading to Die by Liz Mugavero

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


You know it is a bad sign when the main character annoys you in the first chapter. What is up with all of the "theme song" nonsense? Between that and the constant brand-name dropping and needless clothing / physical descriptions of everyone, I barely soldiered on. Plus, her name annoyed me.

HOWEVER, the mystery was ok enough to finish it without too much eye rolling. I'm down with the whole small-town, organic living, pet loving world. I'm not standing in my kitchen whipping up pet food from scratch with all organic fresh ingredients, but I have enjoyed many a farmer's market in my day. So the setting was quaint, and I enjoyed many of the side characters, even though the author threw in so many that you barely got to know any of them. She did waste half the book on a boyfriend you knew from the first line wouldn't be sticking around for book 2, and that annoyed me. I get it; it sets up the heroine for the small-town love interest in book 2.

This book was just ok. I didn't hate it. I didn't love it. 2 stars.



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