Thursday, October 21, 2010

Catch As Cat Can - What I'm Reading

Catch as Cat Can (Mrs. Murphy)Just finished Catch as Cat Can by Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown (her cat), my latest in the Mrs. Murphy Mysteries.

If you're not familiar with them, Mrs. Murphy is a tiger cat who lives in Crozet, Virgina and likes to solve mysteries with the help of her human, postmistress "Harry" Haristeen, Tee Tucker, her faithful corgi companion and Pewter, her feline buddy.

In Catch as Cat Can, spring is in the air, the Dogwood Festival is about to start and BoomBoom Craycroft (not Harry's favorite person) is hooking Harry up with a handsome diplomat from Uruguay, which doesn't make Harry's ex, Fair Haristeen happy. Meanwhile a dead woodpecker and a set of stolen hubcaps lead to the inevitable dead body. This is a murder mystery, after all!

Crozet is a charming little middle-of-nowhere town with a host of quirky locals and seemingly a good number of murders and intelligent pets. There's Miranda, a sixtyish widow who works at the post office with Harry, bakes scrumptious muffins and can quote the Bible perfectly; Big Mim, the "Queen" of Crozet society; Little Mim, Big Mim's daughter who's still trying to find herself; the loveable Reverend Herb and Cynthia Cooper the sherrif's deputy, who's bound and determined to find the killer, with Harry and Mrs. Murphy's help. This book also introduces us to Pope Rat, a rather despicable rodent and Abraham a courtly and helpful old hound.

Six of OneI've adored Rita Mae Brown's novels since I first encountered Six of One, a rollicking tale about a pair of sisters growing up in the prohibition era, in the equally amusing town of Runnymede, MD who have been "fighting like banty roosters" since 1905.

Wish You Were Here (Mrs. Murphy Mysteries)As with most of Rita Mae Brown's Mrs. Murphy books, things start off slow - after all, nothing ever happens in Crozet, right? - but soon leads Harry into danger, and her animal friends have to get her out. If you're like me and enjoy starting with the first of a series, I recommend Wish You Were Here.

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