Cat to the Dogs: A Joe Grey Mystery

From Publishers Weekly
Recommended only for dedicated cat lovers, this lackluster tale is the latest outing (after Cat in the Dark) featuring the feline Sherlock Holmes named Joe Grey and his companion, Dulcie. As usual, the cats not only outsmart most humans, but also make telephone calls, order take-out and speak perfect English, although only to each other and a few favored people. Hunting in Hellhag Canyon, Joe witnesses a fatal car accident that appears to be murder. While local police search for the victim's identity, Dulcie is keeping an eye on neighbor Lucinda Greenlaw's house. Just widowed, Lucinda, who's waiting for the funeral and a possible inheritance, has been surrounded by her husband's unsavory relatives. Joe and Dulcie suspect that Shamas Greenlaw's death while boating was no accident, especially when his black market business dealings come to light. Now it remains for the feline duo to lead human investigators to connect the suspicious car accident to some of the Greenlaw clan and to prove that the two deaths are related. Murphy's fifth novel moves at a snail's pace and the humans involved, such as Joe's housemate, Clyde, are mere window dressing. Cat fans may fancy the story in any case, but others won't enjoy the plot digressions into the history and mythology of felines. (Jan.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Joe Grey, the talking cat (Cat in the Dark), and friend Dulcie help police solve a suspicious fatal car accident. A special treat for cat mystery fans who like a little more feline participation. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Kirkus Reviews
Sleuthing cats Joe Grey and Dulcie (Cat in the Dark, 1999, etc.) are living at Molena Point, California, Joe with repairman Clyde Damen and Dulcie with librarian Wilma Getz. Theyre able to talk to each other and to their respective hosts, read the paper, and use the phone, among other things. At the moment, Dulcie is spying on the house next door, where widow Lucinda Greenlawwhose chronically unfaithful husband, Shamasdrowned two weeks before, is fending off the mostly rapacious Greenlaw relatives gathered in a nearby trailer park waiting for the funeral. Meanwhile, Joe is enjoying an early morning hunt in Hellhag Canyon when a skidding car from the road above comes hurtling down the cliff. Exploring the wreck, Joe finds the driver dead and a brake line obviously cut through. Back home, Joe does his best to keep Sheriff Max Harper alert to the murder possibilities, especially when its discovered the victim was a part of Shamass lucrative but mysterious business operations. It seems Shamass nephews Dirken and Newlon and cousin Sam Fulman were also part of those operations. Complications escalate with the appearance of Shamass last mistress, Cara Ray Crisp, and again with Newlons murder. It takes Joe and Dulcie, helped this time by a tiny, nameless feral cat, to bring the killer to justice. Only feline worshipers will enjoy Murphy's endless spins into cat adoration. But even ailurophobes will acknowledge that clever plotting and lyrical prose offer top entertainment. -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.



"A special treat for cat mystery fans."


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Fast-paced, intricate and well-researched, "Cat to the Dogs" glows with Murphy's obvious love for all animals, her sense of outrage at crime and criminals, and her quick analytical approach to forensic details. Funny, tender, and loving at times, "Cat to the Dogs" is still a murder mystery...Sure to delight cat lovers and detective mystery fans alike. Read all 8 "From The Critics" >


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