5 Hoots
A charming addition to the cat in the stacks series. Diesel proves to be a wonderful cat sitter while Charlie tries to help solve another murder.
While setting out to read a bunch of Christmas themed cozies I could not pass up the chance to read another book from this fantastic series! I am in love with the Cat in the Stacks series. It stars a librarian, Charlie, who has a Maine Coon as his pet companion. I absolutely love Charlie! He is always a sweet southern gentleman and is always so darn sweet. He somehow always ends up in the middle of some murder investigation but he honestly doesn’t do it on purpose. In fact in this book he was just at a Christmas party when Gerry collapsed on the floor and Charlie and his girlfriend gave her CPR! Unfortunately, Gerry was poisoned and no amount of CPR was going to save her.
Many people at this Christmas party had motive to want Gerry killed and for once Kanesha (the deputy tasked with solving the case) actually welcomes Charlie’s help. But does the mystery stop at the murder of Gerry? Nope! Let’s add a box full of kittens with a mysterious note attached! So now, Charlie not only has to help solve a murder, but also find out who left these kittens with him and why. Poor Charlie certainly had his hands full!
Miranda James did a magnificent job tackling the different mysteries and themes in this book. Yes, there was a Christmas feeling and decorations, but it never pulled all the focus away. And it really did a good job touching on topics like post partum depression (Charlie’s daughter in law), gender identity, and the true meaning of family (even if the are step children…I like to think of them as a wonderful bonus…*cough* I’m a step child *cough*). While a lot was going on, it never felt out of balance. It just felt like you stepped into the life of Charlie and we’re going through it with him.
The full reveal of who murdered Gerry and her story itself was heart breaking. I mean, the way it was slow revealed was brilliantly done. There were so many layers to it and when the full story was revealed…wow, just wow. Seriously, this was worth the read. Overall, I am really glad that I jumped ahead in the series and read this beautiful gem!
The Owl's Book Nest 