Sofie Ryan

Series: A Second Chance Cat Mystery, #6
Publisher: Berkley Books
Release Date: January 29, 2019
Source: Review copy from the publisher
Rating: ★★★¾

Sarah Grayson and her feline ally Elvis get a chance to see if their sleuthing skills are up to scratch in the sixth installment of the New York Times bestselling Second Chance Cat Mysteries.

It’s fall in North Harbor, Maine, where Sarah owns a charming secondhand shop. A cold case heats up when Mallory Pearson appears at Sarah’s doorstep. Mallory’s father is in prison for negligence after her stepmother’s mysterious death in a house fire, but Mallory believes he’s innocent and asks the quirky team of senior citizen detectives who work out of Sarah’s shop to take on the case. With Sarah and Elvis lending a paw, they decide to try to give Mallory’s father a second chance of his own…

NO ESCAPE CLAWS is book six in the Second Chance Cat Mystery series (I’ve also read the first). Main character Sarah Grayson runs a lovely secondhand shop in North Harbor, Maine, along with a quirky group of her grandmother’s friends (known as the Angels). I could spend hours in her store.

The Angels are part-time detectives as well, and with Sarah’s help they solve local mysteries. Their latest case comes at the request of young Mallory Pearson, who wants them to prove her father is innocent of negligence in the death of her stepmother. Prison is a nightmare for him, but for some reason he doesn’t want help getting out. The mystery surrounding the suspicious death was a puzzler, and Sarah & the gang were smart about their investigation. I enjoyed tagging along!

My one quibble with the book was the large number of characters. Too many to keep straight at times, which made reading frustrating. Not only were there many speaking characters, but there were lots of “off screen” folks they talked about. Maybe it’s because I’ve missed many of the previous books?

Overall I enjoyed this cozy, and it made me want to catch up with the rest of the series!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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WholeCat
Series: Second Chance Cat Mystery, #1
Publisher: Signet
Released: April 1, 2014
Source: Review copy from the publisher

Sarah Grayson is the happy proprietor of Second Chance, a charming shop in the oceanfront town of North Harbor, Maine. At the shop, she sells used items that she has lovingly refurbished and repurposed. But her favorite pet project so far has been adopting a stray cat she names Elvis.

Elvis has seen nine lives—and then some. The big black cat with a scar across his nose turned up at a local bar when the band was playing the King of Rock and Roll’s music and hopped in Sarah’s truck. Since then, he’s been her constant companion and the furry favorite of everyone who comes into the store.

But when Sarah’s elderly friend Maddie is found with the body of a dead man in her garden, the kindly old lady becomes the prime suspect in the murder. Even Sarah’s old high school flame, investigator Nick Elliot, seems convinced that Maddie was up to no good. So it’s up to Sarah and Elvis to clear her friend’s name and make sure the real murderer doesn’t get a second chance.

———

THE WHOLE CAT AND CABOODLE is a fun start to Sofie Ryan’s new cozy mystery series with a gregarious feline called Elvis taking center stage. Elvis’ person is Sarah Grayson, and she runs a nifty shop selling vintage and refurbished items in North Harbor, Maine.

Sarah gets dragged into a murder mystery when her grandmother’s friend Maddie is arrested for murdering her boyfriend. Well, Sarah actually gets involved in the case because she wants to keep a group of dear elderly friends out of trouble. They are a stubborn and determined bunch wanting to find the real murderer on their own, and Sarah promises investigators that she’ll keep them out of of trouble. Or at least try to!

The mystery was good and the plot moved quickly, but what I loved most was the cast of characters. Elvis the cat was an intriguing little fellow, savvy about what’s going on and able to give the humans a push in the right direction. Cat cozy mystery fans will love him. Sarah was likable and easy to connect with. I enjoyed her back story, and her complicated relationship with her childhood friend Michelle Andrews and old flame Nick Elliott. Sarah’s group of elderly friends were a lot of fun and provided several good laughs along the way. Looking forward to the next book in the series!

Rating: 4 Stars

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.