Cat mysteries -- by Babson

[AmberLee]

I stumbled across a new to me author of mysteries -- Marion Babson (?? close if not exact, my memory is lousy these days). She's published 30 some-odd mysteries about 8 to 10 of them heavily themed with cats. They are 'cozies' with tons of humor and I enjoyed them very much. Are you familiar with her work? Do you enjoy them too? Which of the books do you prefer?

The first was "Murder at the Cat Show" -- read the reviews, but not the book itself.

"Nine Lives to Murder" -- singularly weird, but enjoyable. Someone has tried to murder the star of the show; he and the theater cat are injured and exchange consciousnesses. Can the star (in a cats' body) save his human body from the murderer?

"The Diamond Cat" -- a ransom of diamonds goes astray in a freak storm: one of the cat sitter's cats has eaten it. :eek: Good guys, bad guys, cops and killers -- Who's who and who's a cat-sitter to trust? Will our heroine ever learn if the handsome (widowed) policeman's precious Siamese is an apple-head or a wedgie? Will truth and justice triumph, and if so, how? I liked all the ones I read, but think this one's my favorite!

"Canapes for Kitties" -- mystery authors and pet-lovers in a small English village. Are they losing their minds, or is evil a-foot? Will their respective sanities be saved by their four-footed pals or driven over the edge? Some excellent laughs here mixed into the mystery!

"The Company of Cats" -- the eccentric billionaire prefers his cat to his family. Who can blame him? A killer's loose in the family mansion. Will the heiress feline live to collect her fortune? How many lives will she lose? How many imposter kitties can the family attempt to substitute? Again, very enjoyable mystery with lots of humor.

"To Catch a Cat" -- her usual 'cosy' mode slips to the edge of "Mary Higgans Clark" territory. A young lad accepts a dare to 'catnap' the local Cat Show star and is in the house when kitty's owner is murdered. Can he keep himself and the cat alive as the crafty murderer comes after him? I think this was my second favorite of the bunch, but enjoyed them all.

"Whiskers and Smoke" -- haven't read this one. Has anyone here?

There are a couple of other titles in her cat themes, but I'm not sure what they are. Does anyone here have others they'd like to suggest? Discuss?

[lynnestankard]

Thanks AmberLee - I adore cat themed books but have never heard of this author - guess who's off to the library this afternoon?
:D :D

Lynne

[Pam]

I never heard of this author either, but have read several of Lilian Jackson Braun's books, "The Cat Who...." The main character in the story has two Siamese who "help" him solve crimes. :)

[AmberLee]

I loved the Lillian Braun series, too. I read and reread (most of) them many times. May have missed the latest one(s).

Isn't it great how many mysteries have cats in them these days?

[LoudLou]

How about Rita Mae Brown and the Mrs. Murphy mysteries wioth Mrs. Murphy the catand Tee Tucker the Corgi!!:D

[purrley]

Amberlee - have not heard of this author. Sounds like these books would be really entertaining and speaking of entertainment, did you and Marius's Mom go to the Pleasanton Cat Show and if so, what did you think of it????? So about the determent on the topic - maybe you can answer by going back to the Cat Show topic or did I miss something???

[Edwina's Secretary]

I have a couple of wonderful books I'd like to recommend. However, I'm on my way to Omaha (oh joy :p ). I've sent myself an email at home and hopefully will post the names and authors by the weekend.

[Cynthia]

Haven't discovered the Babson series yet...but next trip to the library I will certainly search! Have just recently gotten into the Lilian Braun "The Cat Who..." series (there are currently three of them on my nightstand:o ) and am completely hooked. Have also read all of Rita Mae Brown's "Mrs. Murphy" mysteries which are set here in Virginia (two featured cats are Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, the fat gray cat) and am awaiting the next one. Recommend them all!!

[AmberLee]

I've read and enjoyed the Rita Mae Brown mystery series. When I read them there were only two or three books in the series. Are there more now that I've missed?

There is another author, female I think, that has a female protagonist (sp?) and the series is set in Las Vegas, Nevada. The cat's name is Midnight Louie (?) and they write alternating chapters(?). I enjoy the cat's refutation of her assumptions. Again, it seems like there are only a couple books in the series, but maybe I've missed some.

The Babson mysteries are good, but each book has unique characters... I rather prefer series although I enjoy each of hers anyway.

[LoudLou]

Yes, there I think 7 Mrs. Murphy books http://www.ritamaebrown.com/ they are great books. That Mrs. Murphy is one saucy kitty! There is also a cook book!:D

[AmberLee]

I LOVE mysteries with recipes/cookbooks. How'd I miss that? May blessings pour upon you, LoudLou, for bringing it to my attention. Oh boy!

[AmberLee]

Originally posted by purrley
... did you and Marius's Mom go to the Pleasanton Cat Show and if so, what did you think of it????? ...

Things were hectic at work so I didn't discuss it until today. Got very long-winded in my review ;) :D of the cat show in the thread about 'Cat shows'. Basically, I had a blast, but see that thread for details. :D

[AmberLee]

The author of the 'Midnight Louie' cat mysteries is Carol or Carole Nelson Douglas.

[Edwina's Secretary]

Although not mysteries, I thought these were great books....

"Seven Cats and the Art of Living" written and illustrated by Jo Coudert. A New Yorker who writes of the lessons about life she learns from the cats who join her life.

"Great Cat Tales" edited by Lesley O'Mara. A collection of short stories by Emile Zola, Mark Twain, etc.

Both are great as you don't have to sit down and read the whole things. They lend themselves to a story or tow and night and you don't have to go back and try and remember what you read the other night!

[wolflady]

Hi everyone!!! Oh, how I missed all of you!!! I just had to jump on here this morning to check up on all you precious people and say hello!

I LOVE cat mystery series books. Thanks for brining up a new one for me, Amberlee:)
I've read ALL of the Cat Who mysteries...both my mom and I are hooked. She actually got me hooked into reading them and we have the whole series (jeesh...like when is Lillian going to come out with another??!!) plus the Cat Who companion AND cookbook! Cool, huh? I saw the cookbook, and couldn't refuse that for a birthday present for my mom. Did ya'll notice that food is mentioned quite a bit in the Cat Who series?? LOL The cookbook is neat in that it goes from book to book and has the recipes for food that was mentioned in each book. Neato!! LOL LOL So, which Cat Who mystery is your fave?? I'm partial to the Cat Who Saw Red for some reason...that one had me captivated and I couldn't put it down.
I have started on the Sneaky Pie Brown (Mrs. Murphy) mysteries too.
My mom recently found the Las Vegas ones too, and there are quite a few of those...you do have to read them starting with book one though or you might get lost.

My mom gave me a really small book a couple of christmases ago called the Cat Who Loved Christmas, and it's a book full of cat-related short stories...some a little on the tear-jerker side, but good.

Enjoy those mysteries everyone!!!!

[yumyum6970]

I just love Lillian Braun..The Cat Who Series. I have read everyone of them except her latest one which I will wait till it comes out in paperback. The Cat Who Smelled A Rat, is very good!!! :) Of course that is where I got yum yum's name from. :)
And she is part siamese too!

http://pepeirce.tripod.com/thekittycorner

[LoudLou]

Re: Cat Who......
I thougt so..."Of course that is where I got yum yum's name from. ".... Now you need a KOKO! Louie's middle name is QWILLERAN. I was going to name our first child Qwilleran but we decided we only wanted furbabies so Louie got blessed with Qwilleran.;) :D

[AmberLee]

Last trip to the library I stocked up on the newest in the Mrs. Murphy series. I'd forgotten how much fun they are to read. This last week we've been 'entertaining' the customer from ... well, I'll not go into details :rolleyes: :eek: :o but dipping into this series was a wonderful relief. Thank you for reminding me of it.

I can't remember the author of "The cat who went to Paris" book -- that was the first of three book about a Scottish Fold cat written by a former cat-hating absolutely smitten cat owner. I can't quite think of the cat's name either, but he was a cutie (Norton? I associate it with one of Jackie Gleason's associate's characters???). Adored the first book, had trouble with the second book cause the cat died, have seen the 3rd book but not read it... Real life adventures of a cat owned by a script writer who jets back and forth between Europe and NYC, mainly -- who in the arts adores the cat and just adventures of a first time cat owner told wittily.

[wolflady]

I know exactly which books you're talking about Amberlee, but alas cannot remember the names of 'em!! I can picture the one of the covers (was it the cat who came to Christmas?? ) with a white cat on it...and it's a true story. Hmmmmmm...jeesh! Can't remember now!!
I still have yet to look up the books by Babson. I was in the bookstore this weekend and was pleasantly surprised to see not one, but 2 new Cat Who books that I didn't have!!! LOL LOL When I read Yumyum's post about the Cat Who Smelled a Rat, it got my suspicions aroused, because I had (or at least I thought I did) the whole series of books. So, Thank you Yumyum for mentioning that one!!! I found it at the bookstore this weekend, and there is even a newer one called the Cat who went up a creek out in hardback! So, I'll have to wait for it to come into paperback, but mom and I were happy to finally have the next Cat Who book after waiting so long! LOL LOL I just love books! I can literally spend HOURS in Barnes and Noble or Borders!:D

[AmberLee]

:eek:

Dear Karen/Marius' Mom/Wolflady,

So glad you've gotten new books in the Lilian Jackson Braun series to read. What fun. Do let me know how the one you've gotten is. I believe you are thinking of Cleveland Amory's The Cat Who Came for Christmas and ?? it's sequel. As I recall Cleveland used the books to reminese (sp?) about his cat and as a clarion call for animal care/rescue work reform.

The one I was thinking of is Peter Geters' "The Cat Who Went to Paris", ?2nd in series, and "The Cat Who Will Live Forever". Personal memories and show biz discussions.

I looked up "The Cat Who ..." at our local library and there are 9 authors with titles starting like that. Most prominent is Lilian Jackson Braun who began her series in the 1960s. The earliest I found was Elizabeth Joan Coatsworth who wrote a children's book in 1958 called "The Cat Who Went to Heaven". Lloyd Alexander wrote a children's book in 1973 called "The Cat Who Wanted to Be a Man". Most of the others seem to be written in the late 80s or later on when Ms. Braun's books were already popular. The most interesting to me was one called "The cat who cried for help: attitudes, emotions, and the psychology of cats" by Nicholas H. Dodman in 1997.

Happy reading, all!

[yumyum6970]

Amberlee-

My husband and I love going to the bookstores on our date night Fridays, and I remembered about the author you were writing about here-Well of course I had to investigate and buy one of her books. The first book I bought is Paws for Alarm-I am half way finished and I'm loving it! :)
This past weekend I bought Company of Cats -I believe, and I can't wait to start reading it.:)

Thanks for sharing this with us!!! :)

http://pepeirce.tripod.com/thekittycorner

[AmberLee]

Never heard of that title. What good news you've given me! :D

I'll be keeping my eyes peeled. Right now I'm revelling in catching up with the Mrs. Murphy adventures.

What fun!!

[wolflady]

Originally posted by yumyum6970
Amberlee-
...-Well of course I had to investigate and buy one of her books. The first book I bought is Paws for Alarm-I am half way finished and I'm loving it! :)
This past weekend I bought Company of Cats -I believe, and I can't wait to start reading it.:)

Thanks for sharing this with us!!! :)

http://pepeirce.tripod.com/thekittycorner

I too picked up Paws for Alarm by Babson this weekend. I can't wait to start reading it! Yumyum, did you finish yet? What did you think of it?? I saw the In the Company of Cats too and couldn't decide which one to buy first, so I just went ahead with Paws for Alarm. I'll definitely be going back to find some more of hers when I finish. I'm sure I'll like them:D Thanks for mentioning Babson, AmberLee! I've just been able to add some more cat books to my growing collection of Cat mystery series!:D I'm in heaven! LOL LOL

[momoffuzzyfaces]

Gosh, it's great to find so many lovers of cat books. Just want to let anyone who may not know that Lilian Jackson Braun has a new Cat Who book out. The name is The Cat Who Went Up the Creek. The local library should be getting it soon if it doesn't all ready have it. She now has 24 books. I'm so hooked on them, I have them all and re-read them often. I'm a big fan of Sneakie Pie Brown too. :D