A Night's Tail

Sofie Kelly

Sep 2019 · Magical Cats Book 11 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

In the charming town of Mayville Heights, librarian Kathleen Paulson and her two cats pounce on clues to catch a killer, in the eleventh installment of this New York Times bestselling series.

Spring is coming to Mayville Heights, and Kathleen’s brother, Ethan, has arrived in town with his band, The Flaming Gerbils. But not everything goes as scheduled when one of Ethan’s bandmates gets into a fight with a man interested in investing in the town. When the businessman’s body is later found, Ethan’s friend is implicated in the crime.

Kathleen wants to help her brother by solving the case, but she has no shortage of suspects from which to choose. Prior to his death, the investor was fighting like cats and dogs with lots of people. If this librarian wants more than a whisker’s chance of solving the case, she will need to rely on her trusty feline sidekicks, Owen and Hercules.

Ratings and reviews

A Night’s Tail by Sofie Kelly is the eleventh A Magical Cats Mystery and a joy to read. I like the author’s casual and engaging writing style. I was quickly drawn into this cute cozy mystery with librarian, Kathleen Paulson and her two magical cats, Hercules and Owen. The beginning with Mary is hysterical (I do not want to spoil it for you). Kathleen’s brother, Ethan is visiting town with his band, The Flaming Gerbils. The group recently lost one of its members to art school, so Derek Hanson has been playing with them. Derek ends up the top suspect in a businessman’s murder after having an altercation with him at a bar. Ethan asks Kathleen to prove Derek’s innocence. Kathleen soon finds the victim had a checkered past which leads to multiple suspects. There are good clues to help readers in solving the whodunit before Kathleen zeros in on her quarry. The cats help guide Kathleen along the way and provide some pivotal clues. There are charming cozy moments as Kathleen spends time with brother, enjoys outings with friends, plans a quilt show at the library, dates with her boyfriend, and interacts with her cats. Owen and Hercules are cute and clever felines. I like how Kathleen talks to them (uses them as a sounding board) and they respond with their little noises. Owen, of courses, manages to dismember a catnip chicken or two (he is addicted to catnip much to his brother’s disgust). Kathleen finds it is time to tell Marcus about his feline’s special ability, but she is not sure how he will react to the news. If you are new to A Magical Cats Mystery series, I recommend reading Curiosity Thrilled the Cat first. It will provide you with needed background information. I wish there had been less repetition of case details as Kathleen shares what she has uncovered with others and discusses the case with her cats. I had to laugh when Kathleen called Owen and Hercules “two mooching furballs” as they tried to acquire human food from Ethan (I had a cat like that). A Night’s Tail is a spellbinding tale with a catnip chicken catastrophe, quilt show quandaries, a cookie calamity, and a busy brother with a bothersome bandmate.

About the author

Sofie Kelly is a New York Times bestselling author and mixed-media artist who writes the Magical Cats Mysteries and, as Sofie Ryan, writes the Second Chance Cat Mysteries.