Psychic cat Irene Peggledrip is being visited by a band of malevolent spirits who all claim to be murderers. Not only is their message disturbing, but they cause chaos with indoor snowstorms, flying books and the untimely demise of a delicious Victoria sponge. Irene calls in Hettie and Tilly of the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency to help, but they’re not sure how far their skills reach into the … skills reach into the spirit realm.
Meanwhile, Lavender Stamp, the town’s bad-tempered postmistress cat, has some good news to deliver to Tilly: she has won a competition to take afternoon tea with renowned mystery writer Agatha Crispy at her Devon home, Furaway House.
Will Hettie and Tilly finally lay the ghosts to rest? Can Molly Bloom’s new café survive the seance? And will the moving claw give up its secrets before the gravy congeals? Find out in this latest adventure of our favourite feline sleuths.
What people are saying about The No. 2 Feline Detective Agency:
‘True escapism into a world of pies, cakes and cats while somehow smuggling a truer reflection of the real world than much human detective fiction.’
‘A deceptively nasty murder wrapped up in a cardigan, and served by the fire with tea and cake. A delight from beginning to end.’
‘Hilarious and captivating.’
‘The cat world’s answer to the cosy crime novel, with bags of charm and characters you don’t want to leave behind.’
‘I love this series and am waiting with a warmed pastry, a hot mug of something, and a crackling fire for the next in the series.’
Editorial reviews:
‘Original and intriguing… a world without people which cat lovers will enter and enjoy.’ P. D. James
‘Mandy Morton’s Feline Detective Agency instigates a new genre, both wonderful and surreal.’ Maddy Prior
‘The world that Morton has created is irresistible.’ Publishers Weekly
‘Witty and smart. Prepare to be besotted.’ M.K. Graff
‘Mandy Morton’s series is both charming and whimsical.’ Barry Forshaw
‘Hettie Bagshot might be a new face at the scene of a crime, but already she could teach most fictional detectives a thing or two.’ The Hunts Post
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The Play within the Play
Ms Morton puts her feline detectives into some interesting situations, in this case involving psychic manifestations. The book title is a clever pun which is sort of revealed (well, at least *I* had an “aHA!” moment about 1/3 of the way in)–okay, I guess that is a pun of its own but since the book is replete with them, be prepared! In addition there are tons of clever wordplays when it comes to the naming of cats. I’ve only read one other of the series and although there are probably lots of cross references to earlier cases, this tale (sorry, it’s catching!) stands well on its own. Keywords: thespians, motorcyclists, cooks. Have fun!
Hettie Bagshot and Tilly Jenkins, proprietors of the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency, are back again in their seventh case, in “Beyond the Gravy” by Mandy Morton. They’re cats, by the way.
Business has come to a halt. It’s winter. Soon, readers find out about Bloomers, the new cafe in town. Molly Bloom is the owner. Then we “meet” Irene Peggledrip – who wants everyone to pronounce the ‘e’ in her name. She’s the local psychic. Delirium Treemints is her house cat (house keeper) and general factotum. And of course no Feline Detective agency book is complete without a mention of Agatha Crispy — Tillie’s favorite author. Oh, and there’s Elise Haddock — owns the local fish and chips shop. Are you getting the picture here? There are plenty more inhabitants, rivaling humans in their uniqueness and quirkiness.
Irene contacts Hettie to visit, imploring the duo to rid her house of some ghostly inhabitants, who have become impossible to ignore and are upsetting her spirit guide to distraction. A psychic can only take so much, after all. The (dead) spokes-cat decrees that unless the group can be made “free from guilt,” they’re not going anywhere. It becomes pretty obvious the group has done something very bad, and now they’re stuck “in between,” as it were. It’s up to The No. 2 Detective Agency to tackle this otherworldly problem — to figure out who, and possibly why, and expose it all.
But not before Tilly gets her chance to visit her favorite author, and take tea. This was a nice little touch, but it took a long time to get there with a lot of sidetracking which may go on far too long for some.
Now, I don’t like ghosts in mysteries — shouldn’t they be able to solve the mystery on their own? Or contribute a lot more than they do? I’m prepared to suspend a lot of disbelief when reading the Hettie and Tilly books, after all. But ghosts are not my cup ‘o tea (or pipe o’ nip). But for many, this will just add another little layer to your delight at reading these books. For me, I’d like to see all eight paws firmly on the ground in the next adventure.
I should mention that everybody gets to eat a lot in this book. And we’re not talking cans of tuna. The new cafe has a wonderful menu, and everybody has a sweet tooth. How a cat handles a cream horn can occupy a lot of thinking time, let me tell you.
I should also mention that this is a darker book than others in the series. Real issues are discussed here. And the ending, as the point and counterpoint of the murder(s) is discussed, comes out rather gruesomely. The murder gets discovered in a slightly out of left field fashion; murderers on top of murderers, tables turned in a ghastly fashion, as it were.
When Agatha Crispy finds out what has happened, she presents a new story in their honor. Quite the finish to the case.
At last, Irene will have peace. “The strangest of cases” had come to a “satisfactory conclusion.” The characters are what makes these books, and as much as I didn’t much like the plot in this one, you can’t help but be fascinated by the fascinating ones that Mandy Morton has conjured up (sorry, couldn’t resist).
Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for advanced copy of this book, in exchange for this review.