Cozy
Reads: Cat Mysteries (Series)
I love
mysteries, and I love mysteries with cats
in them. Below I've provided
information about several mysteries series
that have one or more cats involved in
some way. I've tried, whenever
possible, to provide the complete list of
books in a series so you can check them
off your list. ;-)
- The
Cat Who series - The series is
about Jim Qwilleran, a journalist whose career had
been derailed by alcoholism and divorce. As a
long-time newspaper man, he is mortified when he
is given an insignificant column in the features
section. He accepts, and in his research he ends
up solving a murder. He adopts the victim’s
now-homeless cat, Koko, who proves to be the most
intelligent and entertaining in literature. Each
novel is a vacation for the reader to a quirky,
arts-loving, small town “400 miles north of
everywhere” where the most important building is
the library. Each novel in the series is a
who-done-it, with an interesting cast of
characters. There are 30 books in the
series, which ended in 2007, a few years before
the author died at the age of 97.
- The
books in order are: The Cat Who Could Read
Backwards, The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern, The
Cat Who Turned On and Off, The Cat Who Saw Red,
The Cat Who Played Brahms, The Cat Who Played
Post Office, The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare, The
Cat Who Sniffed Glue, The Cat Who Went
Underground, The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts, The
Cat Who Lived High, The Cat Who Knew a Cardinal,
The Cat Who Moved a Mountain, The Cat Who Wasn't
There, The Cat Who Went into the Closet, The Cat
Who Came to Breakfast, The Cat Who Blew the
Whistle, The Cat Who Said Cheese, The Cat Who
Tailed a Thief, The Cat Who Sang for the Birds,
The Cat Who Saw Stars, The Cat Who Robbed a
Bank, The Cat Who Smelled a Rat, The Cat Who
Went up the Creek, The Cat Who Brought Down the
House, The Cat Who Talked Turkey, The Cat Who
Went Bananas, The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell,
and The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers. Note: I
don't really recommend the last 2 in the series;
the quality had deteriorated badly.)
Also: Short & Tall Tales: Moose County
Legends Collected by James Mackintosh Qwilleran,
The Private Life of the Cat Who: Tales of Koko
and Yum Yum from the Journals of James
MacKintosh Qwilleran
- Garnet
Quinn
writes about the adventures of Hawkeye, an
outsized Maine Coon cat with extra toes, who found
life rather dull and ordinary at the MerryMaines
Cattery until he fished a small, uppity and very
royal Siamese Korat from a raging Penobscot River
in Northern Maine. While her paws may never have
touched anything but velvet, Bhu Fan teamed up
with Hawkeye to foil a vicious pair of so-called
animal brokers, evil men who tried to coerce Beth
Merriman into selling them her cattery under
threat of arson. And that is just the beginning of
the adventures of this unlikely pairing of allies.
Kidnapping, more perils, automobile thieves to be
thwarted, life is never quite the same at The
MerryMaines.
- As
of 2012, the books in order are: The Merry
Maines: A Shaggy Cat Story, The Moosery, The
Merry Maines Sing a Song of Sixpence, The Merry
Maines Go Country.
- The
Joe
Grey Mysteries
 are a series of
novels written by Shirley Rousseau Murphy. Joe
Grey is a talking cat. You'll also meet Dulcie and
Kit. The Joe Grey novels have won seven Muse
Medallion awards from the Cat Writers Association,
and one has won the new World's Best Cat
Litter-ary Award, too.
- As
of 2012, the books in order are: Cat on the
Edge, Cat Under Fire, Cat Raise the Dead, Cat in
the Dark, Cat to the Dogs, Cat Spitting Mad, Cat
on the Money, Cat Laughing Last, Cat Seeing
Double, Cat Fear No Evil, Cat Cross Their
Graves, Cat Breaking Free, Cat Pay the Devil,
Cat Deck the Halls, Cat Playing Cupid, Cat
Striking Back, Cat Coming Home, Cat Telling
Tales
- Since
1990,
Rita Mae Brown and her real-life cat Sneaky Pie
Brown have co-authored a cat mystery series: the Mrs.
Murphy Mysteries. The novels feature Mary Minor
“Harry” Haristeen, Mrs. Murphy (a tabby cat),
Tucker (a Corgi), and Pewter (a fat gray kitty) [the animals talk].
- As
of 2012, the books in order are: Wish You
Were Here, Rest in Pieces, Murder at Monticello,
Pay Dirt, Murder She Meowed, Murder on the
Prowl, Cat on the Scent, Sneaky Pie's Cookbook
for Mystery Lovers, Pawing through the Past,
Claws and Effect, Catch as Cat Can, The Tail of
the Tip-Off, Whisker of Evil, Cat's Eyewitness,
Sour Puss, Puss 'n Cahoots, Purrfect Murder,
Santa Clawed, Cat of the Century, Hiss of Death,
The Big Cat Nap: The 20th Anniversary Mrs.
Murphy Mystery.
- The Alice
Nestleton Mysteries, by Lydia Adamson.
Alice
is a sometimes-employed actress who cat sits for the
well-to-do. Every murder she solves has a cat
involved. Lydia Adamson was a pseudonym of
Franklin B. King.
- The last
Nestleton book was published in 1994: A Cat
in the Manger, A Cat of a Different Color, A Cat
in the Wings, A Cat in Fine Style, A Cat by Any
Other Name, A Cat in a Chorus Line, A Cat in
Wolf's Clothing, A Cat in a Glass House, A Cat on
a Winning Streak, A Cat on the Cutting Edge
- Midnight
Louie mysteries, by Carole Nelson
Douglas. The novels feature public-relations
wiz Temple Barr and her tomcat sleuth Louie [the
animals talk].
- As of 2012, the
books in order are: Catnap, Pussyfoot, Cat
on a Blue Monday, Cat in a Crimson Haze, Cat in a
Diamond Dazzle, Cat with an Emerald Eye, Cat in a
Flamingo Fedora, Cat in a Golden Garland, Cat on a
Hyacinth Hunt, Cat in an Indigo Mood, Cat in a
Jeweled Jumpsuit, Cat in a Kiwi Con, Cat in a
Leopard Spot, Cat in a Midnight Choir, Cat in a
Neon Nightmare, Cat in an Orange Twist, Cat in a
Hot Pink Pursuit, Cat in a Quicksilver Caper, Cat
in a Red Hot Rage, Cat in a Sapphire Slipper, Cat
in a Topaz Tango, Cat in an Ultramarine Scheme,
Cat in a Vegas Gold Vendetta, Cat in a White Tie
and Tails
- Rebecca
M. Hale
writes the Cats and Curios mystery
series. The series, starring Rebecca's cats Rupert
and Isabella, takes place at an antique shop in San
Francisco's historic Jackson Square.
- As of 2012, the
books are: How to Wash a Cat, Nine Lives
Last Forever, How to Moon a Cat, How to Tail a Cat
- Marion
Babson
is a pseudonym for author Ruth
Stenstreem. Her books revolve around mysterious
deaths, though some are more gentle thrillers than
actual mysteries. While she reuses certain
characters, such as the publicity firm Perkins &
Tate and a couple of aging actresses, her books are
all stand-alone and can be read in any order. Many
of the books, in particular the Perkins & Tate
books, involve cats.
- The Garrison
Allen
(pseudonym for Gary Amo) mysteries feature Penelope
Warren, the owner of Mystery Bookstore in Arizona
and Big Mike (aka Mycroft), a huge lima-beans-eating
Abyssinian cat.
- The books in
order (last one published in 1999) are:
Desert Cat, Royal Cat, Stable Cat, Baseball Cat,
Movie Cat, Dinosaur Cat.
- Miranda
James has written a "Cat in
the Stacks" mystery series. Everyone in
Athena, Mississippi, knows widowed librarian Charlie
Harris-and his huge Maine coon cat named Diesel that
he walks on a leash.
- As of 2012, the
books are, in order: Murder Past Due,
Classified as Murder, File "M" for Murder.
- In 2007, Gilbert
Morris published three books in the Jacque
and Cleo, Cat Detectives series. The books
feature Jacques and Cleo and their human, Kate
Forrest.
- The books in
order (last published in 2008) are: What the
Cat Dragged In, The Cat's Pajamas, When the Cat's
Away
- Ali
Brandon began the Black Cat
Bookshop Mystery series in 2011. As the new
owner of Pettistone's Fine Books, Darla Pettistone
is determined to prove herself a worthy successor to
her late great-aunt Dee. She inherited Hamlet,
the smarter-than-thou cat along with the shop.
- As of 2012, the
books are: Double Booked for Death and Paws
of Death
- Allison
Cesario Paton writes about senior
sleuth Mrs. Bundle and her sidekick Cracker, her cat
and their adventures in Vermont.
- As of 2012, the
books in order are: Mrs. Bundle Takes A Hike: The
Case Of The Singing Swans, Mrs. Bundle's Dog Days
Of Summer: A Case Of Artful Arson, Mrs. Bundle's
Maine Vacation: Subterfuge At The Seashore, Mrs.
Bundle's Hair-Raising Adventures: Peril On
Skitchewaug Mountain And Other Tales Of Mystery,
Mrs. Bundle's Midnight Mystery: The Case Of The
Springfield Shock Jock.
- Clea
Simon is author of the
about a music writer and her cat Musetta. Her
Dulcie Schwartz series is about a grad student and
Mr. Grey, Dulcie's deceased cat who shows up now and
again to help. Her Pru Marlow series about an animal
behaviorist/animal psychic has a dog but also
features a tabby named Wallis. As of 2012:
- Theda Krakow
Mystery series: Mew is for Murder, Cattery Row,
Cries and Whiskers, Probable Claws
- Dulcie Schwartz
series: Shades
of Grey, Grey Matters, Grey Zone
- Pru Marlow series: Dogs Don't Lie,
Cats Can't Shoot
- Fran
Stewart wrote 5 "traditional" mysteries , with
plenty of humor, intriguing characters, and always a
good puzzle. They feature Biscuit McKee, a
middle-aged librarian, and Marmalade, the orange and
white library cat.
- The books in
order of publication (most recent published
in 2008) are:
Orange as Marmalade, Yellow as Legal Pads, Green
as a Garden Hose, Blue as Blue Jeans, and Indigo
as an Iris
- Last but not least,
Amazon.com has an entire mystery book section of Cat
Sleuths
|
, by Pam Johnson-Bennett
is the once-in-a-lifetime true story
of an extraordinary cat [who happens to be blind]
and his human companion. It celebrates the refusal
to accept limits—on love, ability, or hope against
overwhelming odds. By turns jubilant and moving,
it’s a memoir for anybody who’s ever fallen
completely and helplessly in love with a pet. I
wrote about Homer 
- Oscar lives in a nursing
home. No one knows how he does it, but when
he detects that someone is near death, he takes up
residence on their bed and usually stays until the
funeral director comes to collect the body. He
also offers comfort to the family who are there to
be with their loved one during this
transition. I wrote about Oscar 
