All my Goodreads friends can finally rejoiced--I've finished all the Cat Who books! Now you can stop getting notifications that I'm reading them/finished with them. Now that I've finished these I figure I owe it to Mr. Qwerillan to write a final review. First of all, these books span decades and it's fascinating to see how things changed! Secondly, if you enjoy cats and mysteries you should seriously think about devoting your free reading time to reading these. Charming doesn't begin to explain it. The mysteries aren't great and more than once I felt like the big kaboom reveal was kind of haphazardly squished in to the end summary but the main drive of these books is the wit, character and quaint little small town.Mr Qwilleran (pronounced Quilleran), and his two Siamese cats Koko and Yum-Yum live in the quiet town of Moose County, which is 400 miles north of Everywhere. While the bulk of the novels take place here, the earlier ones often jump to other places of interest including long stays at rustic summer cabins, old hotels, and even a high-rise in the city. Not surprisingly, trouble seems to follow the trio wherever they go and it's up to Mr. Q, and his smart cat Koko to solve the case.It's not as cat obsessed as it sounds. Actually I would argue that these book are the antidote to 'Crazy cat lady lit' OR crazy cat lady prejudice which I'm sure most of us have experienced :)Regardless, the antics of Koko and Yum Yum are too hilarious to avoid, and Qwill's strong devotion and attachment to them will make you curl up with sweetness and die. My sister and I have made it our goal to turn the entire series into a PBS mini-series starring Tom Selleck. Anyways, if you are looking for some quick reads and good times, pick these up. Start at the beginning of course. The later ones are definitely not as good but if you're like me you'll still always look forward to picking up the next chapter of Qwill and the cats' lives.
Ah, the end of the series. Over the last 5 or 6 books I've been feeling a building to a big change and sadly it comes at the end before the author could really use the big twist. But here we see many personal changes for Qwill. There is a mystery, lightly observed and then figured out. But in many ways, I felt the changes she made while drastic were good. The one thing that kept Qwill in the area was due to a requirement of his inheritance. I think he enjoyed it and since he had traveled widely when he was young, this climate was actually new to him. In this story we seem to be reaching the end of his contract where he could move about more... and I wondered if he would travel more in future stories. Always a bit sad to reach the end of a series though many of the characters will live on... Recap- the early mysteries in this series are more true mysteries that Qwill is actively investigating. The later books have deaths that are crimes but over the course of the story Qwill finds out that they are indeed crimes but occasionally has the proof - or the evil doer gets what's coming to 'im. The later part of the series is also very soap-operatic in nature- where we follow the people and the history of the community. Braun's style while it may be old-fashioned for some, actually sounds like what someone her age would write-- and that's fine. The last book she wrote was planned to be published after her death, but then the publisher decided not to publish. That is a mystery I would like to find the answer to- if you know please let me know.
Do You like book The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers (2007)?
It is time for this series to die. I have obviously loved it, but it has outlived its originality and needs to be put down. Koko's whiskers still quiver, and he still does his best to give clues and solve the murder, but Qwill is too busy being the eligible-bachelor-about-town to notice, at least until after someone else has solved the murder. Then he thinks, "So that's why Koko freaked out whenever so-and-so walked into the room. Hmmm. I wonder what [insert female character's name here:] is doing tonight?"It's always fun to check back in with the gang from Pickax, but I give up. These are nothing more than catalogs of Qwill's latest columns and dates at this point. Don't let me dissuade anyone from starting the series; they are really good cozy mysteries at the beginning. Just give up on them well before this point.
—JG (The Introverted Reader)
I hate having to give any book such a low rating. I really do. But this one was... basically incomprehensible, I guess. I started reading this series when I was twelve, and even though I don't read as many cozies in general anymore, this is one series that I always read, out of loyalty, or nostalgia, or something. Some of the earlier ones really were quite good. Unfortunately, I think Mrs. Braun is overdue for retirement. Or at least needs a serious editor. Was there even a mystery in this mystery? Sort of vaguely, I guess. But there was no coherent plot, and the characters acted very out-of-character, and the writing was disjointed. It made me sad.
—Kate
Love Ms, Braun's books. Qwill is quite a character and, of course, I adore Koko and Yum Yum! Koko is an amazing cat, but Yum Yum is special in her own right. I actually felt offended that everyone kept asking Qwill, "How's Koko?" What about Yum Yum? Just because she doesn't seem to give any hints or clues about crimes doesn't mean she's unimportant.I enjoyed the book very much and would have given it 4 stars if not for a few things; A.)I felt there were some loose ends to the case( did they catch the killer?)B.Will Qwill rebuild the burned down barn/house? C. Are Qwill and Polly really over? Hopefully Ms. Braun answers these questions in subsequent books. I will certainly read more of her books because I do enjoy the adventures of these characters and I learn a lot of literary things I didn't know.In this particular book I learned a little about viticulture and it's place in literature and society. through Qwill I learn a lot about words, literature, and esoteric information. Ms. Braun must do lots of research!Happy reading!
—Susan
