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Last Year

Customer Rating:
I liked it as well as the others, but I'm wondering if it was the last of the series.

This book is a good end (???) to the series

Customer Rating:
All of the remarks in other reviews are accurate for this book, as well as most of the last 5 or 6 books. But, as it appears that an additional book, "The Cat Who Smelled Smoke", may not be published (Wikipedia), and Ms. Braun is reported to be in ill health by another reviewer, this may be the final book. It is unsettling, but maybe it is exactly the right book for this.

Many of the main citizens of Pickax and Moose County have had problems and most have had Qwill's help in resolving them. New characters come out in each book, but all of the principal characters have settled into their lives. Except Qwill and Polly.

Qwill is settling down. In earlier books, he said that writing books that would never be complete was a good excuse to avoid doing things that didn't suit him. Now, he has several published. Not quite so independent, over the past several books he has gotten more and more engaged in town activities as a participant, not just a reporter. Also, the ardor between Qwill and Polly has been cooling as his interest in other women has increased slightly.

With Qwill in her life, Polly enjoyed the male-female relationship and thought their close friendship would be enough. But Qwill continued to insist that he is a confirmed bachelor, and she found some of the men on her trips found her more than a little interesting. It may be that she decided that as she was already on an extended break, and I assume receiving more interest from men (she IS in Paris), she was ready to move on. It also seems that Qwill was not terribly despondent while she was away.

Even the barn seemed to be a chore. In this book he remarked that the seasonal change seemed to be a waste of time and energy.

So it resolves this way:
1 Polly finds a new life in France
2 Qwill breaks from the past with:
___a the barn (old Moose County/Pickax) gone
___b permanent move to the Willows
___c he moves past Polly to get acquainted with the several
new women in this book.

If this is the last book, I will miss the folks and tales of Moose County in general and Qwill and the Siamese in particular. But even thought the arsonists weren't caught and explanations of the events were scarce, it is still a good ending because Polly and Qwill both ended the past and started out on exciting and happy new paths.

The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers (Cat Who...)

Don't skip any pages!

Customer Rating:
Although this may not the best in the "CAT" series, we should be thankful for Mr. Braun's continuing work on this story. Koko and Yum Yum are up to the usual feline high~jinks and there are a few surprises in store for you. I had skipped a few pages by accident on the first read and was mystified as to what was happening. However I reread the book and it made much more sense to me. It would truly be a "CATastrophe" if this was the last book. Keep up the good work Mr. Braun!!

Goodbye old friend

Customer Rating:
As anyone who has ever loved a cat knows someday that little puff of fluff who steals your heart will someday no longer be the sleek and agile athlete that delights you with crazy acrobatics. All too soon your faithful companion begins to sleep more, play less and slow down until the sad day you must accept that it is over and it is time to let your friend go. Apparently that is so for this beloved series as well. Fans have been noticing the slow decline for a while. The plots that were a bit plodding, the characters that no longer sprang to life off the pages, and yet like the cat guardian who takes comfort in the good days when their friend seems to regain their old spark however briefly fans would open each new Cat Who...book and eagerly search out the bits that had the old wit and charm that had won them over in the first place. In this one though, the spark seems to have gone out completely.

It is common in this series for the murder mystery aspect to take a backseat to Qwill and the cats. The murder often is a secondary plot to other, smaller mysteries - who is the mysterious stranger?, who is behind a prank? etc that may or may not be related to the murder. In this one though the murder is set up, the interesting side mysteries laid out, new characters are introduced as possible suspects and then.....not a whole lot. The murder happens and is then pretty much ignored. When it is solved this reader had to go back after finishing the book and search for the few sentences that revealed the culprit and motive. It had been tossed off so casually that it was all but lost in the Moose County storyline. The little side questions don't even get that much attention.

Also sadly for long term fans many of their old friends drop by but behave either as if they are not feeling up to par or just plain behave badly. Polly in particular acts completely out of character, especially towards her supposedly adored cats. There is also a completely unnecessary destruction of a familiar landmark that has figured so prominently for so long that it had almost become a character itself. It's demise was not even part of the plot as previous landmarks' destruction had been, instead it was destroyed and dismissed in a few sentences.

It is not as though there was no room for these plot aspects to be developed either. This novel in many ways is a lot like a high school essay that has been stretched to reach the required number of pages, the font is a bit larger than normal, the margins a bit wider, the spacing a bit generous and portions that would have previously been condensed or even edited out are included.

As when the grieving cat owner realizes that at some point the pain of saying goodbye will be replaced with memories of happier times, this reader is looking forward to the time when happier recollections of Qwill and the cats will replace the painful thoughts of their decline.

Those new to the series should absolutely not start here, instead begin with anything else in the series. Fans of this series might even wish to skip this one, it is honestly too much like taking a much loved cat into the vet for the final visit.

Good night, dearest Qwill, Koko & Yum Yum

Customer Rating:
My initial dismay with this book is lessened by learning that Ms. Braun is not in the best of health. (May your health be restored, LJB!) She has given us all so very much over the years. Her books have always given me the sense of being a secret but honorary member of Moose County. I will forever appreciate the many happy hours I've spent there, courtesy Ms. Braun.
Like most other reviewers here, I was stunned by Polly's desertion (of store, Qwill, and cats) and the unexplained (and unmourned) destruction of the amazing apple barn. I came away thinking "Why didn't she just kill off Koko & Yum Yum and be done with it?" Thank goodness THAT didn't happen.
I blame the agent, editor, and publisher for not gently asking the author to bid Qwill, Koko, and Yum Yum a fond and dignified good night...for everyone's sake.