Jillian Hart has her hands full helping Mercy Animal Sanctuary shelter owner Shawn Cuddahee nurse newborn kittens through the night with her best friend Candace Carson. When Candace, Deputy for the Mercy, South Carolina, police department, gets a call after their night at the shelter, Jillian is her willing ride-along to investigate the disappearance of a local woman's cow.

The cow is discovered, the mystery seemingly solved, until cats begin showing up at a nearby neighbor's home. Just the hint of cats in distress has Jillian on the case, and what she discovers is more than a little bit disturbing. The professor who'd cow-napped the cow has a collection of cats in various stages of malnutrition. Before Jillian and Candace can arrest the professor and free the cats, someone metes out their own form of justice using strychnine. Now Jillian has her hands full dealing with homeless strays, the unexpected arrival of her deceased husband's adult daughter, and Tom, the man who wants to take his budding relationship with Jillian to the next level. As if that's not enough, she has to stay one step ahead of a killer threatening to make her the next victim!

Leann Sweeney's THE CAT, THE PROFESSOR AND THE POISON is the second in the Cats in Trouble mysteries; a fun, entertaining story. Jillian is a great character, a woman coming to grips with recent widowhood while making a place for herself in a new home with her three cats. She has a strong support system in her friends and a willingness to help all cats and kittens, sometimes to her own peril. The mystery will keep the reader guessing and the conclusion is satisfying and will leave readers looking forward to Jillian's next adventure. I enjoyed this story so much, I bought the first in the series!