No one likes Alexis Hightower, so when the cat show judge turns up dead, with a cat toy stuffed in her mouth, just about everyone at the cat show slash speed dating weekend had motive. Scumble River's school psychologist Skye Denison just happens to find the body, and soon finds herself helping her police chief fiancΓ©, Wally Boyd, work his way through the suspect list.
MURDER OF THE CAT'S MEOW is the 15th book in the Scumble River series, but it's the first I've read. Author Denise Swanson weaves in enough background that I was never lost as continuing characters, like Skye's former students Frannie and Justin, are re-introduced.
The murder set-up is pretty complex, and without giving too much away, most of Skye and Wally's time is spent eliminating suspects and following dead-ends. They kind of stumble on the real motive and the killer near the end.
Skye, Wally, and the other regulars are likeable, well-drawn people, and the other characters have quirky personalities but don't seem one-dimensional. MURDER OF THE CAT'S MEOW is an entertaining cozy mystery, light enough to sleep easy at night, and puzzling enough to keep you interested.
When ex-Vegas showgirl and local business owner Bunny Reid starts an online dating service called Cupid's Cat’s Meow, out-of-town visitors flock to her bowling alley for the speed-dating and cat show events. Bunny’s scheme sounds harmless enough, but school psychologist Skye Denison knows all too well that an influx of strangers into Scumble River always spells trouble… Soon, Skye is called to the bowling alley to break up a fight between a riled-up contestant and the judge who insulted his feline. When the judge’s body is found — strangled with a cat toy — it’s up to Skye to solve the purrplexing mystery and show a devious killer that her sleuthing skills are the cat’s meow.
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