Book Review: Cat Chase the Moon by Shirley Rousseau Murphy

Joe Grey and his partner, Dulcie, are frantic when Courtney, their pretty teen-kitten goes missing. Aided by their two- and four-legged friends, they hit the streets of Molina Point in search of their calico girl. Has Joe Grey and Dulcie’s only daughter been lured away by someone and stolen? Is she lying somewhere hurt, or worse?

Courtney has no idea that everyone is desperately looking for her. Locked in an upstairs apartment above the local antiques shop, she’s enjoying her first solo adventure. When she first met Ulrich Seaver, the shop’s owner, Courtney was frightened. But the human has coddled and pampered her, winning her trust. Sheltered by her parents, her brothers, and her kind human companions, the innocent Courtney is unaware of how deceptive strangers can be. She doesn’t know that Ulrich is hiding a dangerous secret that could threaten her and everyone in this charming California coastal village.

With his focus on finding Courtney, Joe Grey has neglected his detective work with the Molina Point Police Department. Before his daughter disappeared, Joe found a viciously beaten woman lying near the beach. Now the police investigation has stalled, and the clever feline worries his human colleagues may have missed a vital clue. Joe is also concerned about a family of newcomers whose domestic battles are disturbing the town’s tranquility. Loud and abrasive, the Luthers’ angry arguing, shouting, and swearing in the early hours of the night have neighbors on edge and the cops on alert. One of the couple’s late-night shouting matches masked the sounds of a burglary, and now a criminal is on the loose.

Though the crimes are as crisscrossed as the strands of a ball of yarn, Joe Grey’s cat senses tell him they may somehow be linked. It’s up to the fleet-footed feline and his crime-solving coterie to untangle the mysteries before it’s too late.

The very first Joe Grey mystery was published over 20 years ago in 1996. I have every book in my collection, and while I haven't read the entire series yet, I have read several and through the years have enjoyed watching Joe and Dulcie solve crimes together and ultimately fall in love. In the last book Cat Shining Bright their litter of three extra special kittens, buff colored boys Striker and Buffin and calico Courtney, are born, and with them comes a whole new world of adventure for the felines of Molena Point.

For anyone new to the series, these cats have the ability to talk and many people in town share their secret. One human who is blissfully unaware is the police chief Max, but the cats still use their talent to be a snitch for the Molena Point Police Department via anonymous phone calls. In Cat Chase the Moon everything is put on the back burner when Joe and Dulcie's only little girl Courtney is catnapped by an antique shop owner with big plans for the beautiful calico. As a crime spree overtakes Molena Point there seems to be a link to the missing Courtney, making this a case that hits a little too close to home for our feline friends. I confess more than a few tears were shed at the end.

The Joe Grey series has been going strong for two decades for a reason...it's one of the most remarkable, unique collections of cat novels on the market. Each cat has a unique personality that will capture reader's imaginations, and now that Joe and Dulcie are parents there's an added layer to their relationship through the interactions with the kittens. I appreciate how we know the culprits earlier on in the book than most mysteries, subsequently allowing more time to be spent on the motive and capture. All too often loose ends are left untied until the final three pages.

Whether you've spent the last 2 decades following Joe and Dulcie's adventures or you're new to the dynamic duo, Cat Chase the Moon will leave you purring.

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