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One night in the small town of Molena Point, garage worker Samuel Beckwhite is killed by a seemingly unprovoked blow to the head at his place of business. Looking on from a nearby alley is Joe Grey, a very special cat. The killer sees Joe and goes after him relentlessly. Joe lives with Clyde Damen who also works at the garage and when the killer later pursues him at his home, Joe realises he has to get out. This is the first in the Joe Grey mystery series, and introduces us to Joe as he discovers his power of understanding human speech, and masters talking too. Feeling very isolated, he eventually meets up with Dulcie a beautiful female cat and they discover they not only have the same powers, but that Dulcie was also a witness to the murder. Convinced that the killer is after both of them, and that he is trying to set up Clyde as the fall guy, they set out to establish his identity and protect Clyde. CAT ON THE EDGE is predominantly the story of the cats as they react to their new abilities and come to terms with them. It establishes the characters for the rest of the series, but at the expense of the murder mystery being very thin, with some unnecessary complications thrown in to the resolution at the very end. The bigger mystery is why the killer is after the cats, and here the plot has a strong supernatural theme, which appears to echo an earlier non-series novel, CATSWOLD PORTAL. This theme may not continue in later Joe Grey mysteries, and certainly is not evident in the latest book in the series, Cat Laughing Last, a more traditional cat mystery. Joe and Dulcie are fascinating characters; real cats that love to hunt and play, and just happen to be able to talk too. CAT ON THE EDGE is a thoroughly enjoyable piece of escapism that has me looking forward to the rest of the series with enthusiasm.
Reviewed by Bridget Bolton, March 2003
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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