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Customer Reviews

My Favorite Cozy Series!

2006-07-19
In the 5th book in The Cat Who...series, James Qwilleran aka "Qwill", a newsman for the Daily Fluxion is in a bit of a funk. He had returned to writing for a paper after a several years absence, and has sobered up and adopted two beautiful Siamese cats. After bouncing around with several different assignments at the Daily Fluxion, Qwill is thinking of a change. When his apartment building is sold, and the Press Club is hideously remodeled, Qwill's mind is made up. He decides to take his godmother, Aunt Fanny, up on her offer of spending the summer at her cabin in Moose County. He purchases a car, packs up the cats, and heads 400 miles north of everywhere to live in Pickaxe. Surprises abound when Qwill rolls into town, and nothing seems to go right for him from the beginning. Animals have vandalized the cabin, blue pickups seem to follow Qwill everywhere, and the restaurants offer limp food and watery coffee. Aunt Fanny seems to have her own agenda as well, and even though Qwill loves his eccentric elderly "aunt", he gives her a wide berth while chuckling at her antics. When Qwill hooks a "corpse" on a fishing trip, he immediately reports it to the local authorities, but no one seems to take him seriously. He sees treachery at every turn, and the more that the locals laugh off his suspicions, the more Qwill is determined to figure out what illegal dealings are going on in this interesting town.

This is my favorite cozy mystery series! I had read all of the books in the past, and wanted to read them again for a second time. This time around, I have chosen to listen to them on CD, as I love the voice of George Guidall. I am happily rediscovering how Qwill became a resident of Moose County, and this book will lay the groundwork for the rest of the books to come. For those that have not read the series, I do recommend reading the first several first. Many others can be intermixed, but this book offers good insight as to how Qwill became associated with Moose County. This is a great series by my favorite author!

The first book in the series is called "The Cat who Could Read Backwards". Enjoy!

A regular LJ Braun winner!

2006-06-27
Amazing how Braun continues to turn out such good material.

Koko Rides a Moose

2005-04-22
In this the fifth book of this series, our hero Jim Qwilleran decides that it is time for a short change of pace and that he may just take his "Aunt" Fanny up on her offer of a free lakeside cabin for the summer. Any doubts he has about the move quickly disappear when he finds that the Press Club has been remodeled and that his living quarters have been sold out from under him. There is a little problem with story inconsistency here because Maus Haus is being torn down despite information in the last book that an art center of some sort must be maintained there. Not a big deal but it did draw my attention.

Soon Qwilleran has bought a car and he and his cats are headed to Pickaxe City to visit Aunt Fanny and then on to the cabin which is located in Mooseville. Braun is well known for her colorful characters and as one might imagine Moose County is fertile ground for a good crop of exceptionally colorful characters. Beyond the people, the area in question has a character all of it's own. The restaurants are for the most part awful, most people drive blue pick-up trucks, the local turkey farmer has a BO problem and no one wants to report a crime because they will get someone they know into trouble. There is indeed crime in Moose County but with nobody reporting it the police have to resort to setting up roadblocks to pass the time.

Qwilleran, a confirmed city boy has all kinds of problems while trying to get used to the rural quiet. He buys a cap so he will fit in but he thinks that the septic tank hole is a grave, he picks at poison ivy, and the various animal noises during the night prompt several calls to the sheriff. At one point he tries to impress a visitor by pointing out that they just heard an owl but the visitor corrects him and says it was a dove. An easy mistake that even my country born and raised wife has made.

As out of his element as Qwilleran is, he is still sure that something terribly illegal is going on around him. He pokes around but all he gets is a bad case of poison ivy and he is wary of calling the police since they already think he is about half-nuts. The mystery in this book is a little more subtle than in some of the previous books and the reader will not find the answer, or what the mystery is for that matter until late in the book. Basically the reader is in the same boat as the hero and is not able to quite put his finger on things until once again the cats come to the rescue. Then, even after the first mystery is solved another one appears that has been quietly lurking under everyone's nose for almost half of the book. Neither Qwilleran nor the readers know of this mystery until the mighty Koko provides the answer to the previously unknown question. For once the ever-suspicious reporter is not suspicious enough.

This is another good story by Lilian Jackson Braun that draws the reader in as the narrative proceeds. One isn't drawn in so much by a deep mystery but by the delightful characters to whom one becomes attached. The reader should pay particular attention to this book because it introduces the setting for the rest of the books in the series. Pickaxe City here we come.

THE BEST BOOK SERRIES EVER

2005-02-18
The Cat Who is the best serries ever full of humor wit and complexity,
James Macentosh Qwilerin is a off beat repoter/Billion air with his 2 cats Koko and Yumyum who are no shorter than extra ordinary.
This is the best book serries I have ever read and would recomend it to any one over 10.
Trevor Oliver
12 Years old

The best cat detective team ever !

2004-04-30
In "The Cat Who Played Brahms" Qwilleran takes a vacation from the big city and the press. He borrows a cabin from his Aunt Fanny, who is either hard of hearing or just doesn't listen. She lives in a town called Mooseville. Qwilleran buys a car and he and his two cats drive up to the cabin. Things get eerie when he finds something in the local cemetery. Someone did not want him to go to the cemetery even though it is advised in a tourist brochure. When while fishing on a strange boat he catches something unbelievable. Koko finds a secret tape stashed in the cabin and the vacation turns into another wonderful mystery.

I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it to all mystery lovers. It kept my interest and I loved the cats. They bring a new meaning to mystery solving. This is the first book in the series that I have read and it will not be the last.

whimsical but gloomy 2004-04-01
Is it just a case of summertime blues or a full-blown career crisis? Newspaper reporter Jim Qwilleran isn't sure, but he's hoping a few days in the country will help him sort out his life. With cats Koko and Yum Yum for company, Qwill heads for a cabin owned by a family friend. But from the moment he arrives, things turn strange. Eerie footsteps cross the roof at midnight. Local townsfolk become oddly secretive. And then, while fishing, Qwill hooks on to a murder mystery while Koko develops a sudden and uncanny fondness for classical music...

In which Qwilleran, Koko, and Yum Yum. . . 2004-02-17
. . .disgusted by city life, decide to take a leave of absence/vacation from the Daily Fluxion in order to spend some quiet time in the country at the invitation of "Aunt Fanny", an octogenarian friend of Qwill's late mother.

As can be imagined by any reader of the previous stories, things do not go as planned! Qwill must (quickly) learn that "Moose County" (400 miles north of everywhere) is quite different from anything he had previously been used to in the city.

This is the first "Moose County" Lilian Jackson Braun book, and the first title after an 18 year hiatus. While quite a few characters from previous books appear, it is evident that the focus of most of the following books will be in the far north -- and not the big city.

By the end of the book, several murders have been committed, the criminals caught (with, of course, the help of Koko) -- and Qwill's life changes in a very dramatic way.

Recommended.

if you are a fan of the series, 3 to everyone else 2004-01-05
This 5th book in the Cat Who series should not be missed by any fan of the series. This is the beginning of the 'Moose County' years.
The story opens with Qwill heading to his beloved Press Club for lunch. To his horror it has been transformed into a fern bar, the next blow comes quickly, he will some be losing yet another home. Soon after Qwill has taken a 3 month leave of absence, packed up his cats and other possesions and headed north for a vacation and a plan to write a novel. He has been offered the free use of a lakeside cabin by his 'Aunt' Fanny, a friend of his late mother.

400 plus nerve racking miles later Qwill and cats arrive in Moose County. The introduction to this new environment does not start off smoothly for Qwill. The rural life is too totally strange to Qwill filled with bizarre customs (hats on or hats off dining), terrifying noises (loons) and even requiring a new wardrobe. Worst of all it seems to be impossible to get a decent meal! Still the area is not without its charms, Aunt Fanny is delightful although difficult to converse with, his neighbors are congenial and others he meets are colorful to say the least.

After his current ladyfriend, Rosemary, arrives Qwill is beginning to settle into the area despite some ominious incidents. Things take a turn for the worse with yet another death but as always, Qwill, aided by his cats, gets to the bottom of things. It is Qwill, however, who receives the final surprise and the novel ends with him considering his options.

There are many characters introduced in this book that will continue through the rest of the series, most notably the Bamba family, as are some of the Moose County themes of flowery obituaries and Scottish ancestors. This sets the stage for the rest of the series and should not be missed by any fan of the later books.

The 5th Koko Book - The Biggest Turning Point 2002-06-19
This is the 5th book in "The Cat Who..." Series. Not so enjoyable as the previous books, but this is the biggest turning point in the series.

Qwilleran is tired of Daily Fluxion. The managing editor wouldn't let him return criminal reporting, the "modernization" of the office irritates him, and his favorite good old press club has been changed to a tasteless, characterless thing! Qwill takes a long vacation and goes to Moose County, near the Canadian border, with his Siamese cats. At the end, Qwill's life changes most drastically; he becomes a millionaire, and he decides to quit the job and to live in Moose County.

I'm afraid I can't like this drastic change. First, I don't like stories at a small, narrow, closed society of countryside very much, and I don't like this Moose County, either. Second, I loved the surroundings of Qwill as a newsman (the jolly colleague Odd Bunsen, discord with the managing editor, competition with the rival paper and so on) and the urban atmosphere of the previous books. Nevertheless, I'll read the 6th book at least, because I still love Qwill, Koko and Yum Yum.

Koko Takes The Turkey 2002-01-14
Qwilleran is feeling dissatisfied with his job at the Daily Fluxion. Despite numerous efforts on his part to return to crime reporting, the managing editor persists in keeping Qwill assigned to the feature page. Finally, he decides that he needs a long break, a sabbatical where he can take the time to think things over, maybe do some independent writing. Thus, it will come as no surprise to loyal readers that "The Cat Who Played Brahms" finds Jim, Koko, and Yum Yum making their longest move ever, 400 miles north to Pickaxe City where his 'Aunt' Fanny Klingenschoen lives and has made a summer cabin available to him.

Qwilleran's dreams of an idyllic vacation are quickly shattered. Footsteps on the roof, laughter from the beach, and eerie sounds from the underbrush all haunt his nights. Koko the high-tech cat figures out how to play the cassette player. And Qwilleran, a died-in-the-wool city boy finds that living without locks on the doors leaves him perpetually nervous. Of course, inevitably, on his first trip fishing he overhears a violent argument and then hooks a mysterious corpse. One that just as quickly disappears back into the depths.

Qwill knows something illegal is going on, but is unable to pinpoint it. It is divers plundering wrecks from the lake? Or, perhaps, illicit smuggling. Then again, it may be a fiendish plot aimed at Aunt Fanny, who seems to run most of Pickaxe. No one seems to have a clue. Jim and his visiting friend Rosemary (from 'down under') investigate, but make very slow progress. Indeed, the only crime that can be proven is the terrible pasties served at the 'Foo' Diner. Once again it is necessary for Koko and Yum Yum to take charge and guide their fumbling humans from clue to clue.

With this novel the reader is introduced to the setting for the rest of the series - Pickaxe and it's environs, far to the north of the Daily Fluxion. For those of you who wonder where this really is, I can only say that Lilian Braun's home for many years was the state of Michigan, but you will have to draw your own conclusions. Much of this novel, as well as those to follow, will spend significant time fleshing out the scene with characters (every other one of which seems to be named Goodwinter), history and geography. This sets the overall pattern for the tales, which will gradually become more cozy than mysterious. The puzzles, never really particularly difficult, will become increasingly less important as Braun focuses on life in this somewhat fantastical world.

The writing itself remains enjoyable throughout, the antics of the cats stay as delightful, and Qwilleran will be stubborn and irascible for the foreseeable future. I enjoy the stories for the relief they provide from the seemingly inescapable seriousness of many mysteries and thrillers. The books provide a comfort zone where bad things happen, but horrible things don't. While I don't recommend trying to read the series one book after another they are great for those times when one needs a distraction. And as another writer who is often out-thought by his cats, Braun strikes a very sympathetic note.