Cat Telling Tales

Joe Grey #17

by Shirley Rousseau Murphy

"Missing humans, missing cats, what's the difference?"

A fire in the seaside village of Molena Point has left a twelve-year-old boy homeless—and the body of his alcoholic guardian is found in the smoldering ruins. A most curious tomcat, feline p.i. Joe Grey wonders if escape was really impossible for the elderly woman or if something more sinister occurred. And when boisterous Debbie Kraft descends uninvited on the Damens' home with her two children, claiming that her ex-husband has left her destitute, Joe really smells a rat—especially when he discovers Debbie is carrying loads of cash . . . and that the dead woman was her estranged mother.

This case—a nasty mix of missing persons, abandoned pets, real-estate scams, and murder—has Joe's fur standing on end. But it's not until Debbie's left-behind housecat shows up that Joe and his furry detecting pals find the biggest, most troubling clue of all: a grave that the cops somehow have missed.

Genres: Mystery, Cats, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Fantasy, Cozy, Animals

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 22, 2011

About the author

Shirley Rousseau Murphy is the author of over 40 books, including 24 novels for adults, the Dragonbards Trilogy and more for young adults, and many books for children. She is best known for her Joe Grey cat mystery series, consisting of 21 novels, the last of which was published when she was over 90. Now retired, she enjoys hearing from readers who write to her at her website www.srmurphy.com, where the reading order of the books in that series can be found.

Murphy grew up in southern California, riding and showing the horses her father trained. After attending the San Francisco Art institute she worked as an interior designer, and later exhibited paintings and welded metal sculpture in the West Coast juried shows. "When my husband Pat and I moved to Panama for a four-year tour in his position with the U. S . Courts, I put away the paints and welding torches, and began to write," she says. Later they lived in Oregon, then Georgia, before moving to California, where she now enjoys the sea and views of the Carmel hills.
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Reviews

[Gillie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok, so you have probably noticed a trend here. I love this series. It's not really McReading; it's in a better class than that, but I find it incredibly satisfying to have, thanks to old Celtic lore, cats who can talk and read, dream, hope, love and, oh yes, solve crimes. What more could one ask? Rousseau Murphy clearly has a sense of humor and a great love for cats. She doesn't waste your time wandering around on unnecessary backstory, but she also does not plunk a character into the story without some plausible explanations. And as the series grows, the explanations for why these cats exist become more clear. I must admit, they make me long to hear my own cats voices.

[Opal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally posted on The Akamai Reader.

Actually a 4.5 star rating.

So much of this book broke my heart. Murphy brought the reader’s attention to the heartbreaking situation that occurs when a family is turned out of their home and are left homeless. What happens to their cats? their dogs? Often times dogs can be leashed and kept with a family but not cats. That’s what happened to Emmy Lou, a down and out woman who lost her job and her home. She had to abandon her cats.

But the character I enjoyed the most in this book was Pan. He’s the newest cat in this series and he’s quite resourceful. I don’t want to give away too many spoilers but I look forward to reading more about him.

Dulcie shows new depth to her character in that she shows a talent for poetry. I thought this was a nice touch! If Murphy ever decides to publish a book of poetry written by Dulcie I’ll be sure to pick it up.

Joe showed real masculinity in his appreciation for Dulcie’s poetry. I thought he might laugh a little at her, but he was suprisingly receptive to it. I think it takes a real man comfortable in himself to be able to accept the softer side of life. I also thought he might laugh at her because it was such a human thing to do.That was not the case either, he was fully supportive.

Despite this being the seventeenth book in the series, I don’t see Murphy losing her edge or the series losing its shine. The characters are just as congenial and endearing. The plots are just as fascinating. The setting is just as intriguing. Reading a Joe Grey Mystery is always such a treat for me and this book was no exception.

[Linnea · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beginning was a little confusing with so many names to keep track of. But then the mystery started really flowing and it was easier to follow! There are talking cats in the book so of course I loved it

[Sandie Herron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 17th Joe Grey mystery, and Shirley Rousseau Murphy has created an anthropomorphic tale taking place in Molena Point, California which is home to a colony of sentient cats as well as Joe Grey, Dulcie, and Kit. Unfortunately, Molena Point did not escape the effects of the Great Recession. Some families who could no longer pay their mortgages disappeared in the middle of the night, leaving their pets behind to fend for themselves. Local veterinarian John Firetti leaves food every day for the cat colony secretly hoping to find one of the special cats. Volunteers join him in helping with the many additional stray cats that find the colony or are lost throughout town.

Ryan receives a letter from Debbie Kraft, an old schoolmate, pleading for a place to stay. Debbie and her two children have been evicted from their apartment out of state on which her ex-husband stopped paying. Now they have no place to go and hope Ryan will take them in. Debbie’s alcoholic mother lives in Molena Point along with her orphaned nephew, Billy Young, as well as her ex-husband, head of Kraft Realty, and her sister who lives in luxury married to another partner in Kraft Realty. Joe Grey cannot understand why none of them help Debbie.

To Joe’s disbelief, Debbie and her daughters arrive at the Damens’ home late one evening. Ryan and Clyde resist her attempts to move in but eventually give in. Joe snoops among their piles of luggage and finds wads of cash. Debbie has a hidden agenda. Ryan boots them out the next morning, kicking and screaming, to live in one of their empty homes that needs cleaning in exchange for free board.

Days later Joe awakens in his rooftop aerie to see fire burning near Max and Charlie Harper’s ranch so dials 911. Word spreads, and they all race to the Harper ranch only to discover an old worker’s shack across from the Harpers burned, leaving a charred body still in bed. Billy Young has frantically peddled his bike up the hill to see his burning home. Max gently breaks the news of his grandmother Hesmerra’s death. Harper insists that Billy stay with him rather than turn him over to child services. Billy agrees only if he can bring his rescued stray cats. Debbie wants nothing to do with her nephew, and she could care less that her mother is dead.

The police must deal with Hesmerra’s neighbor, Emmylou, who is now living in her car and who is hiding a metal box of papers she unearthed from underneath Hesmerra’s bed. Emmylou keeps looking for a place to stay and tries her friend Sammie’s house. Sammie is missing, and her home stinks to high heaven. The cats investigate the odor and make a shocking discovery.

All the plot lines came untangled and answers were found. Joe Grey, Dulcie, Kit, and their new friends have risked everything to help their humans. Their humans risked their lives to protect their community and their cats. Narrator Susan Boyce does her usual fine job expressing all the emotions of this magical story.

[Sheila Beaumont · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wonderful mystery featuring feline sleuths Joe Grey, Dulcie, and Kit. This whodunit involves the plight of cats left homeless after their owners abandon them as foreclosures follow the collapse of the housing bubble. Fortunately, caring humans in the seaside village of Molena Point, in Northern California, join together to care for the starving felines.

Meanwhile, an elderly alcoholic woman, Hesmerra, is found dead after her house catches fire, leaving her 12-year-old grandson, Billy, homeless. The story is soon complicated by the sudden appearance in town of Debbie, one of Hesmerra's daughters, with her two children, a real estate scam involving Debbie's ex-husband, three apparently missing persons, a lone homeless woman living in her car, a meth lab in an abandoned house, and the arrival from Oregon of a very clever tomcat named Pan.

Don't be concerned that this is an overly cozy tale of cutesy kitties. These talking felines are descended from ancient Celtic cats who have very special talents. They have human-level intelligence but are real cats who, despite being well-fed by their human housemates, have not lost the instinct for hunting rats and rabbits. Cat Telling Tales is a delightful whodunit, with a well-plotted story and a likable cast of regular characters, both feline and human. If you enjoy cat mysteries, and don't mind a little fantasy in your whodunits, don't miss out on this series.

[Vennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

When first I opened this book I expected it to be a silly novel...and perhaps the thought of talking cats could be considered silly. But, I found this book to be charming and totally fun to read! As a murder mystery it was also intriguing. I would suggest this book to anyone who feels like the weight of the world is on their shoulders because it will lift the gloom and make you smile. I will be buying another of the Joe Grey tales soon. Enjoy!

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I have read among the many that Shirley Rousseau Murphy has written about the cat Joe Grey that can speak and understand English and solve crimes with the help of other felines and humans. There were so many characters--human and feline that I had to make myself a character list. Notwithstanding, Cat Telling Tales, was well written and easy to read.

[Cathy Hendren]

I love these books because I would love my cat to talk to me like Joe does.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

There continues to be an astonishing amount of activity in tiny Molena Point, California, and a highly intelligent new tom cat has joined the feline sleuths.

[Jo Ann Curry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story as usual love the Cat (Joe gray stories)
I can put myself in the cats place and see them talking. Love it.

[Nicole Wrightson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It all starts with a dream that upsets Joe. He has never had a dream like it before and he can't seem to forget it. Have you ever had one of those dreams? Well this one it seems is different.

It all started with a letter. A demanding letter for a roof over her and her girls heads. In the photo included is a cat that has too wise eyes. It also looks too much like Misto. Could it be his missing son, Pan? But it says that the cat is no longer with him? Is he still alive and where is he now? That is just one of the puzzles that the cats are trying to figure out in this book.

Another is a fire that Billy's Grandma was in. Could someone have set it? Did she simple fall asleep and the fire started while she was making some food and killed herself? Billy was luckily not home when the fire happened but now he has no home and the only family who was willing to take care of him is dead. What will happen to him?

Also the people of the town are dealing with a big issue. There are too many stray cats. Not all of them started that way. People keep losing their houses and just leaving their cats on the side of the road. Now the Cat's people are busy trying to help trap the poor little dears that were left behind. Will they be able to rise money and give homes to the poor kitties that did nothing but was taken in by the wrong people?

On top of all that, Debbie rolls into Joe's life bring her two daughters, a sob story and a claim that she is poor. Debbie is Billy's aunt and doesn't seem sad that her mother had just died. But it seems there is more to Debbie then meets the eye.

Can Joe and his furry Ladies with the help of Misto sort out everything going on? Can they figure everything out in time for the auction to help the cats of the town? Also will they discover what happened to Pan?

I did struggle with this book a bit in the start because of the dream Joe had. I put the book down and was trying to figure out what it was. Was it a past life memory? Was it something that he just dream? Or was it something else? I wanted to make my guesses before getting back into the book. But once Debbie got into town, which wasn't that far into the book, it became hard to put it down like the last one I read. I had so may questions an not enough answers. You could say I was a cat with a burr in my paw wanting to find out more. But I only have so much time during the day to read.

[Marlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published at Reading Reality

Once upon a time (1992) there was an epic fantasy titled The Catswold Portal, written by Shirley Rousseau Murphy. I remember it as being a lovely little story, all the better for the possibility that some cats could switch between human form and feline form, and that some cats could have human speech and human intelligence.

While there is no direct link, at least so far, it is pretty clear that at least some of the ideas from The Catswold Portal found their way into the author’s Joe Grey mystery series. Because Joe Grey and his feline friends Dulcie, Kit and now Misto and Pan, all have human-level intelligence. Old Misto also tells fabulous tales of times long ago, and may possibly link back to Portal at some point.

But in the meantime we have a marvelous small-town mystery series where the best detectives in the town of Molena Point are Joe Grey and Dulcie. Joe Grey lives with Clyde Damen and his new wife Ryan Flannery, and Dulcie lives with Wilda, former parole officer and current librarian. Kit lives with a slightly fey older couple, the Greenlaws. Misto has found a home with the town vet, John Firetti. All of their humans know that the cats are much more than they appear. Joe Grey’s very first adventure, where he discovers his newfound talents, is in the marvelous Cat on the Edge.

When Joe Grey started ordering deliveries from the local deli and charging them to his housemate, the truth was bound to come out.

But Joe Grey, along with the rest of the increasing number of hyper-intelligent felines, have found a way to put their innate and insatiable curiosity to good use. They help the local police department solve crimes. The cats phone in reports to 911, providing information that they have gathered. Sometimes they get their info by sitting under a table and looking like they are sleeping, and other times they have to break and enter, or even dig for a vital clue.

In this 17th entry in the series, we find the feline private investigators attempting to unknot what at first seems like a series of unrelated incidents. A fire kills an alcoholic old woman. The old woman’s daughter returns to Molena Point, supposedly destitute, with two children and a suspicious story about her ex-husband. Said ex-husband’s business partner seems to be missing, as does the best friend of an older woman down on her luck and living in her car.

And nearly everyone in this strange chain of events is missing a cat, or has abandoned a cat, or both. And it’s the cats who figure out how all these missing persons and their crimes tie together, from discovering that the destitute woman is carrying wads of cash to finding the two missing women buried under a decrepit house. Even though they are all afraid that they are leaving too many clues behind about their collective identity as the police department’s two best and most mysterious snitches, their curiosity won’t let them rest until justice is finally done.

Escape Rating A-: I picked this up after attempting to read a book so bad that I still want brain bleach days later. I knew that Joe Grey and his pals would be an antidote for the reading that ailed me, and they certainly were.

The Joe Grey series combines the joys of a small town mystery series with the unique aspect that the private detectives are really cats. This is not like the late Lilian Jackson Braun’s Cat Who series, where Qwill believes that Koko and occasionally Yum Yum are pointing out clues to him. Whatever Qwill thinks Koko is telling him, it is always Qwill who solves the crime.

Joe Grey, along with his friends Dulcie, Kit, Misto and Misto’s son Pan, are the detectives. One of the fun things about this series is that while the cats have human intelligence and speech, they still seem like cats. Joe Grey in particular speaks the things that we think our cats are thinking. His attitude’s feel like a cat’s attitudes – he loves his comfort and his crab salad, and thinks that humans talk too much around the things they are really thinking, and don’t say the things they really should say. Joe Grey also has the occasional existential crisis, he can’t help but use the gift he’s been given, and yet he worries about the way it has changed him and his friends.

Dulcie has learned how to use computers from her librarian housemate, and has taken up writing poetry. She loves who she is and doesn’t worry about who she used to be.

But they all worry about getting caught. Seeing a cat talking on the telephone would blow most human’s minds, and would certainly blow the cats’ collective cover. Their need to figure out a way to tell the police what is really going on and explain how the key evidence was found, especially when it is in a place that no human could find it, often takes up some of the mental powers.

Like all small town mystery series, part of the fun is in seeing how all of our friends are doing over the books. When we first met Joe Grey and his human housemate Clyde, Clyde was a bachelor who occasionally got himself involved with the wrong woman. In this book, Clyde and Ryan are celebrating their first wedding anniversary, if Joe Grey can ever manage to tie up the string of crimes that keep sending the town into crisis after crisis.

While the cats do solve the crimes and the mysteries, this particular story, set in the midst of the recent recession, has a lot to say about the human costs of the real estate crash, not just the criminal scam that is the center of the case, but also the way that so many families, when they lost everything, either abandoned or were forced to leave behind their pets, especially cats, as they moved into shelters or apartments that would not take pets. Those stories are heartbreaking, but the little town of Molena Point is doing the best it can for all its residents, including their stray cats.

Who knows? One of them might be the next Joe Grey!

[Susan Barber · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK, cat lovers of the world, don't hate me because I just didn't like this book. This was the first Joe Grey book I tried, and I won't be trying any others.

I have read and enjoyed many of Spencer Quinn's Chet and Bernie series, about a PI with a dog for a partner. Like Cat Telling Tales, these stories are told from the dog's perspective. Unlike Cat Telling Tales, the dog can't talk, although as the dog is the narrator, you know what he is thinking and why he does what he does. Unlike Cat Telling Tales, he acts like a normal dog, making stupid decisions that add to the humor and feel of the story. The mysteries are usually intriguing, and it is rewarding to watch Chet and Bernie work together to solve the crimes.

Cat Telling Tales just took itself too seriously for me. I couldn't handle the way the cats behaved, talked, and thought just like people. Why make them cats at all? It didn't add any value to the story to have the cats act as they did. And it was hard to keep track of all the human and cat characters. I just got bored with it, and wasn't enjoying my reading experience, so I DNF'd at about 100 pages. I really wanted to like this book. I like cats! But these did not seem like cats to me, and the writing was just too cumbersome.

Oh well, it was worth a try.

[Amy Webster · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh...really? I find it hard to believe that cats have the same value system as people do so to read this story you have to really use your imagination and pretend they are little furry people. I guess I expected we'd see the difference between human and cat values, but nope purely human stuff.

That and as a Northern California Native I also had to translate various terminology used throughout the book, I was surprised when the author lived relatively close to the area she referred to. Village? Rarely, most small communities here refer to themselves as towns or communities -not villages. There were lots of other little cultural blips, it felt as if I was reading an author from another country.

And no one in their right mind who is moving with a van full of stuff drives from Eugene Oregon to Stockton CA on 101 by the coast through San Francisco! Unless you really want to see SF and be stuck in traffic for hours and hours, you'd take Interstate 5.

[Alton Motobu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a cozy Christmas mystery as listed on some cozy Christmas lists. Events take place in February, climaxing on Valentines Day. Four talking cats in California coastal town and a newcomer from Oregon help police solve case involving 3 murders. No vulgarity, violence or painful incidents as the cats are able sneak around anywhere they want, eavesdrop, and call the police with information as confidential informants. Police have no clue the informants are cats. Author makes it seem normal that certain cats can talk and act like humans, and they solve the mysteries using their guile and wits. The only unbelievable incident was when two of the cats broke into an apartment, accessed and read incriminating email of the killer on a laptop, then stole the laptop by somehow transporting it outside and hiding it in a secret spot in the roof. Most humans could not do all of this.

[Kali · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 17th Joe Grey book. What I would really like to do now is sit down in a coffee shop with Shirley Rousseau Murphy and talk. She is obviously a woman with an interesting mind, fertile imagination, and a good sense of humor. Her writing ability elevates these books above the level of simple anthropomorphism, giving each of the talking cats a distinct and quite human personality without losing their overall cat-ness. This tale includes information about helping stray cats, as well as a complicated human real estate fraud scenario — lots of family dysfunction as well. And as always good descriptions of fictional Moleno Point and surrounding area, that bears resemblance to lovely places I have been on the Northern California coast.

[Kris Sellgren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite of recent mysteries about Joe Grey, cat detective. The plot is twisty but not gruesome. Two social themes are addressed: homelessness caused by the 2008-2009 recession, and the large number of abandoned pets left behind when families are evicted. The villain is thoroughly evil, but there are many shades of gray in other characters. An alcoholic woman still holds down a job and gives shelter to her orphaned grandson when no-one else will take him. A woman living in her car breaks into a missing friend’s house to be able to take a shower. These are flawed people doing their best. The cat detective team gains a new member, and there is a hint of future romance for Kit. I enjoyed this tremendously.

[Sue White · Rating 5 out of 5]

❤️

I love this Joe Grey series. He and his friends and loved ones, both human and feline, work through mysteries in each book. So close to the end of the series, I feel sad, because soon there won't be another mystery for the friends to solve. If you've just come upon these novels, I would recommend you start at the beginning and, like me, read through, one by one, to the end. Highly recommended.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far one of my favorite books ever! What imagination! I LOVED every disc! As usual, I found the cover of the audio book interesting. Then I signed on with the Goodreads. It is the 17th or 18 book in the series. However, I look forward to starting at the beginning! Anyone who is a Cat Lover....check these out!

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

A few loose ends that I hope will be cleared up in the next book. What is this author’s fascination with giving female characters male names?? No big surprises, but it was another fun romp with satisfactory conclusion to suspense. I really enjoy getting back into a familiar setting with familiar characters. And now another new feline character, Pan, to add to the fun!

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

First time I listened on audiobook. All others up to this point I read. Always in love with this author’s writing- and listening to it on audio - I’m over the moon. Fabulous for adult story time!!!! 10 stars for the vocal actor who read the story. I will eventually go back and listen to every one on audio.

[Janice E. Ryberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cat Telling Tales (Joe Grey Mystery Book 17)

This was my first introduction to works by Shirley Murphy and I was amazed by the clever characters of the cats. They could solve mysteries for the humans and snitch to the cops when they had solved the cases. It would be impossible to read these stories and not be entranced by the lovable characters and their tales. Adorable!

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is now my third book by this author who has now become a favourite. The plot here was a little more complicated with everything only becoming clear in the final pages. The lovely cats played a big role which is, of course, my personal favourite.

[RuthNH · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried reading this book but had to abandon it part way into the second chapter. The sentences were structured overly long and often awkwardly. I gave it an extra star than I intended because I like the story idea. Maybe I’ll give it another try at a later date.

[Linda Patzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great adventure with Joe and Dulcie

This book did not disappoint. Another great adventure with Joe and Dulcie. With the addition of Pan, it was a good twist for the feline detectives.

[sue kozin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book for cat lovers.

I would not have thought that cats communicate or solved murder mysteries. It took me a few minutes to get it, there I was hooked. Well written and executed.

[Anna Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joe's family is getting larger, both humans and cats. They have a very complicated mystery to solve before anyone they love gets killed. A long lost family member returns. The murderer wasn't a surprise, it was the convoluted reasons for the deaths .

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book immensely, but found it very irritating every time she says they leap down and found myself trying to correct the same as I did with my grandchildren when I got the word wrong, it leapt down. But in all honesty, it’s just me being pedantic.

[Jodee Pierson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lets not kitten around

The Joe grey mysteries take you not only to Molina Point, but into the very minds of cats. Their marvelous human friends and Joe and Dulcie, along with the adventurous Kit. Leave you feeling as if you to can solve the mystery while on a mouse hunt.

[Kathy Govreau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her books just get better and better. Love the new kitty characters!