The Tell-Tail Heart

Cattarina Mysteries #1

by Monica Shaughnessy

The untold story behind Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart."

Philadelphia, 1842: Poe's cat, Cattarina, becomes embroiled in a killer's affairs when she finds a clue to the crime - a glass eye. But it's only when her beloved "Eddy" takes an interest that she decides to hunt down the madman. Her dangerous expedition takes her from creepy Eastern State Penitentiary to Rittenhouse Square where she runs into a gang of feral cats intent on stopping her.

As the mystery pulls Cattarina deeper into trouble, even Eddy becomes the target of suspicion. Yet she cannot give up the chase. Both her reputation as a huntress and her friend's happiness are at stake. For if she succeeds in catching the Glass Eye Killer, the missing pieces of Eddy's unfinished story will fall into place, and the Poe household will once again experience peace.

Full of Victorian witticisms and rich detail, this cozy mystery is a fictional account of Edgar Allan Poe's real-life animal companion. Fans of historical and animal mysteries are sure to like this series.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Cats, Historical Fiction

124 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 27, 2014

About the author

Monica Shaughnessy has a flair for creating characters and plots larger than her home state of Texas. Most notably, she's the author of the Cattarina Mysteries, a cozy mystery series starring Edgar Allan Poe's real-life cat companion. Ms. Shaughnessy has nine books in print, including two young adult suspense novels, a middle grade superhero novel, an Easter picture book, two cozy mystery novellas, and numerous short stories. Customers have praised her work time and again, calling it "unique and creative," "fresh and original," and "very well written." If you're looking for something outside the mainstream, you'll find it in her prose. When she's not slaying adverbs and tightening plots, she's walking her rescue dogs, goofing around with her family, or going back to the grocery store for the hundredth time because she forgot milk.

The best way to learn about her books is to join her mailing list, which can be found on her website: www.monicashaughnessy.com. You'll receive advance release notices, special discounts, and the occasional ARC.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tell-Tail Heart is a fanciful story about how Edgar Allan Poe might have found the inspiration for his famous tale, The Tell Tale Heart. The story is told by his cat (and muse), Catterina Poe, a lovely tortoiseshell cat. Someone has murdered two people. Both victims are wealthy women, and both had a glass eye. Beautiful blue glass eyes. What reason would a murderer have for killing people who sport glass eyes? Why two in matching blue? Catterina is on the case.....and she valiantly works to get her master to understand her antics. It's hard to point out murder suspects when humans refuse to understand their cats!

I am a huge Edgar Allan Poe fan, so this story was so much fun to read! Catterina is a street-wise, intelligent kitty. The mystery is engaging and interesting. This series is so creative. The book also includes the text of Poe's a Tell Tale Heart at the end.

The cover art is awesome!

There is a prequel story about how Catterina met Poe and a second book, Black Cats, in the Catterina Mystery series. I'm definitely reading the whole series! :)

[Joanne Moyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick-Paw is a young cat living on the streets of Philadelphia in 1842. She is rescued by a kind young man... he calls her Cattarina ... she lovingly calls him Eddy.... everyone else calls him Edgar Allan Poe.

There have been two unsettling murders recently in which the only items taken from the victims was a glass eye. When Cattarina brings home a 'toy' from a local tavern, 'Eddy' realizes that it's one of the the glass eyes and becomes involved in solving the crimes. He also begins a new story based
on the events of the murders, including the dismemberment and burial of the person behind the murders, whose loudly beating heart can still be heard by the actual murderer and drives him crazy. Poe wisely takes his wife's advice and changes the name of the story from 'The Tell-Tale Eye' to 'The Tell-Tale Heart'.
Poe's original story is included at the end of the book.

The Tell-Tail Heart is narrated by Cattarina, which is not distracting at all - she's a major a character as much as anyone else is. It's a well written story with interesting details of the time and the area in Philadelphia in which the story takes place. The author melds fact and fiction well for an interesting and believable story.

There are two other Cattarina books based on Poe stories that I look forward to reading.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Told from E. A. Poe's cat's point of view it is what the The Tell Tale Heart might have been had the cat been the sleuth instead of the muse.

[Kira · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a cat person and someone who loves Edgar Allan Poe's stories, I thought this was really enjoyable.

[mad mags · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Cat of Letters

"There are no coincidences, only cats with impeccable timing."

Philadelphia, 1842. A series of most unusual and gruesome murders has left the city on edge. In a fortnight, the bodies of two women have been discovered: each with their throats slashed - and their expensive, prosthetic glass eyes stolen right out of their sockets. Speculation runs the gamut: could "The Glass Eye Killer" be building an automaton, one stolen body part at a time? Maybe he's making a patchwork doll? Or perhaps it's something about these fake eyes (both pale blue) that triggers the madman to kill? Either way, with little to go on, it appears that the local police won't soon unmask the killer or his depraved motives.

Little Cattarina - "Catters" to her Eddie - is thrust into the middle of this human mystery when she stumbles upon a wayward glass eye while prowling the floors of Shakey House, a local pub. Much to her surprise and delight, the pilfered eye drags Eddie (as in Edgar Allen Poe) out of his funk. The Glass Eye Killer inspires him to begin a new story, which will eventually be known as "The Tell-Tale Heart."

("It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my brain. I loved the old man. He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I think it was his eye! Yes, it was this! He had the eye of a bird, a vulture -- a pale blue eye, with a film over it. Whenever it fell on me, my blood ran cold; and so -- very slowly -- I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and free myself of the eye forever.")

As the mystery begins to eat away at Eddie - and draws the attention of the constables, who briefly focus their suspicions on him - Cattarina sets out to catch the killer, thus clearing Eddie, proving her worth as a hunter, and saving all of Philadelphia. Such a big burden for a feline to shoulder! Luckily, Cattarina is up to the task. She may be a "kept" cat, but Catters hasn't lost her street smarts.

The Tell-Tail Heart: A Cat Cozy is charming, well-written (and edited! I've become accustomed to spelling and grammatical errors in ebooks, but there are few to be found here.), and an all-around fun read. Normally I go for darker fare - dystopias dominate my fiction shelves - but I quite enjoyed the change of pace. Probably I won't make a habit of cozy mysteries, but between the unusual perspective (Cattarina is the narrator) and the Poe connection, this one really sucked me in.

The murder mystery is engaging enough, but it takes a backseat the Cattarina's unique voice, which is both believable and easily relatable. For example, when Catters frets about her inability to communicate with Eddie verbally, using human language - particularly when it comes to wife Virginia's declining health - her frustration is palpable. The feline politics, particularly the feral cats' prejudice against "kept" cats, is highly entertaining as well. ("It's not like that. Eddie and I have an evolved symbiotic relationship that transcends-" Cattarina protests at one point.)

The historical fiction (if it could loosely be called that) aspect is equally intriguing. Initially, it's a little weird to hear THE Edgar Allen Poe referred to in the familiar "Eddie." As The Glass Eye Killer case unfolds, it influences the development of Poe's latest story in unexpected and quite grotesque ways. (Recall that the story begins with a pale blue eye, but ends with a tell-tale heart beating beneath the floorboards.)

Shaughnessy offers a glimpse into Eddie's home life with his beloved Sissy and her mother Muddy. As with his writing, Sissy's health ebbs and flows; Catters worries about her almost as she does Eddie's happiness. The real Virginia Poe contracted tuberculosis in January 1842 - not long before the events in The Tell-Tail Heart - and died five years later, at the age of 24. Knowing this, the already-likeable Sissy becomes a much more sympathetic and tragic character. If, as the title suggests, this is indeed the first book in a series, it will be interesting (and not a little sad) to see how events in the Poe household develop.

Buy it for: fans of cozy mysteries; cats; cozy cat mysteries; and Edgar Allen Poe.

http://www.easyvegan.info/2014/05/26/...

[Reeves Honey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't usually read "cozy" mysteries.
This one sounded real cute
because the main character is Catterina,Edgar Allan Poe's cat and muse!
I received it as a free ebook from LibraryThing to review.
Catterina is a silent,cogent observer of the scene to put it mildly!
Her narration is spoken in the parlance of the times,1840's
Philadelphia. "Catters" is what her owner "Eddie" calls her. Being a cat
(tortie)she is able to slip in and out of places with ease. This
allows her to follow suspects,keep up friendships with feral cat
pals and eventually aid the police in solving some gruesome murders.
This adventure helps immensely with Poe's writer's block and he turns
this murder mystery into a best selling story!
Bonus: In back of my ebook there is The story I read in jr. high,
The Tell Tale Heart plus a preview of another cozy cat featured mystery!

[Charles van Buren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Featuring an anthropomorphic cat detective

This mystery novel is well written and well told. Edgar Allan Poe's cat, Cattarina, is the narrator and also conducts her own investigation as well as serving as Poe's muse. During the investigation Poe is inspired to write The Tell Tell Heart.

This story would probably be of interest to cat lovers and fans of anthropomorphic animals. For me, the story just doesn't work. I have lived with too many cats and other animals to easily suspend disbelief and accept the highly intelligent and able Cattarina as a detective. Despite the fact that I did not finish the book, I recognize the author's ability so I am giving it 4 stars.

[Monica Shaughnessy]

I don't rate my own books!

[Kat Lebo · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tell-Tail Heart: The Untold Story Behind The Masterpiece
Cattarina Mystery #1
by Monica Shaughnessy

This was a fun read. As you might imagine from the mystery series moniker Cattarina Mystery, and the "tail" in the title, the narrator of this novel is a cat. But a special cat, one who belongs to the author Edgar Allan Poe.

The story takes place prior to the death of Poe's wife, Virginia. He, his wife, his mother-in-law, and, of course, Cattarina, are living in Philidelphia. Poe is writing his short stories and poems, barely making a living, and has begun drinking to excess, a habit that will plague him for the remainder of his life. When Cattarina finds a glass eye prosthesis on the barroom floor, Poe and Cattarina both become interested in the recent murders of women where glass eyes were stolen. While Poe sees the matter mainly as a catalyst for a new story, Cattarina becomes interested in solving the case as a part of her duties as Poe's literary muse. When the two discover the body of a new murder victim, sans glass eye, the plot begins to percolate!

The author does a very nice job of keeping the feel of the Victorian era language, while keeping the writing easy for the modern reader to follow. For the most part, the editing and proof-reading was top notch, although I did note two times where the author used the word immanent (meaning indwelling or inherent) for the word imminent (meaning impending). The characterizations were nicely fleshed out as the story progressed. The flow was good, it was a fun plot with enough twists and turns to keep the mystery alive. Obviously, there is a fantasy factor of the sentient cats who populate the storyline along with the humans.

A fun, quick read and I look forward to reading the next in the series.

[Beverly K · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It was the beating of his hideous...cat." Wait, no, that's not right.

The Tell-Tail Heart, narrated from the point of view of Cattarina, Edgar Allen Poe's cat, takes some liberties with Poe's life. It also takes some liberties with how a cat would normally behave and its intelligence levels, but never ventured too far with this. Cats can communicate with each other, like they do in real life, but they cannot read newspapers or comprehend a lot of vocabulary. There's no breaking the suspension of disbelief there.

Cattarina is a very likable main cat-racter. The reader understands her motivations, being primarily selfish as she is, after all, a cat. Nonetheless, her behavior as well as the cats around her was plausible, for the most part. If she seemed a little too intelligent and in sync with Poe, well, the reader is invited to play along.

This was a quick read through, as it is very short. Shaughnessy has a knack for wit and colorful descriptions that enable the reader to picture the scene. While I'm uncertain of the wisdom in calling Edgar Allen Poe "Eddie", everything else fit together nicely.

I look forward to the next book (or novella, as the case may be) in the series.

Note: I received a free copy of this ebook from LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.

[Mave · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read anything by Poe also because the horror genre doesn't excite me. But I've chosen to read this book because I love cats and cozy mystery. I liked it so much that I decided to read the story of Poe behind this novel.
The writer is in crisis, no longer able to write and finish his story, his faithful cat Cattarina tries in every way to help. Perhaps there are strange happenings in Philadelphia that can help the writer to unlock: in the city there seems to be a "Killer The Glass Eye" who kills people with a glass eye and robs it to them. His inquisitive cat finds a glass eye on the ground, picks it up and begins to investigate. From here there will be a lot of trouble for her and for her master.
It 's a quick read, cute. charming and compelling, well-written, I really enjoyed Cattarina as narrator of this story. I also loved how the cat was trying to protect the weak Poe's wife, Sissy. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
I recommend it to those who love the stories of Poe, cats and cozy mysteries.

[Jane Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tell-Tail Heart is a delightfully whimsical look, as seen through the eyes of Cattarina the cat, into the world of Edgar Allan Poe and the creation of his macabre short story, The Tell-Tale Heart.

The main characters are Eddy (aka Edgar Allan Poe, or E A Poe), his wife Sissy, his mother-in-law Muddy, and, of course, Cattarina. Cattarina is Eddy's muse, "...and she earns her title every day." She also narrates the book.

The book begins and ends with this passage from Cattarina: "Eddy was never happier than when he was writing, and I was never happier than when Eddy was happy." The character of Cattarina is written very well, because Author Monica Shaughnessy is very perceptive about the nature of cats. The "voice" of Cattarina is humorous and witty, which makes The Tell-Tail Heart a joy to read. I really enjoyed it, and bestow upon The Tell-Tail Heart Four Stars!

The entire review is available on my blog Jane Reads.

[Diane Coto · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is pretend fiction and is very cute. It concerns one of mystery’s greatest authors, Edgar Allan Poe. He did have a tortoiseshell cat. Monica Shaughnessy found a couple of different spellings for the cat’s name. Cattarina seemed most used and most reasonable. Just like most cats, Cattarina owns her people; they don’t own her. She determines who will be allowed to pet her. All others, beware! And, she led Eddy to the clues that helped him detect who the murderer was. I loved how Cattarina seemed to sense that Virginia (Cissy) Poe was sick, and how she would sleep with her at night to help keep her warm. Anyone who has a cat can visualize Cattarina’s antics as Ms. Shaughnessy described them quite well. However, I did have a gag reflex concerning Cattarina’s holding the ‘eye’ in her mouth. This is the first in the series, but it does have a short story prequel called To the River. Rating for The Tell-Tail Heart: 4 out of 5.

[Usha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A series of murders in Philadelphia leave Edgar Allan Poe and his cat intrigued. This a mystery worthy of the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew and enough gore that Mr.Poe himself would be pleased. Cattarina is the cat that "takes care
of Poe and his wife Sissy(Virginia) and since they are interested in the murders Cattarina takes it upon herself to find the killer. I have read enough books in dog's perceptive and cat's perspective, the fact that the cat was talking did not bother me. It is well written and edited and also short enough that one could read it in a couple of hours. The author included Poe's "The Tell Tale Heart" at the end of the book so the historical side of the book rings true. Very funny and there is also enough feline action to keep young readers interested. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

[Kerri Crites · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book on a giveaway and I am glad I did. It's not a book I would typically pick out for myself. I enjoyed this book *much* more than I thought I would. I loved it!

I picked this book to enter to win because I love Edgar Allen Poe and I love mystery novels. I thought the idea of having his cat be the narrator was cute. I had no idea that I would get wrapped up in the story like I did. Cattarina is a great character. She is a diva & a detective and an entertaining narrator.

I don't want to give away too much of the story (I dislike reading reviews where the plot is talked about so much I don't feel the need to read the book after), but if you are on the fence about buying this - don't be! Read it now.

[Laura Cushing · Rating 5 out of 5]

For someone who loves cat mysteries and the works of Poe, this is a purrfect treat. Catterina, Poe's cat and muse, takes good care of her humans - Eddy, Sissy, and Muddy. A former street cat, she is pleased with her life as a part of the family.

But when Eddy gets into his melencholia and isn't writing, Catterina knows she has to act. Fortunately, there's a mystery afoot (a-paw?), a killer who is targeting women with glass eyes.

The narration is from the kitty's point of view, and she's got a strong feline voice. The time period and Poe family have been superbly researched, and the reader really has a sense of being there in the old city.

Looking forward to reading the next installment.

[Paula Ratcliffe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as part of a book tour it takes place in 1842 and is told from Cattarina's point of view. Someone is out on a killing spree and Cattarina finds a clue to the crime. When Eddy becomes interested in these crimes, Cattarina takes an interest in solving the murder. This book was full of action and really makes one appreciate what Eddie and his beloved cat Cattarina.

I could tell reading this book that the author put a lot of work into researching Mr. Poe. Big fans of his will love this story and reading more in the series. I also think those who like period pieces will also enjoy this book.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a fan of Edgar Allen Poe and the Suspense/Horror genre, I was very pleased to receive this as an Advanced Review Copy.

I was also very surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. It's a fun, fast read that seems to have more substance than its small number of pages would provide.

The approach was very well done and believable.

I enjoyed the added perspective into the personal life of Poe and his wife.

And to think that Poe's wife and cat are who actually helped write Tell-Tale Heart, bravo.

I'm looking forward to the next installment of this series.

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was always a fan of Poe, and have several cats myself, so was looking forward to reading this book. I found it to be very well written and a fresh take on a well known historical figure and his fabulous feline. Cattarina's perspective was completely convincing, and I enjoyed the twists and turns of the mystery. This is a story I will read again and again, and I am looking forward to the next story from Cattarina.

I received this from the author through LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.

[Alyssa Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

cute cat moments, fun adventure, amusing Mr. &Mrs. Poe who seem like emo- goths before it was cool. took me a while to get into it but when i did it was a quick light hearted read. wish that Mrs Poe's character arc had a little more "screen time" especially in light of the ending. also i wanted higher stakes at some scenes but I feel tjat way about most cozies. A fan of the genre likely will not have a problem.
my first cozy cat mystery so I am not sure if the things I disliked were the book's fault or my own inexperience with the subgenre.

[L.J. Capehart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cattarina is fully charming, and I truly enjoyed this read. It is told with humor, a flair for a cats viewpoint, and was well written. I want more!
I received a copy of this in exchange for my honest review, but I would have been happy if I'd paid for it.

[Dulci Zemanek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read!

This was a thoroughly enjoyable story that had me laughing out loud at times. I would definitely recommend this book.

[Diane Crow]

A bit gruesome, but a fantastic tale from a cat's point of view.

[Jeanne]

This book is told by the family cat of Edgar Allen Poe. While out walking (Poe and the cat called Cattarina) they come upon a fresh corpse. The eyes had been removed. They call the authorities and go off to the pub for libation whereupon Cattarina finds an eye. She sets out to find the killer and lead Eddy to him. Interesting approach, but it takes some imagination to stay with it.