The Wizard's Cat

The Wizard's Butler #2

by Nathan Lowell

It started with a dandelion.
Innocuous. Ubiquitous.
Who knew it was a warning?

After claiming his big bonus, things are coming up roses for Roger Mulligan. A job he loves. A house that feels like home. Money in the bank. A solid roof over his head and job security.

But when he finds a dandelion on the pristine grounds of Shackleford House, he starts down a twisted, garden path. Old man Shackleford says the fairies have a problem, the pixies keep falling down on the job, and the house seems to grow weaker by the day.

He's soon tossed into a confusing mixture of fact and fantasy, accompanied by Shackleford's cousin and - of all things - a stray cat. Surrounded by the fantastical, it's hard to tell magic from mundane.

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Fiction, Magic, Cozy, Cats

344 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 7, 2025

About the author

Nathan Lowell has been a writer for more than forty years, and first entered the literary world by podcasting his novels. His sci-fi series, The Golden Age of the Solar Clipper grew from his long time fascination with space opera and his own experiences shipboard in the United States Coast Guard. Unlike most works which focus on a larger-than-life hero (prophesized savior, charismatic captain, or exiled prince), Nathan centers on the people behind the scenes--ordinary men and women trying to make a living in the depths of space. In his novels, there are no bug-eyed monsters, or galactic space battles, instead he paints a richly vivid and realistic world where the "hero" uses hard work and his own innate talents to improve his station and the lives of those of his community.

Dr. Nathan Lowell holds a Ph.D. in Educational Technology with specializations in Distance Education and Instructional Design. He also holds an M.A. in Educational Technology and a BS in Business Administration. He grew up on the south coast of Maine and is strongly rooted in the maritime heritage of the sea-farer. He served in the USCG from 1970 to 1975, seeing duty aboard a cutter on hurricane patrol in the North Atlantic and at a communications station in Kodiak, Alaska. He currently lives in the plains east of the Rocky Mountains with his wife and two daughters.

Awards & Recognition
2008 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction for Full Share
2008 Podiobooks Founder's Choice Award for Double Share
2008 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction for South Coast
2009 Podiobooks Founder's Choice Award for Captain's Share
2009 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction for Double Share
4 out of 10 Books on Podiobooks.com Top Overall Rated by Votes (2. Double Share, 3. Quarter Share, 5. Full Share, 8. Half Share) -- as of Jan 4, 2009
6 out of 10 Books on Podiobooks.com Top Overall Rating (1. Ravenwood, 2. Quarter Share, 3. Double share, 4. Captain's Share, 5. Full Share, 7. South Coast) -- as of Jan 4, 2009

Reviews

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lowell’s new series is back with Book 2. All the key characters from Book 1 (The Wizard’s Butler) are back.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

"“You’re seriously going to give an internet psychic your fortune and this house?” “No,” the old man said, sitting back a bit with a smile. “I’m going to leave it to the only person in the world who has the talent to relate to and understand what this house means. The house, because the house matters. The money? Because it takes a lot of money to keep it in the family.” “And that family, my dear,” Fidelia said, “is you.”"

Joseph Shackleford – The old wizard
Fidelia Necket – another mage
Barbara Griffin – a distant relative who has some magic about her and we met in Book 1
Naomi Patching – a nearby relative of Shackleford who wants the House
Shackleford House – Home to pixies and others
Roger Mulligan – the butler who has taken on a great burden

Things are revealed slowly (and the cat’s presence is no more than that for over half of the book). Shackleford House is evolving and also under attack. By what? By whom And, when? All are important issues and not all are resolved in this “to be continued” series.
3.5*

[Dave Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful (maybe a bit short)
The Wizard's Butler was the first Nathan Lowell book I'd ever read. I've since read every other book he's written waiting for this one. Usually no book can withstand that level of expectation, but this one bears up really well.
I just want the next one right now, and that doesn't seem likely.
------
I looked it up, and I read Butler (for the first time) in 23. This comes as a shock to me because it feels like I read it much longer ago. Nathan Lowell and his fictional worlds have become such a rich part of favorite books list. It seems like he's been in my life longer to account for the size of the impact he's had.
I really did like this book, and I hope he continues this series, but one book every 5 years isn't going to cut it.

[Buddhangela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Verrrrry slow start

I loved The Wizard’s Butler and looked forward to this new release, but I almost gave up on it after the first few chapters because nothing was happening. All really mundane. Then it gets interesting, and boom, that’s it. The end. So disappointed.

[Mike Hanford · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointed! Eagerly waited for another instance of Mulligan, and all that surrounds him. And, the notion of a cat in the story was a wonderful extra. Glaciers move faster than the first 80% of the book. Natter, natter, natter! What’s happening? Nothing, nada, zilch. Finally, the cat makes a real appearance! There is a single cat-driven event. And then, fade out to the end. The “wizard” and the cat have no interaction. Should be titled: “The Butler’s Cat”. If you are interested, start at the end of the book, and save a huge chunk of time.

[Catmoor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the previous book and perhaps I looked forward too eagerly to this one. The subtlety of language so appealing before is now brought out and analysed, which I think was a mistake. That said, I'm well aware the author's health issues caused a long hiatus in the book's completion and the last quarter seemed to be back on a par with the beginning. Even with all that, I am looking forward to the next book, which is clearly needed to bring matters to a fuller close.

[Joseph Golden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great sequel, but now I want more!

This is everything I love about the first book with just enough new story to satisfy me. But seriously Nathan, that ending just left me hungry for more. I am hoping the wait for book 3 is shorter than the wait for book 2.

[Darien · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the concept of a Cat Guardian of the magical house but the cat seemed to be mysterious just for the sake of mystery - but I guess one could say that IS what cats do. A decent continuation, but definitely requires reading the first book for an appreciation of the storyline. The author continues to give us insights into what it means to be a 'talent' in a mundane world, though our hero comes across a little as a Mary Sue as he continually provides insights the others lack. The pacing seemed slower in this sequel, and it seemed to take a long time for the clues to be put together. I am interested enough in the dangling story lines (venal relatives, talented people who need training, etc...) to read any following story.

[Malibu · Rating 1 out of 5]

Severely underwhelming and disappointing follow-up. 71% in, the plot is pretty much nowhere to be found. The book consists mainly of Mulligan asking everyone what they want for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Repeatedly. Barbara seems mainly preoccupied with Mulligan calling her "miss". There are paragraphs upon paragraphs of dialogue rehashing this and why Mulligan is a butler. An overall tiresome read. The other two main characters are MIA through most of the book. Probably fell asleep listening to the neverending litany of dishes Mulligan is set to prepare. I absolutely loved The Wizard's Butler and was so excited to see this sequel pop up. 5 years between books and the author shows up with this drivel. Btw, the plot shows up at around 95-98% into the book although it's short-lived and unclear.

[Jerome’s Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gentle setup for book three

I was delighted to get the second book in this series, and see the characters move on with their lives. Angry and rootless after leaving the army Mullugan finds peace when he takes a job as a butler, and discovers a magical world. In this book he needs magical help to deal with arcane pests, and acquires a sidekick I still enjoy the way the main character is a secondary character in the main adventures- all the main adventure happens off stage to the other characters- but would have liked the plot to be stronger to make this a more complete book. Hoping for book number three.

[Lívia Hlavačková · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I really enjoyed the first book, I struggled to finish this one. The premise was interesting and the atmosphere of the book was charming just as the first book. But the dialogues were superfluous and repetitive, the characters kept discussing the same thing over and over again. The book would benefit from thorough edit that would cut the repetion, but then it may turn the whole novel into a novellete. Everything interesting happened in the last 15% of the book.

[Teresa Carrigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable sequel to The Wizard's Butler. The first book was one of my comfort reads, and odds are good this book will be reread often as well. The ending is a reasonable soft landing and I look forward to an eventual third book in the series.

[TawnaM · Rating 2 out of 5]

I absolutely loved the Wizard’s Butler, and this book is similar in the gentle, day to day, mundane progression of the story except this time, the plot progression was forgotten amongst all the meal planning. There was potential for a very interesting plot having to do with the “infestation” and the inclusion of Gideon the cat was a great addition. However, the plot really only progressed in, literally, the last 50 pages, the rest of the book was Barbara and Roger sharing meals and going for jogs. Just when things (finally) started getting interesting, all of a sudden Gideon declares he “killed the queen but still had a lot of clean up to do”. What Queen? What battle? We were never made privy to that, and I understand that the point of view is only what Roger experiences but that was the whole plot and we never got to see any of it. Every once in a while Roger checks in with the cat and he says he’s “making progress” and apparently things are getting better around the house but that’s it. Why wouldn’t Roger at least ask some questions of the cat? He just takes everything as is. “Ok kitty, you do your thing, I’ll just leave the fate of the house and magic in your hands and not question anything, even on behalf of the owner of the house who will need to be filled in upon his return.”

I feel like the Wizard’s Butler was a masterful balance of mundane with a continual progression of plot. I remember thinking, after I read it, that I didn’t know why I liked reading about Roger’s day to day activities so much, but I did. I think it was the gentle progression of plot, a slow build of information that quietly revealed more and more detail about the situation. Not so much that you had a heart pounding, thriller but a gentle revelation amongst the lunches and dinners.
This book did not deliver that. I think trying to keep everything just to what Roger experiences is key, but this time, he wasn’t privy enough to move the plot along.
I would have thought that the author is stretching the story to enable a third book except I see other reviews stating that this is the last book. If that is the case, why leave so much of the plot vague? Why not get into the infestation more? Magical infestation sounds awesome! But we didn’t really see any of it.
Disappointing.

[Franziska Tinner · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a disappointment

What can I say, book 2 "The Wizard's Butler" by Nathan Lowell is/was a disappointment. To many unnecessary conversations and all the head bobbing that goes along with it. A constant and excessive back and forth between Roger and Barbara, saying very little which would benefit the progression of the story. And a lot of "Barbara laughed, Roger smiled" used as an aid at moving the story itself along.

Sadly, with all the chatter, laughing and smiling, the story itself stopped growing about half way through the book. I kept waiting for it to start up again sometime midways, or at the very least when Barbara finally had all her objections layed to rest. Roger ever so Butler like, had answered all her questions, eased her "teen-angsts" (Barbara is many years past being a teenager!) and related questions. But the story had stopped being enjoyable.

It's unfortunate that Nathan Lowells wonderful writing style sidetracked him so suddenly and irreparably. The story stopped being enjoyable. I so admire his abilities to almost literally representing each character and with the events moment by moment, unlike any I have had the pleasure reading in my 80 plus years. Reading Nathan's story literally makes me be a part of everything that happens in his story. The characters feelings, experiencing it as you read. This fabulous writing style however, can lead the writer into a trap, a trap difficult to escape. The trap here is, that Nathan was trying to fill the absence of two main characters in his story, difficult to fill while the length of this absence was as of yet undetermined. He filled that time with Barbara and Roger's getting to know one another, with non-stop chatter and the corresponding smiles, laughs and all the facial expressions, and a timeline of Butler Rogers' duties, which he performed always most exactly and on time.

I could almost feel when the Nathan Lowell must have eventually felt the trap and in spite of trying to overcome it, he had long run out of fresh laughs, fresh adjectives describing their interactions, different ways of describing the Butler's duties while his employer was absent. Lowell was however stuck. Stuck, not knowing when Mr Steavenport and Fidalia would be returning to his story.

Lowell, unfortunately never recovered, her shook off trap, not even bringing in a talking cat. Yes, the cat that is in the title of this book. But he (the cat =he) falls way short being a Wizards cat, short even of being magic and talented himself. I began wondering if there was a book 3. So much I actually went looking for it under the authors name and titles listing. No book three.

The story ends suddenly, unresolved in many ways. It's unfortunate that, I truly enjoyed his special style of story telling, the intimacy he had, and expressed so well in book one, with his characters. Barbara seemed to be a difficult nut to crack for him, that intimacy he so enjoyed with the Butler and his Master, that seemed to elude him with Barbara, and that made book two fizzle.

Read it anyway! Most of it is amazing👍, and it is very possible that I am just too critical a reader🙄. If you enjoyed book one, do get book two and judge for yourself. 😅

[Stephanie J. Stanton · Rating 1 out of 5]

It took over 5 years for book two and this is what we got? It is very repetitive and slow. This easily could have been a short story in a newsletter. I would say skip it. It doesn’t really add much to the original story.

[Paulina Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhere in the 3.5-4 star range.

I didn’t find this installment as convincing as the first. I mostly wanted Barbara to stop being hung up about Roger being a butler. If she had any sort of romantic feelings for him, it might make sense that she is so persistent about it, but the story is setting her and Molly up together instead. It just got old. We would get past one element of it and the next chapter would come and bring yet another instance of Barbara awkward about Roger being the butler. On top of that, I kept waiting for there to be any sort of character progression and never really got any.

Still had a fun little world and I’m really glad to see Mr. Lowell writing again.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just an engaging story and one I highly enjoyed. Will be watching for the next one to be released.

Rating: 4.5⭐️

The Wizard's Cat is a great sequel to the wonderful urban fantasy novel, The Wizard’s Butler by Nathan Lowell.

Picking up right after the dramatic events of that book, Shackleford House should be settling back into its original shape but that’s not the case.

As Roger notes immediately as he goes through his day as butler to Shackleford himself, in his multitude of duties, the house seems “off”. A bit of dust there, a dandelion there, unheard of when everything is maintained meticulously by pixies and fairies.

But as more things go awry, the narrative building suspense and mystery, it’s up to Roger, cousin Barbara, and a new character to solve the problem and come to the aid of the House.

Lowell builds on Roger’s character development as well as Barbara’s along with the House’s, giving the story and group a fuller sense of them as a unique family, with Roger, perhaps as a fundamental element as a non-talented person but a important grounded member here.

Gideon is equally impressive in his role, one that will be more fully explored in future stories. As one would expect from a magical being of his years.

Barbara is interesting but still needs some more layers. Or maybe interaction with other characters in central roles here. I really like her when she’s discussing roles and jobs with Roger as his profession as a Butler was making her uncomfortable at one point.

Just an engaging story and one I highly enjoyed. Will be watching for the next one to be released.

Read the series in order they are written. No romance or violence. Great characters and terrific writing.

Cover Art: Alexandre Rio

The Wizard’s Butler:
The Wizard’s Butler #1
The Wizard’s Cat #2

[TampaFLMom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Similar to the first book. The characters are very likable and the story progresses slowly. It is light and easy reading. I rated this one lower because there are a lot of repetitive conversations between the characters and not much is resolved. There are hints at intrigue, but it isn’t clear if they are important or what they mean. I will probably read the next book when it comes out, but I am not highly anticipating it like with other series.

[Dr susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great contemporary fantasy adventure

The worldbuilding is wonderful with a matter-of-fact feel to the magic. Roger is a believable, likeable narrator who has found a place in the world and enjoys that place. The story is low stress and flows beautifully. I would love to read more Shakleford stories.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well worth the wait, and a pleasure to be back in this world. Even if the cat talked a bit. I hate how they always make the cat talk.

[Mrs L Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it can't wait to see what happens next.

[Babydoclaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picks up where the Wizard's Butler stops, with new challenges for Roger Mulligan. I love his equanimity. Yes, a cat is involved. And the last line is a doozy! Highly recommend this series.

[Charlotte Babb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing like a Snarky Familiar

Mulligan has taken to butlering in a good way, but his employer, and the next in line are throwing him some curves he's not ready for And then there's the cat.

[Laz the Sailor · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author apologizes for the lengthy gap between books.

This is a clever fantasy story by a favorite author. But it became a bit of a shaggy dog story where important info is withheld until well past when it would have been useful. Some of the references are subtle nods toward classic stories, but that doesn't outweigh the random pacing and other oddities.

I'll read the next one, whenever it gets published.

[Book Geek Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome story! Great series. Can't wait for #3.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started the year with the first in this urban fantasy series which turned out to be a surprise five star from the kindle deals page. Very happy to end the year with the five star sequel. I hope Lowell doesn't take another five years to write the third. I love his writing because he doesn't do battles and violent conflict even in his sci-fi, I understand. He's all about his characters and figuring it out day by day. Almost the cozy, low stakes stories that get me through these shitty days. Also, his main characters are likeable. I tend to DNF books where everyone is loathsome. I need somebody to get behind. Anyway, I like the world building in this series so much I intend to try one of his SF, even though they are generally not up my street. #1 must be read before this one.

[Laura Stephenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating present day fantasy series

An ex-military man without a job becomes a butler for a strange man. The man apparently thinks he is a wizard. In this part of the series, the magical house gains a very interesting cat. This is a series about and mundane person entering a magical house, and having to feel his way about living a very different life with things that don't make sense to him. I greatly enjoy the characters and, of course, the cat. This is a fun series to read with the cat on your lap listening to the rain hitting the window pane. I will definitely read the next book in the series.

[Sean Randall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read and re-read Butler a number of times. There's something ineffable about it that just keeps me coming back. So when I saw there was a book 2 I pounced.

I was not disappointed, either. With all the cozy charm of book 1, this second installment kept me firmly spellbound. I picked it up because I wanted to revisit the people, but I found myself as hooked and drawn-in as with the first story. I just can't quite get enough.

[Joy Martin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I loved the first book, and I hate to say I was disappointed with this one. The cat was barely a part of the book and really didn’t engage much with anyone except Mulligan and only in the last 50 pages with anything besides just a look. The middle of it was probably 100 pages too long and felt like a lot of unnecessary speculation and dialogue that never resulted in any progression. One of the things I loved about the first book was it didn’t have any romantic entanglements and this one hinted at something towards the end that I could’ve done without and seemed to check unnecessary box. And while the book is titled the wizard’s cat, Shackleford was absent a good part of the book and most of the “wizards” had hardly any interaction with the cat at all.
I could see the potential for an interesting story but this fell short. I loved the first book as one of my favorite cozy feel good reads for the year. However, I’m unlikely to pick up any more in the series based on this one.

[Dan Kenkel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is being read on my iPad using the Kindle app. It's been a couple of years since I last read a book rather than listen to them. Finally finished this book. I did start on my iPad but it's too heavy and moved everything to my iPhone. A couple of weeks ago Ginny convinced me to get an actual Kindle which has been great. Easy reading anywhere. Onto the book. I did enjoy this book as its predecessor is one of my favorites. However, the Wizard left for a trip early in the book and didn't reappear until, literally, the final few pages. Even the Cat in the book really didn't show up much until the final chapters. I really think this book is the dreaded second book in the series and the next book will be much better. I just dropped my rating down to 3 stars from 4 due to this review. Nathan, do better on the next book.

[Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was so excited to begin the next book in line after reading The Wizard's Butler. But, after reading The Wizard's Cat, I was disappointed in several ways: 1) the story line was cut off at the end...no, it wasn't just a poor ending, the last page cut off 4 different story lines, 2) when characters are introduced by the author, there is a strong expectation that that character will do something, and 3) readers want either a cosy or a thriller or a mystery or a romance, am I right? I have no idea what this story was supposed to be.
The first book was delightful, but the second book was not. It had early promise but failed to deliver.