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The Mysteries of Max #1-3

Mysteries of Max: Books 1-3

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There’s something special about Max. He may look like your regular ginger flabby tabby, but unlike most tabbies, he can actually communicate with his human, reporter for the Hampton Cove Gazette Odelia Poole. Max takes a keen interest in the goings-on in their small town, by snooping around with his best friends Dooley, a not-too-bright ragamuffin, and Harriet, a gorgeous white Persian. Their regular visits to the police station, the barbershop and the doctor’s office provide them with those precious and exclusive scoops that have made Odelia the number one reporter in town.

Purrfect Murder

When the body of a bestselling writer is discovered buried in the last Long Island outhouse, and a new policeman arrives in town to solve the murder, it looks like things are about to change in Hampton Cove. Detective Chase Kingsley doesn’t take kindly to nosy reporters like Odelia snooping around his crime scene or interviewing his suspects. And to make matters worse, he’s got a cat of his own in Brutus, a buff, black bully, who, just like his owner, likes to lay down the law. Soon Brutus isn’t just restricting access to the police station, but he’s putting the moves on Harriet, breaking up the band.



Now it’s all Odelia, Max and Dooley can do to try and solve the murder, in spite of Detective Kingsley’s and Brutus’s protestations, and show the overbearing cop and his bullyragging feline how things are done in Hampton Cove.

Purrfectly Deadly

When famous eighties pop star John Paul George is found floating facedown in his pool, Hampton Cove’s premier sleuthing tabby Max and his feline friends are on the case. Soon they’re chasing leads and following clues, helping their human Odelia Poole, reporter for the Hampton Cove Gazette, solve the murder.



Meanwhile, new cop in town Chase Kingsley has his own problems to deal with. An old scandal threatens to get him kicked off the force. And even though Odelia and Chase don’t always see eye to eye, she decides to help him clear his name, even if it means keeping Chase’s cat Brutus, Max’s self-declared nemesis, in town.



Soon Max is up to his whiskers in drug dealers, boy toys, disgruntled ex-wives and even more drug dealers, all while competing with Brutus for the title of Hampton Cove’s one and only ‘true detective.’

Purrfect Revenge

Blorange tabby Max and ragamuffin Dooley are on the case again. This time a world-famous reality star has been found murdered in her own bed, and it looks like the crime just might be terror-related. The Kenspeckles, stars of the well-known reality show Keeping Up with the Kenspeckles, are in town to film a new season of their show, so the case soon turns into a complete media circus, with the Kenspeckles insisting the entire investigation is filmed for their show.



Odelia Poole, Hampton Cove’s premier reporter, teams up with Detective Chase Kingsley to catch the killer, but with cameras filming their every move, and every Kenspeckle a suspect, they’re not making a lot of progress. Good thing Odelia’s cats Max and Dooley can sneak around undetected, tracking leads and hunting clues. But first they have to pacify Shana’s French Bulldog Kane, who just might be in possession of the clue that breaks the case. And they have to outsmart Chase’s black tabby Brutus, who has his own reasons to find the killer.



550 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 8, 2017

731 people are currently reading
78 people want to read

About the author

Nic Saint

274 books312 followers
Sign up for Nic's newsletter for news, releases and giveaways: nicsaint.com/newsletter

Nic has a background in political science and before being struck by the writing bug worked odd jobs around the world (including but not limited to massage therapist in Mexico, gardener in Italy, restaurant manager in India, and Berlitz teacher in Belgium).

When he’s not writing he enjoys curling up with a good (comic) book, watching British crime dramas, French comedies or Nancy Meyers movies, sampling pastry (apple cake!), pasta and chocolate (preferably the dark variety), twisting himself into a pretzel doing morning yoga, going for a run, and spoiling his big red tomcat Tommy.

He lives with his wife (and aforementioned cat) in a small village smack dab in the middle of absolutely nowhere and is probably writing his next ‘Mysteries of Max’ book right now.

www.nicsaint.com
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www.twitter.com/nicsaintauthor

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Community Reviews

5 stars
152 (59%)
4 stars
70 (27%)
3 stars
26 (10%)
2 stars
4 (1%)
1 star
5 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
280 reviews
April 17, 2024
This is a solid 4 read, I like that the story is being told from the cats point of view so it's different. The read was very easy, flowed nicely and light hearted. It kept me engaged and I wanted to keep reading the story.

Now for the not so good parts, the author made a couple of mistakes, in book 1, he said that Dooley belonged to Gran and Harriet belonged to Mom, then in book 2 he reversed it and then in book 3 it was back to the original - this was definitely a faux pas. Also in book 1 he said that the Uncle Alec did not know about Odelia's gift but in book 2 it was common knowledge that he did. So there were definitely some inconsistencies and being that books 1-3 come together as a package, there's no need for the reiteration of the facts given in book 1, personally whenever an author keeps going over common knowledge in every book it seems like a waste of space and the reader's energy.

I also noticed that this book is very reminiscent of Amanda Lee's Witches of the Midwest Books, almost identical. So Amanda's first book came out in 2012, this one came out in 2017 - the books are very similar, but this author writes much better. It is a little interesting how alike these 2 series are.
The main character Odelia is a reporter and works for their newspaper, same as the main character in Amanda's books Bay who is the editor of the newspaper. Odelia gets alot of her inside scoop from her cats who she can talk to, whereas Bay gets alot of her scoop from the ghosts that she can talk to. Odelia's love interest is a cop named Chase who is a police officer, Bay's love interest is an FBI agent named Landon. And the most common thing between the two books is that they are solving crimes, I am actually taken aback by both series on this front, why is the main theme always crime solving?

I will continue reading the series for now and see how far I get along.
Profile Image for Kristen Lewendon.
8,429 reviews63 followers
December 16, 2023
Purrfect Murder
Max is now joining the exalted ranks of my favorite feline sleuths. There’s just something about this snarky, nosy, independent cat that calls to me. I love his sidekicks, human and cat-kind. And the actions that would normally have me screaming “too stupid to live” just feel like an ordinary day in the life of an adventurous feline. I can’t wait to discover where these enemies and lovers go next.
Purrfectly Deadly
Even though it’s only the second book, I’m already loving watching the relationships develop between these characters. Enemies becoming friendly, friends not being as friendly anymore, and all kinds of new people for Max to determine: friend or foe? And I positively adore that it’s the feline sleuths that are in charge of this show. Bring on the next mystery for our intrepid detectives to solve!
Purrfect Revenge
What’s this we see? A softening of enemies into becoming friends? Or… maybe even more in one case? I love the way this story pokes fun at the reality-television family America loves to hate. I thought this was a perfect satirical tribute to them, because I’m certain there are people out there who would very much like to be the villain in this story. The answer to the mystery wasn’t one I was expecting and the clue that gave away their identity was just as unexpected, though fiendishly clever. I can’t wait to see where the series takes us next.
16 reviews
March 14, 2025
I enjoyed the first three editions in this series of mysteries in which cats can speak to people. Overall, the stories were an enjoyable and easy and fun read. I did not give five stars because of two things:

1. The similarities of the humor in this series to Janet Evanovich’s books is increasingly uncomfortable. I will never read an Evanovich book again for many reasons - one of which is that the humor just isn’t funny. I hope this author (nic saint) doesn’t continue down that path.

2. The murders were quite gruesome. In book 3, I thought the family members of the victim were obscenely blasé about the death of their loved one. Again, this is very reminiscent of Janet Evanovich and is another quality I don’t like- the habit of describing grotesque crime with an uncaring unfeeling unfunny (while trying to be funny) and grossly indifferent attitude.

I am not going to give up on this series just yet. But I will only read one or two more books in the series and if this pattern continues, I will give up on this author as well.
73 reviews1 follower
February 10, 2018
Love for cats and mysteries

I am not a fan of authors putting cat in their titles to get cat lover's to read it. Or because cats are in it a mini mystery is all you get. So have no fear reading these! The cats are colorful characters that talk to their people and have sub stories of their own. And the people are 3 dimensional that draw you right in at the beginning. Even the mysteries are good who-done-its. I have purchased entire series and am eagerly awaiting the next. On the order of Karen Anne Golden, these writers know cats!
105 reviews2 followers
January 30, 2019
Loved this set

Really entertaining full of laughs but also a fun mastery to solve. If you want lite reading with a touch of romance without a lot of steamy sex this is for you. Enjoy
258 reviews
July 1, 2019
Very enjoyable!

Took me a while to start reading any books in this series but I'm glad I finally did. I will definitely read more of them in the future. Characters likeable warm and engaging.
Plot flowed well and had plenty of surprises and twists. Satisfying conclusion.
71 reviews
November 15, 2019
Cats,Cats 🐱

As a"crazy cat lady " myself, I really enjoyed reading the first three books in this series.I wish that I was blessed with being able to talk to my cats. The comeradery of the cats and their different personalities made the stories that much more intriguing.
Profile Image for Stephanie.
57 reviews3 followers
May 2, 2021
What a fun read. I love these clever kitties.

This has been such a romp, the detective sleuthing of , Max and his buddies has kept me happily enjoying their exploits as they investigated the crimes for their humans and successfully solved the gruesome murders.
Profile Image for LE Eastman.
279 reviews1 follower
November 7, 2019
I reall like these books. Ilive that the mysteries are from the cat's perspective. Max is so cute. I love the cat chatacters and the mysteries are light and fun.
Profile Image for Judy Colley.
4 reviews
January 11, 2020
Fun, fur, funny

Just a great read. I love cats and enjoy all the escapade Max gets into. Recommend to all day lovers !
Profile Image for ArlaJean Wickes.
39 reviews
February 18, 2020
Love these car sleiths

I love this series. Already on book 6, and just can't put it down. Being a cat person myself helps me really enjoy these car mysteries.
351 reviews2 followers
June 5, 2020
Lots of fun

I don't usually like books where people can communicate with cats, but these three books were a a lot of fun.
Profile Image for Christina Zidén.
137 reviews1 follower
June 6, 2020
Love these books

I need to start training my cats. Love Max and the gang plus how they can talk to their human.
6 reviews
July 1, 2020
I love it

I loved your book about cats and always will read more! They are cute little stories I love cats and always will read more about them!Sincerely,Leanna
422 reviews2 followers
August 3, 2020
The Mysteries of Max

I really enjoyed reading this box set. It is so well written! I'm really looking forward to reading more books written by Nic Saint.
130 reviews1 follower
February 12, 2021
Mac

I liked gran and her stance. How the cats get their info to solve mysteries. My daughter is kinda like this she has 5 and they seem to understand. If
18 reviews1 follower
October 23, 2021
entertaining light reading

This is a good read for animal lovers. Pets really do understand and speak to us. They use looks and actions to get the message across!
65 reviews
December 7, 2021
Enjoyable

Love reading this series, I'm a cat lady myself! So cute and very entertaining has great mysteries to solve and usually catching a killer and a happy ending!
Profile Image for Leslie.
1,450 reviews5 followers
March 12, 2022
Cheeky cats and a doggedly determined journalist team up with a handsome cop. Talking cats - what's not to love?
1 review
August 17, 2023
Fun read

Enjoyed this set. It was a fun read for vacation. I loved the cats’ point of view into human behavior.
70 reviews3 followers
June 19, 2020
Mysteries of Max. 1-3
Fun to feed mysteriesr Murder with twists and turns to the end . Max Dooley Harriet and the interloper Brutus help Odelia ferret out the clues to discover the culprits. Add in romance between the cats and also their humans and you have a delightful afternoon escape
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews

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