What do you think?
Rate this book
Bought-the-Farm Mystery #7.5
The Cat and the Riddle
A sleuthing sheepdog and his team try to solve a riddle in time to save a missing cat.
Gertie Rhodes vowed never to adopt another pet. As lonely as life can be for this feisty senior citizen, with crazy treasure hunters ravaging her property it isn’t safe for animals.
Equally feisty senior Edna makes such a good case for taking in beautiful blue-eyed feline Fleecy, however, that Gertie decides to risk her heart again. They soon become the purrrfect match.
When the two octogenarian rebels attend a prepper convention, someone breaks into Gertie’s home and steals Fleecy. Cat-sitter Ivy Galloway is outraged and determined to right this wrong immediately.
Can Keats and Percy help the three women outwit a wily catnapper before this frosty day is done? Or will someone face an unexpected wintry demise?
The Cat and the Riddle is a short Bought-the-Farm mystery that takes place between Swine and Punishment and Don’t Rock the Goat. This clean, funny mystery also sets the stage for Tweet Revenge.
Gertie Rhodes vowed never to adopt another pet. As lonely as life can be for this feisty senior citizen, with crazy treasure hunters ravaging her property it isn’t safe for animals.
Equally feisty senior Edna makes such a good case for taking in beautiful blue-eyed feline Fleecy, however, that Gertie decides to risk her heart again. They soon become the purrrfect match.
When the two octogenarian rebels attend a prepper convention, someone breaks into Gertie’s home and steals Fleecy. Cat-sitter Ivy Galloway is outraged and determined to right this wrong immediately.
Can Keats and Percy help the three women outwit a wily catnapper before this frosty day is done? Or will someone face an unexpected wintry demise?
The Cat and the Riddle is a short Bought-the-Farm mystery that takes place between Swine and Punishment and Don’t Rock the Goat. This clean, funny mystery also sets the stage for Tweet Revenge.
- GenresCozy Mystery
110 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 3, 2022
23 people are currently reading
69 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 19, 2023
Thank you Ellen Riggs for the free novella! All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not affected by the giveaway.
Edna is determined to rehome Fleecy, a beautiful white cat who has chosen to live with Edna's feral colony rather than her original owner and needs Ivy Galloway, Keats and Percy to help convince her friend Gertie to take another chance on love. When Edna and Gertie go out of town to a prepper convention, Ivy is in charge of checking on Fleecy and is horrified to discover Fleecy has gone missing. Someone broke into Gertie's house, stole the cat and all her food and water dishes too. Who would do such a thing? Detective Keats and Detective Percy are on the case.
I read this out of order so I already knew whodunit but it was still a fun read. I sure do miss this series. It quickly became a favorite. The mystery was still entertaining as it took Ivy around and introduced some new characters.
Gertie has such a big heart. Life has made her crusty since her beloved husband died. She had pets before but they always go missing. Those horrible fortune hunters are tormenting an old lady and making her miserable. Can't Kellan do anything? Edna is a hoot as always. Ivy takes a back seat to the old ladies and the pets in this mystery but she's a good person who always wants to see justice done. She feels guilty because the catnapping happened on her watch and because she helped Edna convince Gertie to take Fleecy in the first place. Something tells me Fleecy is as tough as her new human and is just fine, probably tormenting her catnapper and will likely find her way home soon.
I missed Jillian, Asher and Kellan and especially the farm animals in this one.
Did Annamae Muir take Fleecy back? Fleecy was her cat originally. It's obvious Fleecy doesn't want to be with Annamae? Would Annamae risk a scandal by openly stealing her cat back? I doubt it. Too obvious. In this story we meet Harvey Dunbar, blacksmith and swordsmith. I had read about his work but have not met him yet. He's an affable man and dedicated to his craft. I think the attention from Edna and Gertie may be going to his head a bit. He made a big mistake posting a picture of someone else's property on social media. Hello! Small town! Long memories! Finch Pefferlaw, Ivy's off the grid neighbor, may have taken Fleecy. It's clear his views on animal rights don't align with the town's. He's cranky, rude and weird. He's protective of some old birdcage he claims is a family heirloom. Some people are going crazy for the cage and want to buy it. He's not selling. Some people include the Langman sisters. Heddy and Kaye are indistinguishable from one another and they're both horrible people. Anything that's shiny, glittery or valuable catches their attention and like magpies they can't resist taking it. What they did here was a super low dirty deed. Kellan needs to arrest them now!
This little story won't tide me over until the next volume but it was nice to revisit Clover Grove again.
Edna is determined to rehome Fleecy, a beautiful white cat who has chosen to live with Edna's feral colony rather than her original owner and needs Ivy Galloway, Keats and Percy to help convince her friend Gertie to take another chance on love. When Edna and Gertie go out of town to a prepper convention, Ivy is in charge of checking on Fleecy and is horrified to discover Fleecy has gone missing. Someone broke into Gertie's house, stole the cat and all her food and water dishes too. Who would do such a thing? Detective Keats and Detective Percy are on the case.
I read this out of order so I already knew whodunit but it was still a fun read. I sure do miss this series. It quickly became a favorite. The mystery was still entertaining as it took Ivy around and introduced some new characters.
Gertie has such a big heart. Life has made her crusty since her beloved husband died. She had pets before but they always go missing. Those horrible fortune hunters are tormenting an old lady and making her miserable. Can't Kellan do anything? Edna is a hoot as always. Ivy takes a back seat to the old ladies and the pets in this mystery but she's a good person who always wants to see justice done. She feels guilty because the catnapping happened on her watch and because she helped Edna convince Gertie to take Fleecy in the first place. Something tells me Fleecy is as tough as her new human and is just fine, probably tormenting her catnapper and will likely find her way home soon.
I missed Jillian, Asher and Kellan and especially the farm animals in this one.
Did Annamae Muir take Fleecy back? Fleecy was her cat originally. It's obvious Fleecy doesn't want to be with Annamae? Would Annamae risk a scandal by openly stealing her cat back? I doubt it. Too obvious. In this story we meet Harvey Dunbar, blacksmith and swordsmith. I had read about his work but have not met him yet. He's an affable man and dedicated to his craft. I think the attention from Edna and Gertie may be going to his head a bit. He made a big mistake posting a picture of someone else's property on social media. Hello! Small town! Long memories! Finch Pefferlaw, Ivy's off the grid neighbor, may have taken Fleecy. It's clear his views on animal rights don't align with the town's. He's cranky, rude and weird. He's protective of some old birdcage he claims is a family heirloom. Some people are going crazy for the cage and want to buy it. He's not selling. Some people include the Langman sisters. Heddy and Kaye are indistinguishable from one another and they're both horrible people. Anything that's shiny, glittery or valuable catches their attention and like magpies they can't resist taking it. What they did here was a super low dirty deed. Kellan needs to arrest them now!
This little story won't tide me over until the next volume but it was nice to revisit Clover Grove again.
March 11, 2023
CHARACTERS
🔲 mary-sue party
🔲 mostly 2D
🔲 great main cast, forgettable side characters
✅ well-written
🔲 complex and fascinating
🔲 hard to believe they are fictional
PLOT
🔲 you've already heard this exact story a thousand times
✅ nothing memorable
🔲 gripping
🔲 exceptional
🔲 mind=blown
WORLDBUILDING
✅ takes place in our world
🔲 incoherent
🔲 OK
🔲 nicely detailed
🔲 meticulous
🔲 even the last tree in the forest has its own story
ATMOSPHERE
🔲 nonexistent
🔲 fine
✅ immersive
🔲 you forget you are reading a book
PACING
🔲 dragging
🔲 inconsistent
🔲 picks up with time
✅ page-turner
🔲 impossible to put down
🔲 mary-sue party
🔲 mostly 2D
🔲 great main cast, forgettable side characters
✅ well-written
🔲 complex and fascinating
🔲 hard to believe they are fictional
PLOT
🔲 you've already heard this exact story a thousand times
✅ nothing memorable
🔲 gripping
🔲 exceptional
🔲 mind=blown
WORLDBUILDING
✅ takes place in our world
🔲 incoherent
🔲 OK
🔲 nicely detailed
🔲 meticulous
🔲 even the last tree in the forest has its own story
ATMOSPHERE
🔲 nonexistent
🔲 fine
✅ immersive
🔲 you forget you are reading a book
PACING
🔲 dragging
🔲 inconsistent
🔲 picks up with time
✅ page-turner
🔲 impossible to put down
September 8, 2022
Another great adventure for Ivy, Keats and Percy, along with the preppers, Gertie and Edna. Edna decides Gertie is lonely and she and Ivy decide to give her a beautiful white cat, Fleecy. Gertie really falls for Fleecy but while she and Edna are at the PrepperCon convention, and Ivy’s going by to feed her someone steals her! The hunt for Fleecy has some funny moments and plenty of laughs! I absolutely love this series and was delight o find one I haven’t read! Enjoy!
January 25, 2022
Anything that involves Edna, Gertie, and Ivy is stellar!
Another winner for Ellen Riggs, and this time malevolent thievery is involved. Of course it'll take Keats and Percy to lead the way and solve this mystery. Absolutely, a favorite! I reccomend it no matter how old you are.
Another winner for Ellen Riggs, and this time malevolent thievery is involved. Of course it'll take Keats and Percy to lead the way and solve this mystery. Absolutely, a favorite! I reccomend it no matter how old you are.
January 31, 2022
I read this before and it’s just as good second time around. That’s saying something that you don’t mind reading a book again. You fall in love with new aspects of story. Great writing and characters and credible story line! Love them all. Thanks Ellen for giving us our escape!
February 17, 2023
Someone stole a cat and they're not going to get by with it.
It is a white cat and the culprits stole more than just the cat.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. This in no way affects my opinion of this book which I read and reviewed voluntarily.
It is a white cat and the culprits stole more than just the cat.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. This in no way affects my opinion of this book which I read and reviewed voluntarily.
February 13, 2022
Great book
Love this whole series. Such good c
characters and unexpected twists and turns in the plot. I highly recommend reading the whole series.
Love this whole series. Such good c
characters and unexpected twists and turns in the plot. I highly recommend reading the whole series.
February 19, 2022
Truly Loved it
Truly Loved it and couldn't put the ebook down and can't wait to read the next book in the series now
Truly Loved it and couldn't put the ebook down and can't wait to read the next book in the series now
October 11, 2022
A very enjoyable short story about a stolen cat.
February 28, 2023
Cats are back in the spotlight in this installment. It is a fun story to help move things along.
November 25, 2023
Quick and Quirky
This book was lots of fun to read. I love Edna and Gerty. I hope to be as spry and spunky as they are when I get old. 🐈
This book was lots of fun to read. I love Edna and Gerty. I hope to be as spry and spunky as they are when I get old. 🐈
June 29, 2024
Sweet, short read. I LOVED it!
June 28, 2024
This is a 3.5 🌟 read rounded ⬆️ to 4 🌟.
September 7, 2022
Another great adventure for Ivy, Keats and Percy, along with the preppers, Gertie and Edna. Edna decides Gertie is lonely and she and Ivy decide to give her a beautiful white cat, Fleecy. Gertie really falls for Fleecy but while she and Edna are at the PrepperCon convention, and Ivy’s going by to feed her someone steals her! The hunt for Fleecy has some funny moments and plenty of laughs! I absolutely love this series and was delight o find one I haven’t read! Enjoy!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews