The Cat Who Brought Down the House

The Cat Who... #25

by Lilian Jackson Braun

Retiring in Pickax, actress Thelma Thackeray has decided to start a film club and organize a fundraiser revue, starring Koko the cat. But Thelma's celebrated arrival takes an unpleasant turn when the strange circumstances of her twin brother's recent death seem suspicious to Jim Qwilleran. Qwill needs a helping paw in this case. But will Koko deign to take time from his stage debut?

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Cats, Animals, Audiobook, Mystery Thriller

252 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Lilian Jackson Braun was an American writer. She is well-known for her light-hearted series of The Cat Who... mystery novels. The Cat Who books center around the life of former newspaper reporter James Qwilleran, and his two Siamese cats, KoKo and Yum Yum in the fictitious small town of Pickax located in Moose County, "400 miles north of everywhere." Although never formally stated in the books, the towns, counties and lifestyles described in the series are generally accepted to be a modeled after Bad Axe, Michigan (located in the "Michigan Thumb") where she resided with her husband for many years until the mid 1980's. Many also believe that the culture and history of the Upper peninsula of Michigan are represented in the series as well, which is quite possible as it is indeed a fictitious location.

Lilian Jackson Braun began her writing career as a teenager, contributing sports poetry for the Detroit News. She later began working as an advertising copywriter for many of Detroit's department stores. After that stint, she worked at the Detroit Free Press as the "Good Living" editor for 30 years. She retired from the Free Press in 1978.

Between 1966 and 1968, she published three novels to critical acclaim: The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern and The Cat Who Turned On and Off. In 1966, The New York Times labeled Braun, "the new detective of the year." The rising mystery author disappeared from the publishing scene for 18 years. The blame came from the fact that mystery novels were starting to focus on sex, violence, and foul language, and Braun's light-hearted books were not welcome in this new territory. It wasn't until 1986 that the Berkley Publishing Group reintroduced Braun to the public with the publication of an original paperback, The Cat Who Saw Red. Within two years, Berkeley released four new novels in paperback and reprinted the three mysteries from the sixties. Braun's series became an instant best seller once again. In January 2007 the twenty-ninth novel in the series, The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers, was released in hardcover by the Penguin Group.

Not much was really known about Braun, as she prefered to keep her private life that way. For years, publishers have given inaccurate accounts of her year of birth, which has remained unknown until she openly acknowledged her age in an interview for the Detroit News in January 2005.

Reviews

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Review
3 out of 5 stars to The Cat Who Brought Down the House, the 25th book in the "Cat Who" cozy mystery series written in 2003 by Lilian Jackson Braun. What do you do when a crazy actress-type stars a theatre troupe in your hometown and wants your cat to be the main star. Run for the hills, Qwill. She's got cuckoo written all about her and you've had your fair share of those in the past. But you won't listen to me, you never do. Maybe I should jump into the book by channeling my inner Thursday Next, so I can protect you. A cute cozy mystery involving twin siblings (1 male, 1 female)... I think.... and something is amiss when one twin dies. But it'll take a near murder of his own for Qwill to figure it out. It was near the end of the series and very easy to get thru. A little light with the plot, but it had some room for more. Still love the series... and sad when I said goodbye after 30 books.

About Me
For those new to me or my reviews... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https://thisismytruthnow.com, where you'll also find TV & Film reviews, the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by.

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the 25th book in the "Cat Who" series and yes, I've read them all up to this point. Only 4 more to go. I read these as a sort of comfort food; I've grown so used to the characters and town of Pickax ("400 miles north of everywhere") and they are such quick reads. The entire series has ended up on my book shelves thanks to my mother who has read them all. Consequently, I always think of her when reading one and since she celebrated her 80th birthday this week, I thought it appropriate to take another bite out of the series.

As I have mentioned before, the later in the series I read, the more I notice that the mystery element of each book becomes less and less and the general "what's happening in Pickax" becomes more and more. This time, our protagonist, Qwilleran, really seems to be mostly a bystander to the murder, although does put the pieces together in case the reader can't. The story surrounds a retired Hollywood actress who has decided to live out the remainder of her years in Pickax. Along the way we see Qwilleran involved in all sorts of small town daily happenings, some routine, and some as quirky as the residents. From photographing hats, to babysitting parrots, and the ever present odd subjects for his weekly column in the local paper, life in Pickax, especially when you are the richest man in the North East US, is enjoyable.

[Storm Chase · Rating 1 out of 5]

I used to love Cat Who books. They were never very good mysteries, but I liked the characters. Sadly, they became worse over time and this book is a pointless shambles. The publishers should be ashamed to put this out. If you want to try a Cat Who, pick one of the first ten she wrote.

[itchy · Rating 3 out of 5]

p54: he would bike, pedaling his vintage british siiverlight

p68: "oh, quill! you're being so cynical!"

this is the second book where i caught ljb misspelling her hero's often-misspelled name

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the series but I'm stepping away here. The ghost writer is taking the series/characters in directions I don't like so in order to not ruin my memories of Pickax I'll call #25 the end.

[Anna Catharina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Es verdient schon fast Respekt, wie die Autorin es schafft, eine Handlung - die kaum 10 Seiten füllt - auf über 250 Seiten auszudehnen...

[Joy Gerbode · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Qwill, the cats, and the stories in this series. I would like for the mysteries to have a bit more substance.

[Linda Fast · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read better mysteries and found this a little bit boring. The book centers itself in a town called Pickax which is located in Moose County. After 60 years of living in Hollywood Thelma Thackeray comes back to live in Pickax and open a movie house. Quill as he is affectionately known is a newspaper columnist and befriends Thelma. Quill has 2 cats who have an uncanny knack for identifing people who are good or bad and this leads Quill on the lookout for investigating troublesome intents.
I thought Quills oldfashioned sayings were sweet and his care for his cats was exceptional but aside from that I thought this book would be more suitable for 10 to 12 year olds.

[Nancy Zorn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not sure what a "cozy mystery" is exactly; but if this book is part of that genre, I'm definitely not a fan. I've read three of the "Cat Who..." books, and I've disliked them all. What I don't like about this series: too cutesy, any mystery is relegated to the back seat, Qwill and his huffy moustache, the town and it's annoying occupants, pretty much everything. I think it says something when professed fans of this series say this book was pretty bad. Perhaps I might feel differently if I'd gotten in on the series in its infancy, but I didn't. I am relieved I will never have to read another book by this author. Tossing this book into the "get it outta here" bag.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love this series, but this book is missing something. The mystery aspect is wrong and the interaction between my beloved characters seems flat. It was all right, but I really love the earlier books.

[Dan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just can't finish this book. Not the least bit interested.

[Tommy Verhaegen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Een omhoog gevallen snob keert terug naar Pickax. Natuurlijk werkt die andere omhooggevallen snob, James MacIntosh Qwilleran zich uit de naad om haar te plezieren. Ten koste van het normale plebs. Maar dat vertelt de schrijfster niet zo duidelijk. Zij heeft het zelf duidelijk voor de rijkere buitenbeentjes. Het boek staat dan ook bol van de vreselijke dingen die hen overkomen, zoals waar ze met vakantie kunnen gaan of naar welk restaurant ze drie keer per dag kunnen gaan eten.
Verder weinig schokkends, na 25 boeken is de schrijfster eindelijk op haar grenzen gestoten.
Nieuwe mensen waarvan er minstens 1 moet vermoord worden. De doodsschreeuw van Koko die de moord aankondigt. De steeds groter wordende vervreemding tussen Qwill en Polly, platonisch zorgt blijkbaar ook voor een gebrek aan inspiratie. 600 kilometer van overal vandaag raakt blijkbaar ook aardig volgebouwd. Oude antipathieën blijven bestaan, vooral tegen vrouwen.
Weinig nieuws dus. Maar nog altijd aangenaam om lezen omdat zowel de omgeving als de personages ondertussen zo vertrouwd zijn geworden.

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is sort of a "how to create a fund-raising event" model-in-a-story. Of course the event here is to support a homeless cat shelter and to place cats into homes. The twist on this installment is the return of a sort-of-Hollywood-celebrity to ye olde Moose County and the trouble that ensues for said person.
There are "likables" and "unlikables". The wrap-up is hurried but satisfactory.

These stories fall into the category of light, pleasant reading with some interesting characters thrown in and, of course cats.

[Taveri · Rating 2 out of 5]

dnf
Read 96 pages

[offixials · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always, yum yum and ko ko are ever so lovely and they always seem to know how to best help Mr. Q! I am loving this book; though it can be a little slow in some parts. However, I still want to read the full series!

[Lynnette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fun visit to Moose County, where as usual Koko the cat knows more about what's going on than anyone else. We meet a few new characters and learn even more about the history of Mr. Q's chosen place of residence.

[Joowon · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my first book I've read among "The Cat Who...." series. One day I looked around a mystery section in my local library and saw lots of books with titles starting with "the cat who." With no information on the author and previous stories, I picked this book, which was the 25th addition. Before I read it, I was amazed with such a long series (I usually am) and probably had high expectations on this book. I thought that the author could not have been able to write this series up to more than 20 books if this series lost its charm in the middle.

I liked the main character, Mr. Q, and other people around him. But the story was not interesting enough to me. This book is categorized as 'Mystery' in the library but I don't think it actually is. Since I didn't read previous stories, I don't know if there was a murder to solve with a special ability of 'the cat' in that small town. Speaking of this book only, however, it seemed to me just 'a fiction novel with a special cat', not 'mystery.' And I felt that the ending was hasty comparing to the story before the ending was stretched out long.

I saw one review down below saying that the first ten books of this series are best. I may try one from the earlier books some day. But right now I don't see the charm of this series.

[J.M. Brister · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jim Qwilleran and his two awesome Siamese kitties go off to solve another mystery. This one revolves around a rich Mouse County native who comes back from California with wealth, a bunch of fancy hats, and a bunch of birds.

Unfortunately, the series has been slowly declining since about The Cat Who Sang for Birds (give or take a book or two). That doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy this book, however. The Cat Who books are like candy to me, and I swear my kitties have taken some mannerisms from Koko and Yum Yum.

The book is a super easy read and enjoyable, but if you are looking for a more serious mystery, look somewhere else. Braun's later books have revolved more around the town than on mystery.

[❂ Murder by Death · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nobody reads the recent Lilian Jackson Braun "Cat Who" books for the gripping mystery or suspense. Long time fans of the earlier books might read them simply to check in with characters so well written that they feel like friends and neighbours. That's why I recently acquired this book and spent a lovely day outside reading it. It felt a bit like a holiday, reading up on what everyone in Moose County is doing and hearing about the latest exploits of Koko and Yum-Yum. I've never been a big fan of Quill's significant other, Polly, but even so, it was a nice trip "400 miles north of everywhere".

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's been years since I've read (or listened, in this case), to a The Cat Who book. I agree with other commenters that this one wasn't as engaging or as "mystery-like" as I remember the other books being. The mystery was practically solved earlier in the book, which made the end almost feel like a let down (or, rather, anti-climatic). I still enjoyed it, though. One thing about the narrator--every now and then he does a cat yowl, which I thought was a little creepy (it kind of made my hair stand on end, but maybe that was the point).

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

We just listened to this on our Labor Day trip and I have to say this one was not as good as the others in this series that we have read. The mystery was solved very early on and there were no real twists or turns. The ending is very abrupt as well. Oh well. I still recommend reading other books in this series, but this one you can skip.

[Gerry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Koko and Yum-Yum are as charming as usual but the plot of this particular Cat Who ... is dire.

Thelma Thackeray (great name) returns to Moose County after her Hollywood career but what she does thereafter remains somewhat unclear as the story rambles on with seeming irrelevancies. I got completely and utterly lost but carried on for the sake of the cats!

Yawn ...

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I want to like The Cat Who mysteries, but there is just something lacking there. I do admit that this is only the second I've tried and both were audio books. I told someone an old opera house and cats are two of my loves, but I can't say I loved this. It was quick and end was interesting, but the pace of the story in general was slow and folksy.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Did not finish. My own days are filled with their own day to day stuff without having to read about the every day day to day of someone else. I found none of the characters endearing, including the cats, and I'm a certified cat lady. On page 50 still waiting to find out what we are waiting to happen I gave up. Maybe this is a series one needs to start at book 1 with?

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The surprise at the end was the murderer who murdered the murderer, which made me give this book a 3 star, instead of the 2 star rating that the rest of the book deserved. I am a huge fan of this series but except for the last few pages, this one was not very engaging.

[Jmrathbone · Rating 1 out of 5]

A long time ago I read another “Cat Who” (I don’t remember which one) and found it to be amusing. This one is not only not amusing it is just plain boring.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Cat Who books always captures my interest. The antics of the cats are amusing. Also Quill has a way of seeing things that others don't. So with the help of his cat Koko. Crimes are solved.

[Elizabeth Meadows · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good. The best scene was the title scene where Koko brought down the house!

[Janet · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m only halfway through this small book and cannot justify wasting any more of my time. I read one of these books and this is just a repeat. BORING.
I’m definitely done with Lillian.

[Violet · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't have anything nice to say . To many characters to keep track of . Went off on to many tangents, will not read anything by this author again.