Cat Raise the Dead

Shirley Rousseau Murphy

4/30/2000

Joe Grey and Dulcie are cats that can speak and think like humans. They can also communicate with humans. Both of their owners are aware of their talents, but keep them a secret. Dulcie has a new mission. She has joined the Pet-a-Pet program at the local nursing home. She wants Joe to join as well. She feels he needs to be able to give joy to the residents. She also thinks there is a mystery centered there and that they should ferret it out.

There is also a cat burglar in their California coastal town. The woman pretends to be looking for her lost kitty, then walks into open homes during the day while the families are in their own yards. She stuffs her overcoat with their valuables and sneaks out again without their knowledge of anyone having been there. She then resumes her lost kitty story in case she is noticed. Joe knows what she is doing and is following her as much as possible.

Dulcie finally convinces Joe to join the Pet-a-Pet program and to behave himself while there. There is something going on. Patients are going into the intense Nursing unit and are not seen again. They are too sick for visitors, even their former friends who still live at the nursing home. But perhaps the only thing really going on is the teen aged girl who keeps sneaking into the facility trying to visit an old friend of hers who was transferred into the Nursing wing. She uses the Pet-a-Pet program to gain access.

In this series, the cats do have human attributes. This is obviously explained in one of the earlier books in the group. Joe has a memory from a year before when he suddenly found he could speak. I like the twist, especially since I am a cat lover. I was able to deduce most of the story. There was a twist with the cat burglar that caught me, though. This is a fairly average, readable mystery.

You can find more about this book at .

Cat on the Edge
Cat Under Fire
Cat Raise the Dead
Cat in the Dark
Cat to the Dogs
Cat Spitting Mad
Cat Laughing Last
Cat Seeing Double
Cat Fear No Evil