Cat-A-Lyst

Alan Dean Foster

Jason Carter is a handsome "pretty boy" actor. He wants deeper roles. Yet he cannot convince casting directors to see below the surface. After finishing a Civil War movie, he finds himself between movies. He joins a costumer on her strange trip to Peru.

Marjorie Ashwood is on an archeology hunt. Carter and Ashwood are looking for some ancient Inca grounds. She is sure there is gold. They are followed by an archeologist, a couple of amusement park entrepreneurs, an amazon, and a tabloid reporter. Soon Carter believes that nothing more can surprise him in the middle of the dark jungle. Then his pet cat and another get involved.

The experiences that follow are beyond shock into unbelievable. Has this oddly assorted group found a new native tribe that are ancestors of the ancient Incas? Whew! When Alan Dean Foster's imagination is at work, it is hard to keep up. Not too many people can combine the Civil War, gold in the deep South American jungle, Lewis Carroll, space travel, the acting profession and cats into a reasonable story. Yet he does it with panache in this book.

The writing in this book is fair, the imagination is great. I couldn't help but chuckle as the fall of the bad guys occurred. Do not expect superior writing here. There are times it slows to an almost stop. Yet the twists and characters presented keep the reader in suspense. How can these elements be pulled together? When Foster writes one of these light hearted science fiction novels, the reader knows that he can expect a lot of fun.