Book reviews: Fictional felines who mean business
Claws Out: A Cat Café Mystery by Cate Conte. St. Martins, 2025. Softcover, 304 pages.
Good news for fans of amateur sleuth Maddie James and her rescued cat JJ. The duo is back solving crimes and offering sustenance and adoptable cats at the Cat Café in Claws Out, the ninth installment of Cate Conte’s always engaging Cat Café series.
This time, Maddie and JJ leave their home on Daybreak Island off the coast of Massachusetts for a cat-related literary festival and fundraiser on Cape Cod. The Cat Café just acquired a food truck that allows them to serve up delectable treats and coffee with a separate area housing adoptable cats. With her family and volunteers in tow, Maddie finds herself, as she usually does, in the middle of a murder investigation.
When one of the festival’s star authors is found dead, there is no lack of suspects — from her crime boss ex-husband to a fellow author. Things get a little too close to home, however, when the murder weapon is discovered hidden in the Cat Café’s food truck. With Maddie and her retired police officer grandfather on the trail, the murder is, as always, neatly solved.
As well as a terrific cat-themed mystery, the Cat Café series focuses on cats in need, making it one of the best reads for people who love cats and well-crafted cozies.
The Battle of the Bookshops by Poppy Alexander. Avon, 2025. Softcover, 320 pages.
I know one thing for certain: Anyone reading this review likes animals and books. So what could be better than a novel about two rival bookshops, one of which has a resident feline?
In Poppy Alexander’s rom-com set in an English village, Jules escapes from her less-than-satisfying life at a London publishing company to come home to help her aunt run her quaint and beloved bookshop. From the beginning of The Battle of the Bookshops, readers are drawn into modern village life as Jules, with the steady presence of store cat Merlin, struggles to keep the outdated store afloat.
The situation worsens when a trendy new bookstore opens across the street. And to make matters even worse, it is run by Roman, the son of a wealthy local family. For years, Jules’ and Roman’s families have been arch enemies for reasons buried in the past.
Of course, romance blossoms, but the subplot of how each bookstore comes up with ways to entice customers is just as interesting for book-loving readers. Whoever wins the battle isn’t as important as the sense of community that Poppy Alexander depicts in this delightful novel.
Are you the author or publisher of a book about animals that you would like considered for review? Please send the details to editor@bestfriends.org.
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