The Cat Lady Sleuth Strikes Again: Murder in Green Harbor

Miss Cuddlywumps reads Book 2 in the Cat Lady Sleuth series by Nancy C. Davis

Sometimes a cozy-mystery lover needs a quick, light read to help them through a winter’s day. Nancy C. Davis’s Cat Lady Sleuth series offers some nice stories to curl up with.

Murder in Green Harbor is the second adventure of Deirdre and her cats, Flipper and Joe. Deirdre lives in Green Harbor, Maine, and is a librarian by day and an amateur sleuth in her spare time. As this book opens, we find Deirdre feeling the stress of a busy time at work. Clearly, this sleuth needs a mystery to solve so she can relax a little, and, conveniently enough, someone in Green Harbor is murdered.

Well, I should back up a little bit. Someone is missing, but we know from the title that this someone is more than likely also murdered.

The unfortunate victim is one Misty Hall, who stands (or stood, rather) to inherit the Brown’s Salt Water Taffy business. The question is, who would want to harm her? She was known to associate with at least one supposedly unsavory character, but would he want her dead, or is there something else going on?

Deirdre can’t help but get involved (over the local sheriff’s objections), which means that the tubby Flipper and tabby Joe also get involved. Well, Joe gets involved. Flipper’s attention is mostly taken up with the newest addition to the family, a little kitten named Clem. Little Clem makes himself useful right away, leading Deirdre straight to a clue. It takes the more experienced Joe, though, to actually catch the killer.

Really, one wonders how crimes would ever get solved without cats.

Murder in Green Harbor is not a complex book, but it does have some depth to it (just how close can Deirdre let herself get to Sam, her love interest and good friend?) that helps make it a satisfying read. It also features some particularly nice fall imagery (golden light on red maples and sparkling waters) that was especially inviting—and comforting—on the frigid winter day when we read the book. There are a few distracting typos, and the addition of commas in several sentences would make for a smoother reading experience.

All in all, though, Murder in Green Harbor is a charming, quick read, perfect for relaxing with a cup of tea on a cold evening. We look forward to more books in this series.

More by Nancy C. Davis: Deirdre the Cat Lady Sleuth