"Charlie and Diesel must catch a killer before he strikes another deadly note in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling Cat in the Stacks Mysteries. Charlie Harris remembers Wilfred "Wil" Threadgill as one of the outsiders during high school in Athena. Although Wil was a couple of years ahead of him and his friend Melba Gilley, Melba had a big crush on Wil, who dropped out after his junior year. An aspiring musician, Wil hit the road for California and never looked back. Wil eventually became a star, ...
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"Charlie and Diesel must catch a killer before he strikes another deadly note in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling Cat in the Stacks Mysteries. Charlie Harris remembers Wilfred "Wil" Threadgill as one of the outsiders during high school in Athena. Although Wil was a couple of years ahead of him and his friend Melba Gilley, Melba had a big crush on Wil, who dropped out after his junior year. An aspiring musician, Wil hit the road for California and never looked back. Wil eventually became a star, fronting a band and writing award-winning songs. Coming back to Athena to work for two weeks with students in the college music department, Wil is now the big man on campus. Not everyone is happy to have him back, however. His entourage have been the target of several acts of petty harassment. At first they are easy for Wil to shrug off, but the incidents escalate and become more troubling. When one of the band members is killed, Charlie worries that Melba, now deeply involved with the man at the center of the attacks, could be in deadly danger. It is up to Charlie and Diesel to find out who hates Wil Threadgill enough to silence his song . . . forever!"--
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New. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. 320 p. Cat in the Stacks Mystery. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
After a bit of a hiatus, we are back in Athena, Mississippi visiting Charlie Harris and his family and my personal favorite fictional feline, Diesel. In this story, a man Charlie and his bestie Melba went to school with returns after making it big musically in California. He is being given an honorary degree at the college and will spend two weeks mentoring students in the music department. Melba had/has a huge crush on the man and is acting like a schoolgirl whenever he is around.
But not everyone is thrilled to have the man back in town. It seems that his departure all those years ago had a real impact on the ones he left behind and someone is making it known. At a reception to welcome Wilfred ââ?¬Å"Wilââ?¬Â? Threadgill home the threats and harassment hit a whole new level when one of Wil's former bandmates is killed. Charlie is worried that anyone connected to the man could be in danger including Melba. Charlie has no choice but to try to find who was hurt by Wil's departure bad enough to kill. With Diesel by his side, he hopes he can make the killer sing out a confession and fast before anyone else is singing their swansong.
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It was great to catch up Charlie. He is always busy with some cataloging or smoothing something out for his family or friends or in the middle of another mystery. I can never get enough of his fabulous cat Diesel and his chirps and mrrrrs. His son Sean and his wife are going through some adjustments with a new baby and a home renovation and Charlie is always there with an open ear to listen and maybe impart some words of wisdom. Helen Louise and Charlie are getting closer and fans like me will love to see that relationship evolve in a meaningful way. Truthfully all the core characters continue to develop nicely but with everything Charlie had on his plate, he didn't seem to be the Charlie I had expected to see. I can't totally put my finger on it but heck people in real life go through ebbs and flows so there is no reason a fictional character can't too. Charlie is blessed though to have the best cat who can lift anyone's spirits and make them feel better with a couple of chirps, trills, and touches.
The mystery blended nicely with the subplots. I found myself focused on a couple of suspects pretty quickly but I had an inking about someone else too. So when all was revealed in dramatic fashion with some key characters in mortal danger I was pretty impressed with my own amateur sleuthing.Ã? I did enjoy the twists and clever attempts of misdirection. The ending was a little abrupt though. I didn't get the final closure I needed regarding Wil Threadgill, his career, and Melba but maybe we will in the next book. I do wish Charlie had been more actively involved in the investigation but he was there when it counted.
The author always does an excellent job setting the scene so readers can easily visualize everything. Charlie's home, his office, the library, Helen Louise's bistro, Sean's new home, and everywhere in between including where the showdown took place. It is always a joy to travel around with Charlie.
There were a couple of editing issues that I hope were ironed out before the final copy was printed like Charlie living through the same afternoon twice including two lunch breaks. They gave me pause and messed with flow but I was able to get back on track.
Hiss Me Deadly gets us back to Athena and the characters we love and that is a very good thing. I was delighted to see that the next book in the series has been turned in to the publisher as of yesterday and should be released next summer. I have already added it to my calendar.
Kristina
Jul 2, 2023
The 15th A Cat in the Stacks Mystery!
Hiss Me Deadly by Miranda James is the fifteenth A Cat in the Stacks Mystery. It is hard to believe that we have had fourteen adventures with Charlie and Diesel. If you are new to the series, I would recommend starting with one of the earlier books in the series. Charlie and Diesel find themselves caught up in a mystery when musician and composer Wil Threadgill returns to Athena after forty years. Wil has a bad feeling that something is wrong within his entourage. He is hoping Charlie and Diesel will have some insights. I found that to be vague and odd. Then an old friend and high school bandmate of Wil�s end up dead. Charlie is not very hands on in this investigation. He does ask some questions (that�s it). There are a couple of incidents that happen to other people, but we are not privy to them. We are only told about them. The whodunit can be solved before the reveal. I felt the mystery was lacking. There is no sleuthing and no action. There was a subplot involving Wil that added nothing to the book. The story moves along lethargically. All our favorite characters are present including the adorable Diesel (love his warbles and chirps). We get to follow Charlie as he goes about his day-to-day life (getting up and having breakfast, feeding the cats, heading off to work, talking to Sean, etc.). His son, Sean, has an issue with his wife regarding her coming back to work and their new home. He seeks his father�s advice and so does Charlie�s daughter-in-law. There is lots of talking and eating in this installment. Melba acted like a lovesick fool. There was even a moment of jealousy which I thought was out of line. Hiss Me Deadly is my least favorite book in A Cat in the Stacks Mysteries. It needed some oomph (action, humor, sleuthing). I was not a fan of the foul language in the book. There was too much of it and it was unneeded. I am glad that Charlie and Helen Louise are in a good place. I am looking forward to their nuptials. Hiss Me Deadly takes us back to Athena with a returning rocker, an electric killing, curious occurrences, a chirruping cat, a family fuss, a dwelling decision, and matrimonial determinations.
