Cat Cafe #10
Maddie James has added a new service to JJ’s House of Purrs cat café on Daybreak Island, MA: a mobile cat café for parties. When client Olivia McAllister sets up a meeting to plan a dual birthday party for her daughter and granddaughter, Maddie soon learns that Olivia was her mother’s best friend when they were teenagers – and that Olivia mysteriously disappeared decades ago.
When Maddie and her mom arrive at Olivia’s house to discuss party plans, they find the door ajar and no sign of Olivia. Fearing the worst, they enter the house and find a cat who leads them to Olivia’s dead body. Who could want the grandmother dead? Is her death related to her mysterious disappearance as a teen? What about the rumors that the city wants her historical home for a museum? Could her family disagree with her secret plans to turn their ancestral home into a B&B? Is the cat the ghost cat of Daybreak Island and does it really herald life-changing events?
Because of her mom’s connection to Olivia, Maddie can’t resist looking into the mystery of Olivia’s disappearance and unexpected return. With help from her Grandpa Leo, former police chief, she digs into the past looking for answers. Along the way she has to deal with running her cat café and booking parties, fend off a local librarian/historian obsessed with Olivia’s family home who wants to interview Maddie for her TikTok video series, and a strange young woman who wants to open a competing cat café and tries to poach Maddie’s business contacts. Fortunately, Maddie has an understanding boyfriend to look after her dogs, employees to run the café and help care for the cats, and a supportive grandpa.
Although I have not read the previous books, I was immediately entranced by the setting, characters, and events. Cats, a quaint island setting, a missing person who isn’t really missing, and a ghost cat: what fun! Maddie’s café and pets are charming and the hints of events from previous books make me want to read more of this charming series. I’ve never been to a cat café but I find myself wanting to see what one is really like. — Cathy Akers-Jordan