A Whisker of a Doubt by Cate Conte

A Whisker of a Doubt by Cate Conte
Cat Cafe Mystery Series, 4
Publisher: St Martin’s Paperbacks
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Contemporary, Holiday
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Nymphaea

The holiday season on Daybreak Island is a mixed bag for Maddie James. On the one hand, her Christmas spirit is in the doghouse after a break-up. On the other, she’s busy enough that she doesn’t have to pretend to be merry. Business at her cat café is booming, and Maddie’s care-taking of a feral cat colony in one of the area’s wealthiest communities only helps her bottom line.

But tensions between the homeowners and animal activists are escalating to catastrophic levels. . .and before long a body is found dead in a snowbank. To prove that her accused friend is innocent of the crime, Maddie will have to prowl the island for clues to the real killer before everyone on the island goes completely hiss-terical―and more than nine lives are lost.

Good intentions can get you into trouble and how!

This is the first book by Cate Conte I’ve read, so I walked into the story fresh. The writing is good and I was transported to the cat cafe in the story. I liked the idea of the story – helping feral cats and controlling the population humanely. I even liked the idea of the cat cafe. Why not? It’s a cute story and worth the read.

I have to admit the protagonist, Maddie, did drive me crazy a few times. I guess it’s a thing with cozy mysteries, but the amateur sleuths always seem to get right into the investigation and circumvent laws to get there. Seems like that’s not safe, but this is fiction, so it’s still a good read. Maddie does tend to waffle concerning her boyfriend and that got a tad old. I get she wanted a clean break, but I’m the type who wants closure for my characters and I wanted to see her get it. Plus, there aren’t many mentions of cats in this book. I expected more, but there weren’t. Oh well.

It’s still an interesting mystery and I had no idea whodunit until the end. I liked how this story had a small town feel and am interested in reading more in this series.

If you’re looking for a cute holiday mystery, then this might be the one for you.