The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell (The Cat Who... Series #28)

by Lilian Jackson Braun

Overview

When a wealthy couple dies, Jim Qwilleran and his cats, Koko and Yum Yum, must follow the case to its explosive conclusion in this mystery in the bestselling Cat Who series.

The town of Pickax is buzzing with excitement: its residents are about to celebrate the 150th anniversary of its founding. But in the midst of all the preparations, Qwill has to take time out to entertain aspiring architect Harvey Ledfield—and deal with Koko’s strange new habit. Because the Siamese star has started dropping from balconies and landing in the oddest of places, including on Harvey’s head! And now that Harvey’s aunt and uncle have mysteriously gone missing, Qwill better brush up on his paw language before Pickax is hit with a bombshell...

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780515142419
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	12/26/2006
Series:	Cat Who... Series , #28
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	145,296
Product dimensions:	4.15(w) x 6.69(h) x 0.77(d)

About the Author

The history of Lilian Jackson Braun is perhaps as exciting and mysterious as her novels. Between 1966 and 1968, she published three novels to critical acclaim: The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern, and The Cat Who Turned On and Off.  In 1966, the New York Times labeled Braun, “the new detective of the year.” Then, for reasons unknown, the rising mystery author disappeared from the publishing scene. It wasn’t until 1986 that Berkley Publishing Group reintroduced Braun to the public with the publication of an original paperback, The Cat Who Saw Red. Within two years, Berkley released four new novels in paperback and reprinted the three mysteries from the sixties. Since then, G.P. Putnam’s Sons has published seventeen additional novels in the Cat Who series. Braun passed away in 2011.

Hometown:

North Carolina

Date of Birth:

1916

Date of Death:

June 4, 2011

Place of Birth:

Massachusetts

Place of Death:

South Carolina

Education:

Graduated from high school at age 16

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

A master of mystery. (People)

Read these books if you want to forget your troubles. (Ft. Myers Beach Bulletin)

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Lilian Jackson Braun and the Cat Who series

“A master of mystery.”—People

“Upbeat prose and amiable characters.”—Publishers Weekly

“The mix of crime and cats [is] catnip to readers who like both.”—Chicago Sun-Times

“Braun keeps both paws on the side of charming.”—Los Angeles Times

From the Publisher

The Barnes & Noble Review
In the 28th (yes, 28th!) installment of Lilian Jackson Braun's Cat Who... saga (The Cat Who Read Backwards, The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern, et al.), the residents of Pickax City in Moose County -- "400 miles north of everywhere" -- are busy preparing the town for its big sesquicentennial bash. But amid the numerous parades, performances, and kitty auctions, tragedy strikes when an affluent elderly couple suddenly dies from mysterious causes…

The magnificently mustached local columnist Jim Qwilleran (along with his two Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum) has his hands full with numerous projects associated with the town's 150th birthday. But when an aspiring young architect visiting from California -- the nephew (and only heir) of the deceased socialites Nathan and Doris Ledfield -- asks to sketch his renowned home (a renovated apple barn), Qwill happily obliges. When the young man stops by, however, Koko inexplicably assaults the visitor by dropping onto him from an upper balcony. Quill realizes that his extraordinarily perceptive Siamese knows that something unseemly involving the architect is in the works -- but what?

Readers who enjoy "cozy" mysteries -- decidedly understated novels by authors like Dorothy L. Sayers, Nancy Atherton, Susan Witting Albert, M. C. Beaton, et al. -- will find comfort in Braun's nine-lived saga (begun in 1966!), which features friendly characters, pleasant plotlines, and always a purr-fectly happy ending. The literary equivalent of a sipping a glass of warm milk with nutmeg and getting your tummy rubbed… Paul Goat Allen

Bestseller Braun's disappointing 28th Cat Who... novel (after 2004's The Cat Who Went Bananas) mostly follows journalist Jim "Call Me Qwill" Qwilleran as he runs around Pickax City, Mich., getting things ready for the town's blow-out celebration of its sesquicentenary. Many books ago, Qwill inherited tons of money and set up a foundation to benefit Pickax. Now that story line has become a caricature, with Qwill's fund popping up and financing yet another venture virtually every chapter. The "mystery" concerns Nathan and Doris Ledfield, a wealthy couple whose only heir is an obnoxious, greedy nephew. When late in the tale the Ledfields die... well, let's just say that no one will be surprised to learn who was behind their deaths, or what his motive was. Lame plotting isn't the only problem. The characterization is not just thin, it's anorexic. Perhaps it's time to put this series, which once defined feline fiction, to sleep. Mystery Guild main selection. (Jan.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Sesquicentennial fever sweeps Pickax City. As head of the K Foundation, fabulously wealthy Jim "Qwill" Qwilleran is often involved in Moose County activities. He's just made the move from his in-town condo to the architecturally renowned apple barn that's his summer home. Qwill is happy to let the orphaned nephew of the wealthy Ledfield family make sketches of his apple barn for a college entrance portfolio. Harvey Ledfield soon arrives in a limousine with his fiancee, cat-loving journalism student Clarissa Moore, who is a hit with Qwill. But Qwill becomes suspicious of Harvey when Qwill's Siamese Koko drops from a balcony and knocks Harvey off his sketching stool. Like Yum Yum, Qwill's other cat, Koko is never wrong about people and obviously has it in for Harvey. In due course, Clarissa confesses that she's not engaged but just helping Harvey work a scam to inherit the Ledfield wealth. Undaunted, Qwill gets her a job at the local paper as he and his circle of friends gear up to make the sesquicentennial celebration one for the history books. Things go well enough until both Ledfield elders die mysteriously. For better or worse, parades and other events leave Qwill little time for sleuthing. No mystery to speak of, but cat-loving fans of Braun's Moose County saga (The Cat Who Went Bananas, 2005, etc.) will no doubt enjoy the latest from Pickax.

Kirkus Reviews

George Guidall obligingly takes us back to Pickax, 400 miles from anywhere, in this Lilian Braun offering. Koko, that Siamese super cat, dives from his master Qwill's balcony onto the head of a visiting architect. This folksy mystery has all the eccentric characters and kindly folk that Braun fans adore, and Guidall has his unique, and by now well-recognized, voices that bring the community to life. Fans can't get enough of the Cat Who . . . series, and hearing the novels performed by Guidall makes the experience all the more enjoyable. Listeners hoping to hear Koco's distinctive death yowl will not be disappointed. It’s hard to imagine that anyone but George Guidall could make a feline hero so real. D.L.G. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

JUN/JUL 08 - AudioFile