Brenda H. (booksinvt) - , reviewed on 6/8/2015 + 465 more book reviews

The first in the A Second Chance Cat Mystery introduces Sarah Grayson, owner of Second Chance a small shop in the small town of North Harbor, Maine that specializes in refurbished and repaired items. Sarah has recently adopted Elvis, a big black cat with a huge scar across his nose who has the ability to tell when people are lying. No, Elvis doesn't talk but through his "meows" and posture he is able to hold conversations with Sarah and her friends. As a pet owner who has daily conversations with my animals I could really relate to the idea that your animals understand everything you say and they answer you too.

Sarah spent her summers in North Harbor with her grandmother Isabel, and has now moved back to town, bought a new house and opened her secondhand shop. In addition to her best friend Jess, she has three surrogate mothers; Charlotte, Rose and Liz who are her grandmother's closest friends. Shop employees also include craftsman Mac and spunky Avery, Liz's granddaughter.

When Sarah goes to the local senior center to teach a class on furniture restoration she notices that one of her elderly friends, Maddie, does not show up for the class. It is unlike Maddie not to call so Sarah and Charlotte head over to check on her and discover her sitting at her patio table with the dead body of her boyfriend Arthur Fenerty. When the autopsy shows that Arthur died from poison in his coffee, Maddie becomes the prime suspect.

The three elderly ladies dub themselves Charlie's Angels and enlist the help of Mr. Peterson, the nude model and computer hacker to clear Maddie's name. Despite the warnings from the new Medical Examiner Nick, who is also Charlotte's son, the ladies convince Sarah to assist in their investigation. It turns out that Arthur is a con man who prays on elderly women and has left a string of "wives" and crimes in his wake - providing an abundance of suspects with a motive to kill the man.

A terrific storyline with likeable characters that make you laugh out loud. Refreshing and fun friendships with a little hint of romance too. And who doesn't love a good mystery featuring a cat? Looking forward to reading the second in the series - Buy a Whisker.

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