Book Review: "What the Cat Dragged In" by Gilbert Morris

Cat lovers unite!

Kate and her son Jeremy have discovered they have inherited a house in White Sands, Alabama which would mean a better life for the two of them. The catch is they have to share the house with another person plus take care of the many animals that already live there. Jake's not too thrilled about sharing the house with Kate and Jeremy plus their two cats Jacques the Ripper and Cleo. He doesn't like animals period and the cats share his same affection about them. The trio begin to adapt their new life together where all seems to be going well at first. Then a murder happens that affects them and it's up to the cats to save the day to find the killer.

This is a new genre for Morris, he's written several mysteries before but none quite like this. What I found very different about this book was the use of pop culture and modern slang. I never would have thought I would have read the words Dr. Dre or 50 Cent in a Gilbert Morris book! Kate's and Jake's situation is unique as this is one of the few CBA books I've read that have an unmarried female and male living together in the same house. This does get brought up several times in the book by church members as an issue but I think it's handled well. I don't mind reading about animals so I liked the mini zoo of animals the two have to keep in the house. However I thought it was unbelievable to keep a raccoon was kept as a pet. Aren't they wild animals? And how come nothing is mentioned about rabies? I didn't really like Jake's character. He came off as very male chauvinist and rude. Personally also I thought he acted like an old man instead of a 30 year old. I didn't like how he would insult and throw away Kate's food. He just felt like a cardboard stereotypical character with no real likable personality. Rhiannon is another strange character as I don't know many young girls who would read the encyclopedia cover to cover.

I liked the cats and their participation in the story. Although I felt that they didn't play a big of a role as the cover made it out to be. Hopefully that changes in the next book because I liked reading about what they were thinking and the communication between the two. The mystery was very good as I did not know who the killer really was and was quite surprised by the outcome. If you like cozy mysteries, this is one I think you'd enjoy.

What the Cat Dragged In by Gilbert Morris is published by Harvest House (2007)