The Cat Who Came to Breakfast

Title: The Cat Who Came to Breakfast
Author: Lilian Jackson Braun
Rating: Four Guitars

Sizzilin' Summary:
Summer is here! Qwill and the cats are visiting an Island known by many names (Breakfast Island, Pear Island, etc....) at the request of their friend Nick Bamba. Funny stuff has been happening, like food poisoning, drowning, etc.... But when the steps of Nick's B-and-B collapse, he suspects sabatoge (sp?). With Polly gone for two weeks, Qwill goes to check it out.
But there's many stories going on here, and Koko has been going out with some dominoes...

Rockin' Review:
The beginning starts out only okay. But near the end, things start getting really good! It sticks onto you, and Life has to rip you away from it. But once it does, you can stand waiting a while to go back.
This was a pretty good book overall, it just needs some tweaking.

The Cat Who Went Into The Closet

Title: The Cat Who Went Into The Closet
Author: Lilian Jackson Braun
Rating: Four Guitars

Sizzilin' Summary:
Qwill is renting the Gage mansion for the winter. The abundance of closets full of junk delights Koko. But then the original owner of the mansion dies, supposedly be her own hand, but something's fishy... the disappearance of a local potato farmer brings up its own mystery.
Something's fishy is going on, both in Mouse County and a retirement park in Florida... will Qwill and Koko be able to solve the mystery this time?

Rockin' Review:
This is like the last book. It was good enough to keep coming back to, though not enjoyable enough to cling onto you. It was well-written and good.
This was a good book overall.

The Cat Who Wasn't There

Title: The Cat Who Wasn't There
Author: Lilian Jackson Braun
Rating: Four Guitars

Sizzilin' Summary:
Qwill returns home because of a personal problem. Soon, it's taken care of enough that Qwill decides to go on a trip with a tour group to Scotland... leaving the cats behind with his friend Mildred. But the leader of the trip dies. Qwill eventually goes home.
But Koko somehow knew of the leader's death, though he was in the other side of the world. And soon he has Qwill believing that it wasn't some heart condition, like the returned Dr. Melinda Goodwinter, who has been a pain lately for Qwill, says. It's murder... and while Qwill is trying to figure it out, the problem that made him come home from the mountains isn't gone, and is stalking around... and it may hurt him, or someone close to him...
Things may get dangerous...

Rockin' Review:
Okay, it wasn't that exciting. I got a little carried away with the summary, though there was enough to keep you coming back.
This was one of those really good Cat Who books. While you weren't suctioned into it all the time, it was enjoyable enough and good enough to have you coming back again and again. And I liked that, despite the back summary, most of that action happens in Moose County. It's nice, and it makes me feel comfy.
And I think that the two story lines were put together nicely. And Mrs. Braun even tied the two together at the end! Very nice! And she did a good job with both story lines throughout the book... even though they seemed like two separate things! Very nice again!
While there were some problems, and some average-enjoyment scenes, I think that this was a pretty good book.
All in all, this was a very good book!

Fundraising The Dead

Title: Fundraising The Dead

Author: Sheila Connolly

Rating: Three Guitars

Sizzilin’ Summary:

Nell Pratt is the fundraiser for the Pennsylvania Antiquarian Society, located in Philadelphia. She’s also dating the president, Charles. When a board member, Marty, complains of some letters missing from a collection she donated, Nell is unluckily chosen for the part. But Nell discovers that other items have been disappearing from the Society, and that could be bad news for the Society!

But when the one who tells Nell about the missing items ends up dead, things are going to get rolling… and some of them may be very bad…

Rockin’ Review:

Hmm… okay.

It was just that. Okay! The story was decently done, but it was only average enjoyment. It wasn’t good… but it wasn’t bad, either. There were some things interesting to read, however, like how the FBI handled a situation here. But, other than that… there was nothing to really catch my interest. It was simply an okay book. More of a time-waster than anything else!

This was only an okay book.

Fair warning to younger people:

There was another almost-you-know-what­ scene. Another blooper for the book! But, luckily, there was nothing. Just giving a warning to younger people and people who don’t handle (or want to) you-know-what scenes.

The Cat Who Moved A Mountain

Title: The Cat Who Moved A Mountain
Author: Lilian Jackson Braun
Rating: Three Guitars

Sizzilin' Summary:
Qwill is officially a billionaire! He rents a house for the summer in the Potato Mountains, so he can make some big life decisions. But he finds trouble and a mystery instead... one that Koko has sniffed out inside the house they're renting...

Rockin' Review:
Writing level... okay.
Enjoyment level... only average.
All in all, this was an average book. I will say that the author did a good job of showing how long it seemed like Qwill was in the mountains, despite the actual time he was there. There were other good parts to the book... but it was only an average book overall.
This was only an okay book.

The Cat Who Knew A Cardinal

Title: The Cat Who Knew A Cardinal
Author: Lilian Jackson Braun
Rating: Four Guitar

Sizzilin' Summary:
Qwilleran has reconverted and moved into the giant barn, next to orchard, on his estate, and the cats are enjoying it... in fact, Koko is friends with a cardinal that he can see through the windows! But after a celebration of the Theatre Club, an unlikeable man by the name of Hilary VanBrook is found shot dead in Qwilleran's "parking lot"! And Qwill's friend Dennis is missing at the same time...
There's more to Hilary VanBrook and this murder than meets the eye, and Qwill and Koko are set to find out...

Rockin' Review:
Again, this one had a slower start. But it starts grabbing you near the end. The story was pretty well-done, and was enjoyable. The conclusion to the second mystery, however... hmm... could have been better.
All in all, however, this was a good book, it just takes time to get into it.

Starfleet Academy: The Edge

Title: Starfleet Academy: The Edge
Author: Rudy Josephs
Rating: Four and a Half Spaceships

Sizzilin' Summary:
Based on the new Star Trek movie, here's the start of Jim Kirk's Academy adventures!
Kirk is already famous for his boast that he'll get out of the Academy in three years instead of the usual four. But he has other things to worry about... the Academy program is extremely hard and tiring. And he's a got a girlfriend, which is difficult in this atmosphere.
Uhura is here too, trying to deal with the schedule. Spock has caught her attention as well. Dr. "Bones" McCoy, Kirk's friend, is here too. Everyone's got their own adventures.
But things are going to get uglier and busier for Kirk and everyone else when other first-year cadets start dying. There's a mystery to be solved... and everyone's involved in one way or the other!

Rockin' Review:
Rockin' book! I wasn't quite suspecting this. It's a little slow at first, but gets better fast. And the intro of the big cast was well-done, so we really couldn't lose tract of who's who. And the head-switching was good. The story overall was well-done, and it was very enjoyable.
This was a rockin' book, and I just hope the next one is just as good!