A brown tabby named Jugs looks up at his new caretaker, and she hears three broken thoughts: “dead and gone… She loved me… skateboard on the step.” Nela has learned to dread moments like this. What the Cat Saw by Carolyn Hart came out on October 2, 2012, from Berkley Prime Crime. In the publisher’s words, the national bestselling author Carolyn Hart presents an original new novel about a woman with a curious ability. It was billed as the first in a new series, but no second book followed.
What the Cat Saw or What the Cat Sees: Which Is the Right Title?
The correct title uses the past tense: Saw, not Sees. Every publisher, library and review record uses it. We found no book called What the Cat Sees by any author. The nearest titles are picture books, such as What Does the Cat See? and They All Saw a Cat. If you remember a mystery about a woman who hears a cat’s thoughts, this is the book you are looking for.
The Story: Marian’s Fall and Jugs the Cat
Nela is an investigative reporter who has lost her job in California. Since the death of her fiancé, Bill, who was killed in Afghanistan, Nela Farley has found herself plagued by a sixth sense. When she looks into a cat’s eyes, she understands the thoughts of cats, in short bursts. She half believes she is imagining this unwanted ability to figure out what an animal knows.
Her adventurous sister Chloe asks a favor. Chloe wants to go to Tahiti with her boyfriend, and Nela welcomes the distraction. She agrees to fill in at Chloe’s job at the Haklo Foundation, a charity in the small town of Craddock, Oklahoma. She also moves into the garage apartment behind the mansion of the trustee Blythe Webster. There she encounters the previous tenant’s cat and gets a flash of what he has seen.
The apartment belonged to Marian Grant, who ran the foundation until she died in a fall at home. Everyone calls the death of former tenant Marian an accident. The cat’s thoughts say otherwise, and Nela knows she cannot take a cat to the police. Soon she is drawn into a world of intrigue and murder: a break-in, a missing necklace, trouble for Nela’s sister and a second murder. The second murder occurs midway through the book. The police start looking at both sisters.
Who Are the Main Characters?
- Nela, the out-of-work reporter who can read cats’ thoughts;
- Jugs, Marian’s brown tabby, who has seen more than anyone;
- Chloe Farley, the flighty younger sister, who works at the foundation;
- Marian Grant, the woman whose death starts it all;
- Blythe Webster, the powerful trustee, whose heirloom necklace goes missing;
- Abby Andrews, the new assistant curator;
- Steve Flynn, the red-haired newspaperman of the Craddock Clarion, who believes Nela when the police do not;
- Detective K.T. Dugan, who suspects the sisters.
Our Review: A Grieving Heroine and a Cat Who Knows
The best thing here is how small Hart keeps the magic. Jugs does not talk in sentences, and he never solves the case. He gives Nela a few frightened fragments and a reason to keep asking questions. The rest is ordinary reporting: interviews, records and a sharp eye for who is lying. Her grief is handled gently, and her slow friendship with Steve, who has wounds of his own, gives the book warmth.
The foundation is a good closed world, full of staff who are at each other’s throats. The weak spot is the solution: some readers guessed the killer well before the end. Publishers Weekly said traditional mystery fans will find a lot to like, and Charlaine Harris wrote that it will surprise and engage any mystery reader. We agree with both, with the warning that the puzzle is the lightest part.
Is It Part of a Series?
Only on paper. Libraries still label it book 1 of a series, and in 2014 the author said she was thinking about returning to Nela and Steve. No second book has appeared, so the series has exactly one title. Her website now lists it among her standalones. That makes it a complete story you can read on its own.
Who Wrote What the Cat Saw?
Carolyn Hart grew up in and still lives in Oklahoma City and studied journalism at the University of Oklahoma. Like Nela, she started as a newspaper reporter. She has written more than sixty novels and is best known for three series. In Death on Demand, Annie Laurance runs a mystery bookstore on a South Carolina island. Henrie O is a retired newswoman. The Bailey Ruth Raeburn series follows a ghost sent back to earth on assignment.
She is one of the founders of Sisters in Crime and a former president. The Mystery Writers of America named her a Grand Master in 2014. Her awards include three Agathas for best novel, as well as Anthonys and Macavity Awards. Her Bailey Ruth books are also set in Oklahoma, in the fictional town of Adelaide.
Is There an Audiobook?
Yes. Kathleen Early reads the unabridged audiobook, which Penguin Audio released the same day as the hardcover. It runs 9 hours 8 minutes. Libraries carry a Dreamscape Media edition with the same narrator, on Libby and on CD.
Quick Facts
| Title | What the Cat Saw |
|---|---|
| Author | Carolyn Hart (also Carolyn G. Hart) |
| Series | Nela Farley, book 1 (no sequel published) |
| First published | October 2, 2012, Berkley Prime Crime, hardcover |
| Setting | Craddock, a small town in Oklahoma |
| Sleuth | Nela, an out-of-work investigative reporter |
| Animals | Jugs, a brown tabby |
| Audiobook | Narrated by Kathleen Early, 9 h 8 min (Penguin Audio, 2012) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it a cozy mystery?
Yes. There is no gore, the setting is a small town, and the heroine is an amateur. The paranormal part is light.
Can Nela talk to cats?
No. She can hear the thoughts of cats only in short bursts. She catches short thoughts and feelings when she looks into a cat’s eyes, and she keeps the gift to herself.
What should I read next?
Try Carolyn Hart’s Death on Demand series, starting with Death on Demand, or browse our cozy cat mysteries and paranormal cozy mysteries.