How to Moon a Cat

How to Moon a Cat by Rebecca M. Hale is the third of the Cats and Curios series. The frog escapade has led to a new caper involving toy bears and California statehood. It's the first book to spread beyond the bounds of San Francisco.

Every year California hosts a bicycle race that runs from the gold rush country, through the wine country and down the coast to Los Angeles. Oscar's old group of friends get wind of a mystery that could lead to the original California Republic flag.

Oscar's niece, having found a toy bear at the Green Vase with the location of the first leg of the race decides to tag along with the Mayor's assistant. Rather than leave the cats at home, they devise a way to bring them along

Fortunately for this series, the cats show more though characters, don't do anything extraordinary or un-cat-like in the service of solving the mystery. The cats are cats and they are there to make the cozy, cozier. But they aren't as ridiculous as Koko and Yum-Yum.

On the other hand, anything and everyone can be a character in these books. Cats, frogs, the moon, a brick. Normally this sort of thing pulls me right out of the story but Hale does it with humor and aplomb. show less

The only reason I continued reading this novel is because I had purchased the 2nd and 3rd novels of the series at the same time.

As mentioned in my review of the 2nd novel, the 3rd novel is again "filled" with the history of San Francisco, California (primarily the California Gold Rush era) almost to the point that in certain chapters it reads more like a nonfiction book than a cozy mystery.

I will not continue reading this series.

I've not YET read the first two books in this series by Rebecca M. Hale.

The protaganist has inherited her Uncle Oscar's San Francisco antique shop, The Green Vase. She has the cluttered and dusty shop all cleaned up. With all the items, many that go back to the Gold Rush Era, neatly on display. The new owners' cats, Isabella and Rupert play an integral part in this series.

While moonbeams are dancing through the apartment one evening, Rupert finds a green vase hidden in one of the kitchen walls. In that vase is a small bear with a California state flag. A note attached to says Nevada City, CA. Having found references in the shop, she know that Uncle Oscar had a particular interest in the flag that went missing in the 1906 earthquake. Her show more neighbor has to go Nevada City to represent the city for the Tour California bike race. So it is off to the races, so to speak, in search of more clues.

Hale's writing is very descriptive and enjoyable. The moonbeams dancing around, the antics of Isabella and Rupert and the calamity of errors besieging the bicycle race. A very nice mix of good character, history and a little bit of mystery too. show less

I've not YET read the first two books in this series by Rebecca M. Hale.

The protaganist has inherited her Uncle Oscar's San Francisco antique shop, The Green Vase. She has the cluttered and dusty shop all cleaned up. With all the items, many that go back to the Gold Rush Era, neatly on display. The new owners' cats, Isabella and Rupert play an integral part in this series.

While moonbeams are dancing through the apartment one evening, Rupert finds a green vase hidden in one of the kitchen walls. In that vase is a small bear with a California state flag. A note attached to says Nevada City, CA. Having found references in the shop, she know that Uncle Oscar had a particular interest in the flag that went missing in the 1906 earthquake. Her show more neighbor has to go Nevada City to represent the city for the Tour California bike race. So it is off to the races, so to speak, in search of more clues.

Hale's writing is very descriptive and enjoyable. The moonbeams dancing around, the antics of Isabella and Rupert and the calamity of errors besieging the bicycle race. A very nice mix of good character, history and a little bit of mystery too. show less

This is the third book in the Cats and Curios Mystery series and I'm still not sure what to make of the series or Rebecca Hale's writing. The story was another non-climax really as the foreshadowing was pretty obvious. The climax was a repeat in a way from the first book. There was little character development.

And, well, the talking bricks was a wee bit much. In each book, Hale tries something. Book 1 -- vocabulary. Book 2 -- foreshadowing. Book 3 -- interesting points of view. In book 2 she had several good chapters told from the cats' POV. In this book, she has several chapters told from the cats' POV, 3-4 from the moonbeam's, 1 from a statue's, and 1 from the bricks in an old dressing room. Okay... I really don't know what to show more say.

I'm not sure what will be the new 'trick' for book 4, but I'm fairly disappointed with #3. Rupert and Isabella are such good cats that it's hard to let the series go. show less

I liked this series because it's not your typical cozy mystery. Woman has profession, woman finds body, woman get's knocked on head and unconscious, woman solves murder, woman continues on with profession.
This series has more to it then just a murder, she must solve clues left behind to uncover the facts about the California Gold Rush era. There's more to it then just finding a body and figuring out who murdered him or her. She's got two inquisitive and communicative cats along with some help from her Uncle's secret group. Through out the story of course is some unbelievable events like talking bricks but if you can go along with cats who communicate then talking bricks shouldn't be that big of a deal either.
I'm giving this book three show more stars, I had problems with in this particular book because I felt like I was reading book one all over again. Even though I knew this wasn't book one I felt like the author had just taken parts from book one and slapped them in this book to fill the story line. Same historical characters and events and even locations. I love a book that teaches me something and the first one did but this one not so much.
There is no murder in this one but that's what I liked about it. Sure there's a mystery to solve just not a murder mystery. show less

I liked this series because it's not your typical cozy mystery. Woman has profession, woman finds body, woman get's knocked on head and unconscious, woman solves murder, woman continues on with profession.
This series has more to it then just a murder, she must solve clues left behind to uncover the facts about the California Gold Rush era. There's more to it then just finding a body and figuring out who murdered him or her. She's got two inquisitive and communicative cats along with some help from her Uncle's secret group. Through out the story of course is some unbelievable events like talking bricks but if you can go along with cats who communicate then talking bricks shouldn't be that big of a deal either.
I'm giving this book three show more stars, I had problems with in this particular book because I felt like I was reading book one all over again. Even though I knew this wasn't book one I felt like the author had just taken parts from book one and slapped them in this book to fill the story line. Same historical characters and events and even locations. I love a book that teaches me something and the first one did but this one not so much.
There is no murder in this one but that's what I liked about it. Sure there's a mystery to solve just not a murder mystery. show less