WHEN IS A WHITE ALLIGATOR A RED HERRING?

Okay, granted, an albino alligator on the loose in San Francisco is pretty darn exciting. But my two cats, Rupert and Isabella, and I have better things to do than tail a reptile from Nob Hill to Fisherman’s Wharf. We’re investigating the mysterious Steinhart brothers, the 1900s-era benefactors who provided the original funding for Clive the alligator’s aquarium. Follow the money, as my uncle Oscar used to say…

In the media circus surrounding Clive, one clown gets a little too close to the renegade gator—our very own aspiring mayor, Montgomery Carmichael. We’d hate to see Monty meet an undignified end, but we’re on a hunt of our own—for Uncle Oscar’s latest treasure. Of course, that’s assuming the whole thing isn’t a crock…

Review

How to Tail a Cat sends the main character, Oscar’s niece, on a treasure hunt to San Francisco’s Steinhart Aquarium. The young woman had closed the antique shop she inherited from her Uncle Oscar to concentrate on the many clues he has left in his shop to hidden treasure throughout the city. Her latest search becomes entangled with the hunt for a missing albino alligator named Clive and the appointment of an interim mayor of San Francisco. There are several people with a strong interest in the mayoral race including the current mayor who is on his way to Sacramento to become the Lieutenant Governor of California and the previous mayor. Oscar’s niece becomes connected to the city’s politics when her friend and neighbor, Monty, moves from the position of life coach to the current mayor to being a strong contender for the interim mayor position. When not treasure hunting, Oscar’s niece takes care of the two cats, Rupert and Isabella that came with her inheritance of the Green Vase. The cats have become spoiled and insist on eating fried chicken from a new restaurant. The chicken tastes remarkably similar to Uncle Oscar’s famous chicken which has the cats as well as the “Previous Mayor” of San Francisco wondering if rumors of Oscar’s death just may have been exaggerated.

This is unusual book that is not a typical mystery. It begins with several chapters of lengthy descriptions told from multiple points of view, including the cats and Clive the alligator, and don’t seem to be part of a cohesive story. The descriptions range from interesting, beautiful, and poetic, to rambling and confusing. The main character, who we know only as “Oscar’s niece” or “the niece” or as the cats call her “our person” or “the woman”, interacts only with her cats for most of the book until she starts her treasure hunt, with help from the cats making sure she finds the necessary clues. Even after the book ends, I don’t feel I got to know her at all. All of the descriptions are somewhat connected by the young woman’s search for treasure and the upcoming appointment of the interim mayor.

One bright spot in the book is the storyline that has the current mayor’s junior staffer, Spider Jones, helping the Previous Mayor get information on the various people in the running to be the new interim mayor. Spider and the Previous Mayor are interesting characters and do a lot of snooping throughout the city to get the information they need. For me, these were the most entertaining scenes in the book. I also enjoyed the Previous Mayor’s visit to the mysterious proprietor of the restaurant from which Rupert and Isabella’s tasty chicken dinners originate.

This is an extremely quirky, and for the most part, light-hearted mystery. However, there is a tragic event near the end that comes out of nowhere, doesn’t fit with the rest of the book, and isn’t explained. There are other loose ends remaining after the book ends that I assume will be picked up in the next installment of the series.  

There are some moments of humor in the book, but I would have enjoyed the puzzle of the treasure hunt more if I didn’t have to work so hard to figure out the plot of the book. Once I was able to piece together how some of the various sub-plots are connected, I became more interested in the story. While this isn’t a series I am likely to follow, the author is a very descriptive writer, reminiscent of Martha Grimes. Someone looking for a different type of mystery novel with two charming cats and many tidbits of California history may enjoy the book.

Reviewed by Christine K.

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