Cat's Paw

Small Press Bookwatch, Oct, 2007

Cat's Paw

L. A. Taylor

FTL Publications

PO Box 1363, Minnetonka, MN 55345-0363

9780965357562, $15.95 www.ftlpublications.com

When Miranda Glivven's husband doesn't return from a secret assignment for the government, she goes out to look for him, starting at his last known location. Miranda's only companion on her quest for her missing husband is a cat. She finds that no one, not the authorities, nor the local citizenry, seem to want to help her. Some of them even think that Miranda is using magic (a treasonous offense) because of that cat. Set in a world where magic is officially denied, even while it is consistently rumored to exist, "Cat's Paw" is an entertaining and compellingly written novel that deftly combines mystery with fantasy. Author L. A. Taylor (she passed away from cancer in 1996) is revealed as a master storyteller of immense and imaginative talent. "Cat's Paw" is strongly recommended for school and community library fantasy/mystery collections. Also recommended reading are her earlier novels "Footnote to Murder" and "Blossom of Erda".