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A review by saareman
Catspaw for Murder by D.B. Olsen
3.0
'Cat's Claw' and 'Catspaw For Murder' are the same book!
Review of the Mysterious Press/Open Media Kindle edition (October 11, 2022) of the Doubleday hardcover original (1943).
It is perhaps a case for The Lone Librarian™ as the Goodreads series for the Rachel Murdock mysteries incorrectly lists Cat's Claw as #3 and Catspaw for Murder as #4. This throws out the numbering for all the subsequent books of which there were only 12 in total and not 13.
But otherwise, this is a standard entry for the series. Rachel is called to assist Prudence, the granddaughter of an old schoolfriend who has written to her asking for advice about a series of ominous notes which she has been receiving. Rachel's sister Jennifer tries to discourage any involvement but Rachel is soon on the road with Samantha the cat in tow. When she arrives at the home of Prudence and her sisters, murder soon follows.
Cover design of the original 1943 Doubleday edition when the book was published under the D.B. Olsen pseudonym. Image sourced from Goodreads.
There are some fairly unrealistic elements to this story, including one witness to a murder apparently not noticing that she was sitting in the same room with a dead body. Eventually Miss Rachel's friend from the LA murder squad Detective Mayhew is also brought in on the case and of course Miss Rachel ignores his cautionary advice until suddenly in the middle of the book she is apparently kidnapped along with her cat. But all is explained in the end, with cat Samantha providing a vital clue with a pawprint. Miss Rachel and her familiar continue to have nine lives and more!
Note: In the first 2 books, Samantha the cat was described as being of a marmalade colour. This apparently didn't suit the marketing and design staff for the book series, where a black cat constantly appeared in the titles and the book covers. In #3 Catspaw for Murder Samantha is suddenly described as being black.
Review of the Mysterious Press/Open Media Kindle edition (October 11, 2022) of the Doubleday hardcover original (1943).
It is perhaps a case for The Lone Librarian™ as the Goodreads series for the Rachel Murdock mysteries incorrectly lists Cat's Claw as #3 and Catspaw for Murder as #4. This throws out the numbering for all the subsequent books of which there were only 12 in total and not 13.
But otherwise, this is a standard entry for the series. Rachel is called to assist Prudence, the granddaughter of an old schoolfriend who has written to her asking for advice about a series of ominous notes which she has been receiving. Rachel's sister Jennifer tries to discourage any involvement but Rachel is soon on the road with Samantha the cat in tow. When she arrives at the home of Prudence and her sisters, murder soon follows.
Miss Rachel and Samantha were alone in the hall. The cat, who went with Miss Rachel on whatever travels that lady undertook because she refused to eat with Miss Rachel away, seemed aware that something unusual was about to happen.
Cover design of the original 1943 Doubleday edition when the book was published under the D.B. Olsen pseudonym. Image sourced from Goodreads.
There are some fairly unrealistic elements to this story, including one witness to a murder apparently not noticing that she was sitting in the same room with a dead body. Eventually Miss Rachel's friend from the LA murder squad Detective Mayhew is also brought in on the case and of course Miss Rachel ignores his cautionary advice until suddenly in the middle of the book she is apparently kidnapped along with her cat. But all is explained in the end, with cat Samantha providing a vital clue with a pawprint. Miss Rachel and her familiar continue to have nine lives and more!
Note: In the first 2 books, Samantha the cat was described as being of a marmalade colour. This apparently didn't suit the marketing and design staff for the book series, where a black cat constantly appeared in the titles and the book covers. In #3 Catspaw for Murder Samantha is suddenly described as being black.