Buy a WhiskerA typical day in my life? Let me see. Well, last Tuesday was pretty typical. First thing I took some breakfast to Sarah. I guess you could say she’s my landlord and my boss, but most of all she’s the only grand-daughter of my dear friend Isabel, and since Isabel is still off on her honeymoon it’s my job to keep an eye on Sarah. I may have shaded the truth a little when I told her I’d made more food than I could eat for my own breakfast. That wasn’t really a lie, it’s just that I made the extra specially for her. If I hadn’t, she probably would have eaten some sad crust of bread. What kind of breakfast is that? Sarah is a lovely girl. Unfortunately cooking is not her strength at the moment, although I’m working on fixing that. Goodness! You wouldn’t think one person could have so many mishaps in the kitchen. I had no idea potatoes made so much mess inside an oven when they exploded.

After breakfast I got a ride over to the store with Sarah. The shop is Second Chance. It’s a repurpose shop and I must say I like the idea of so many things getting a second chance and a new purpose. We have furniture, quilts and tablecloths, dishes, books and so many other things. Sarah created some lovely teacup planters. This is so much better than everything ending up in the landfill.

I only work part-time at the store because the rest of my time is spent at Charlotte’s Angels, the Angels for short. We’re private investigators; Alfred, Liz, Charlotte and I. If you remember the original Charlie’s Angels, Charlotte is Kate Jackson, Liz is Jaclyn Smith, Alfred is Bosley, of course, and I’m Farrah. Not to brag but I do have the best hair. We rent office space from Sarah, which is very convenient for me and for Charlotte, who also works at the shop.

Since we didn’t have a case last Tuesday I was helping Sarah and Mac clear out Edison Hall’s old house. And Elvis was helping too. How could I forget Elvis? He’s a very intelligent cat; more than just a mouser. He can tell when someone’s lying. Now I know you’re thinking I’m addle-brained, but it’s the truth. Mac thinks Elvis is noticing the signs people give off when they lie—their hearts beat faster, their pupils dilate and such. That certainly makes sense to me. As far as the old Hall house goes, I know Sarah only agreed to the job to help out Edison’s sister, Stella. As I said, she’s a lovely girl. Heaven knows Stella needed help to get that place of her brother’s into shape. I don’t think the man ever threw anything out. I’m not saying the house was dirty, but anytime you have boxes stacked to the ceiling in your living room, you have a problem. It turned out that wasn’t the only problem in Edison’s house.

We found a body in the kitchen: Ronan Quinn it turned out. Edison’s son had hired the man to evaluate Edison’s wine collection. Such as it was. Someone had hit Mr. Quinn over the head with one of the bottles. I could see right way this was a case that needed the Angels’ expertise. It was the least we could do for Stella. We will find out who killed Mr. Quinn. As I’ve said before, it’s a very bad idea to underestimate us just because we’re senior citizens.


You can read more about Rose in Buy A Whisker, the second book in the “Second Chance Cat” mystery series, published by Obsidian. The first book in the series is The Whole Cat and Caboodle.

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About the author
Sofie Ryan is the New York Times bestselling author of The Whole Cat and Caboodle, the first book in the Second Chance Cat Mystery series. She also writes the New York Times bestselling Magical Cats mysteries under the name Sofie Kelly. In her spare time she loves to prowl around thrift stores looking for things to repurpose in her life and in the mixed-media collages she creates. Visit Sofie at her website.