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Midnight Louie #4
Cat in a Crimson Haze
Midnight Louie, the best tomcat in the crime-solving business, and his human partner, petite redheaded publicist Temple Barr, are once again in the thick of things in the city of sin. The manager of the Crystal Phoenix, one of Las Vegas's premier vacation spot, has hired Temple Barr to help clean up the hotel's image, but soon more than the Phoenix's reputation is in danger. The phoenix becomes prey to mysterious saboteurs whose little pranks just happen to keep endangering Temple's life.
When Temple tangles with ex-priests, local police, FBI agents, obnoxious reporters, and a pasell of semi-reformed mafiosi who wear pastel zoot suits, it's up to Midnight Louie to get her out of knot....before it's too late.
When Temple tangles with ex-priests, local police, FBI agents, obnoxious reporters, and a pasell of semi-reformed mafiosi who wear pastel zoot suits, it's up to Midnight Louie to get her out of knot....before it's too late.
416 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
13 people are currently reading
285 people want to read
About the author
Carole Nelson Douglas
163 books567 followersCarole Nelson Douglas is the author of sixty-four award-winning novels in contemporary and historical mystery/suspense and romance, high and urban fantasy and science fiction genres. She is best known for two popular mystery series, the Irene Adler Sherlockian historical suspense series (she was the first woman to spin-off a series from the Holmes stories) and the multi-award-winning alphabetically titled Midnight Louie contemporary mystery series. From Cat in an Alphabet Soup #1 to Cat in an Alphabet Endgame #28.
Delilah Street, PI (Paranormal Investigator), headlines Carole's noir Urban Fantasy series: Dancing With Werewolves, Brimstone Kiss, Vampire Sunrise, Silver Zombie, and Virtual Virgin. Now Delilah has moved from her paranormal Vegas to Midnight Louie, feline PI's "Slightly surreal" Vegas to solve crimes in the first book of the new Cafe Noir series, Absinthe Without Leave. Next in 2020, Brandi Alexander on the Rocks.
Once Upon a Midnight Noir is out in eBook and trade paperback versions. This author-designed and illustrated collection of three mystery stories with a paranormal twist and a touch of romance features two award-winning stories featuring Midnight Louie, feline PI and Delilah Street, Paranormal Investigator in a supernatural-run Las Vegas. A third story completes the last unfinished story fragment of Edgar Allan Poe, as a Midnight Louie Past Life adventure set in 1790 Norland on a isolated island lighthouse. Louie is a soldier of fortune, a la Puss in Boots.
Next out are Midnight Louie's Cat in an Alphabet Endgame in hardcover, trade paperback and eBook Aug. 23, 2016.
All the Irene Adler novels, the first to feature a woman from the Sherlock Holmes Canon as a crime solver, are now available in eBook.
Carole was a college theater and English literature major. She was accepted for grad school in Theater at the University of Minnesota and Northwestern University, and could have worked as an editorial assistant at Vogue magazine (a la The Devil Wears Prada) but wanted a job closer to home. She worked as a newspaper reporter and then editor in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. During her time there, she discovered a long, expensive classified advertisement offering a black cat named Midnight Louey to the "right" home for one dollar and wrote a feature story on the plucky survival artist, putting it into the cat's point of view. The cat found a country home, but its name was revived for her feline PI mystery series many years later. Some of the Midnight Louie series entries include the dedication "For the real and original Midnight Louie. Nine lives were not enough." Midnight Louie has now had 32 novelistic lives and features in several short stories as well.
Hollywood and Broadway director, playwright, screenwriter and novelist Garson Kanin took Carole's first novel to his publisher on the basis of an interview/article she'd done with him five years earlier. "My friend Phil Silvers," he wrote, "would say he'd never won an interview yet, but he had never had the luck of you."
Carole is a "literary chameleon" who's had novels published in many genres, and often mixes such genre elements as mystery and suspense, fantasy and science fiction, romance with mainstream issues, especially the roles of women.
Delilah Street, PI (Paranormal Investigator), headlines Carole's noir Urban Fantasy series: Dancing With Werewolves, Brimstone Kiss, Vampire Sunrise, Silver Zombie, and Virtual Virgin. Now Delilah has moved from her paranormal Vegas to Midnight Louie, feline PI's "Slightly surreal" Vegas to solve crimes in the first book of the new Cafe Noir series, Absinthe Without Leave. Next in 2020, Brandi Alexander on the Rocks.
Once Upon a Midnight Noir is out in eBook and trade paperback versions. This author-designed and illustrated collection of three mystery stories with a paranormal twist and a touch of romance features two award-winning stories featuring Midnight Louie, feline PI and Delilah Street, Paranormal Investigator in a supernatural-run Las Vegas. A third story completes the last unfinished story fragment of Edgar Allan Poe, as a Midnight Louie Past Life adventure set in 1790 Norland on a isolated island lighthouse. Louie is a soldier of fortune, a la Puss in Boots.
Next out are Midnight Louie's Cat in an Alphabet Endgame in hardcover, trade paperback and eBook Aug. 23, 2016.
All the Irene Adler novels, the first to feature a woman from the Sherlock Holmes Canon as a crime solver, are now available in eBook.
Carole was a college theater and English literature major. She was accepted for grad school in Theater at the University of Minnesota and Northwestern University, and could have worked as an editorial assistant at Vogue magazine (a la The Devil Wears Prada) but wanted a job closer to home. She worked as a newspaper reporter and then editor in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. During her time there, she discovered a long, expensive classified advertisement offering a black cat named Midnight Louey to the "right" home for one dollar and wrote a feature story on the plucky survival artist, putting it into the cat's point of view. The cat found a country home, but its name was revived for her feline PI mystery series many years later. Some of the Midnight Louie series entries include the dedication "For the real and original Midnight Louie. Nine lives were not enough." Midnight Louie has now had 32 novelistic lives and features in several short stories as well.
Hollywood and Broadway director, playwright, screenwriter and novelist Garson Kanin took Carole's first novel to his publisher on the basis of an interview/article she'd done with him five years earlier. "My friend Phil Silvers," he wrote, "would say he'd never won an interview yet, but he had never had the luck of you."
Carole is a "literary chameleon" who's had novels published in many genres, and often mixes such genre elements as mystery and suspense, fantasy and science fiction, romance with mainstream issues, especially the roles of women.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
November 21, 2023
The series continues to improve with the characters growing and the plots becoming more complex and coherent. After 2 books I was iffy on continuing, but I'm really hooked now.
I'm roughly the same age as the heroine, Temple Barr, and I really enjoy the fashions and especially the shoes. Temple is a shoe fanatic, as I am, and I'm constantly nodding my head as she drops popular brands from the mid-1990s.
The relationship between Temple and ex-priest Matt Devine is also evolving as each one individually works through their own separate issues - Temple's recent bad break-up with Max the magician and Matt's more cordial one with the Church. I found it interesting that Temple disclosed her sexual history to Matt; I assume that would be considered outdated today?
Finally, I love the concurrent story of Midnight Louie and his family. He learned that Caviar, the cat Temple acquired at the cat show, is his daughter, and in this book, he disclosed to her that he is her father. AND he met his own sire at the same time. Love it!
I'm roughly the same age as the heroine, Temple Barr, and I really enjoy the fashions and especially the shoes. Temple is a shoe fanatic, as I am, and I'm constantly nodding my head as she drops popular brands from the mid-1990s.
The relationship between Temple and ex-priest Matt Devine is also evolving as each one individually works through their own separate issues - Temple's recent bad break-up with Max the magician and Matt's more cordial one with the Church. I found it interesting that Temple disclosed her sexual history to Matt; I assume that would be considered outdated today?
Finally, I love the concurrent story of Midnight Louie and his family. He learned that Caviar, the cat Temple acquired at the cat show, is his daughter, and in this book, he disclosed to her that he is her father. AND he met his own sire at the same time. Love it!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 27, 2016
The Les Vegas Strip is undergoing a major change to a family friendly area, Temple Barr is hired to do a major overhaul to the Crystal Palace. Midnight Louie has returned to the palace as he suspects someone is planning mischief. Midnight Louise and Three O'clock Louie enter the story. Matt is struggling with personal issues. Lieutenant Molina has a surprise. Temple is exploring the Crystal Palace when a body falls from the sky onto a gaming table. There is a surprise ending.
August 31, 2023
Not too sure about this one. Not much of a mystery. Not much of a romance. I think I'd have to read the first books in the series to get into this one. The characters didn't seem to have much depth too them. They all seemed like cardboard cutouts. I'm not sure the purpose of the cats. I just did not enjoy the writing overall.
March 17, 2019
Romance novel readers probably will like this better than I did. They mystery portion was great: As Las Vegas was beginning to lag because of competing gambling areas around the country, Temple Barr was hired to come up with a plan that would bring the Crystal Phoenix Casino out of the gambling only, "sin city," era and into the modern family friendly entertainment era. In conjunction, neither she nor anyone else had been asked to contribute skits to this years' Gridiron show, coincidentally to be held at the Crystal Phoenix (Midnight Louie's old stomping grounds). Rude, crude Crawford Buchanan, who somehow had managed to get himself into the year's director slot and planned to write all of the skits himself, but suddenly called for Temple's help on the finale. As she began exploring the Crystal Phoenix for both projects, she and Midnight Louie, separately and together, experienced accidents, and unanticipated and unexplained activities.
In the meanwhile, Sergeant Molina was still searching for Temple's former love, Max, regarding an unsolved murder, and though Temple believed in his innocence, she was unable to explain his sudden disappearance. Another intriguing mystery (or two) that Temple was unaware of was being explored by her neighbor, the recently-introduced former priest, Matt. Again, the mystery is good, but the Catholic church interplay and the romance seem long and drawn out.
In the meanwhile, Sergeant Molina was still searching for Temple's former love, Max, regarding an unsolved murder, and though Temple believed in his innocence, she was unable to explain his sudden disappearance. Another intriguing mystery (or two) that Temple was unaware of was being explored by her neighbor, the recently-introduced former priest, Matt. Again, the mystery is good, but the Catholic church interplay and the romance seem long and drawn out.
July 7, 2021
One of my favorites in the series.
I am going backwards and filling in the gaps for some of the earlier books I missed reading. I absolutely loved the background information about Matt and the Catholic Church. What a great peak into the aspects of becoming a priest or nun. The mystery plot was fun too. And of course, more critical info about Midnight Louie surfaced also. Such a good cozy mystery series!@
I am going backwards and filling in the gaps for some of the earlier books I missed reading. I absolutely loved the background information about Matt and the Catholic Church. What a great peak into the aspects of becoming a priest or nun. The mystery plot was fun too. And of course, more critical info about Midnight Louie surfaced also. Such a good cozy mystery series!@
August 29, 2017
This book adds more appearances of Louie's "supposed" daughter, Midnight Louise, and a charming reunion with his old dad, Three O'Clock Louie .
The venue for most of the book is the Crystal Phoenix, at which the Gridiron, the annual roast of Las Vagas entities, takes place. Temple Barr, not only is responsible for many of the skits, but with Louie's help foils a huge robbery.
The venue for most of the book is the Crystal Phoenix, at which the Gridiron, the annual roast of Las Vagas entities, takes place. Temple Barr, not only is responsible for many of the skits, but with Louie's help foils a huge robbery.
August 6, 2023
I enjoy the characters but the story was much too long….so many unnecessary details and I felt like the descriptions of characters feelings and emotions were very repetitive. It took me so long to get through this… I really want to continue on with the series but am weary if each volume is going to be so wordy….
September 3, 2018
Great series that keeps getting better with each book.
July 11, 2019
A fun addition to the series, with more backstory on the characters spinning out. Louie, as always, is a star.
July 12, 2020
This one was a little slow getting to the mystery, but ws very good. We find out more about Matt, Lieutenant Marlena and Louie.
September 21, 2023
Good book. Best characters in the book were the cats.
September 2, 2025
Love this series wow and cliffhanger at the end
January 26, 2023
You gotta let Midnight Louie prance through your life.
August 15, 2011
I think this one is my favourite so far...even considering the little "surprise" at the end, which is driving me crazy, because I don't have the next book in the series - and it's out of print!!
I love Louie's writing style. It is so very film noir, that sometimes I get the giggles, because I start thinking about Ryan and Colin doing a Whose Line is it Anyway? skit as if they were cats with a Jimmy Cagney accent.
I've wanted to know more about Matt Devine's past since he was introduced in Catnap, so I was quite pleased to learn so much more of his background. It was also wonderful to see a more human side of Lt. Molina.
My middle daughter and Temple have something in common. Neither of them is pleased with her height and, as a result, both prefer to wear high heels. I fear that someday my daughter will be spending as much money as Temple does on her own foot wardrobe.
I look forward to Cat in a Diamond Dazzle - once I can get my hands on a copy.
I love Louie's writing style. It is so very film noir, that sometimes I get the giggles, because I start thinking about Ryan and Colin doing a Whose Line is it Anyway? skit as if they were cats with a Jimmy Cagney accent.
I've wanted to know more about Matt Devine's past since he was introduced in Catnap, so I was quite pleased to learn so much more of his background. It was also wonderful to see a more human side of Lt. Molina.
My middle daughter and Temple have something in common. Neither of them is pleased with her height and, as a result, both prefer to wear high heels. I fear that someday my daughter will be spending as much money as Temple does on her own foot wardrobe.
I look forward to Cat in a Diamond Dazzle - once I can get my hands on a copy.
August 15, 2009
I really loved this third book in the series....I've become completely hooked, so it is a good thing I bought them all. I can't wait to find out what the Mystifying Max will do next. LOL. Midnight Louie is a brilliant cat as well. I like the way the books always end on a cliffhanger. High drama and such fun. I recommend this series to anyone who likes an intricate plot with a cast of fun and offbeat characters.
July 4, 2012
What can Temple Barr do to shiny up the reputation of a mobsters new venture... That is the question? Even she might not be able to use smoke and mirrors to make this guy look good. So it's up to Midnight Louie, the 20 lb sexy black Tomcat to rescue her from the clutches of the mob, before she is fitted with ugly cement overshoes...ohhh the horror!
March 24, 2016
Usually cat mysteries (I can't believe this is a genre) (yes I can) are enjoyable but make me roll my eyes. This one had witty, fun internal cat dialogue and a plot that kept me guessing. A lot of the references privilege those who have read the previous books in the series, so I missed out on a little bit.
August 17, 2017
I love Midnight Louie, the feline sleuth. And now we've been introduced to his sire, Three O'Clock Louie, and one of his progeny, Midnight Louise, AKA Caviar. I'm hoping to see all three generations featured (or at least mentioned) in subsequent books in the series.
September 13, 2007
It was full of surprises and unexpected twits. For some reason it took me a while to get into but once I did I liked it a lot.
March 31, 2011
good, long series installment
January 22, 2016
Midnight Louise is a black cat in Vegas that has all sorts of adventures.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews