The Day the Cat Ran Away

by Nancy Gotter Gates

Viola Weatherspoon and Tyrone Landowski, residents of Glendon Hills Retirement Center, are at it again. Emboldened by their success a few months earlier when they uncovered evidence that exonerated a neighboring resident of the murder of her husband, they become involved in another homicide. This time a former TV anchor, Jeremy Scofield is killed, and his body is found in the county park that adjoins the retirement center’s property. When Cliff Holcomb, the husband of Vi’s niece and the defense lawyer for the couple accused of the crime, has a heart attack and must have surgery, the Rineharts plead with Vi and Ty to get involved fearing their case is not getting the attention it needs. The senior sleuths half-heartedly acquiesce but soon find themselves being drawn further and further into the convoluted twists and turns of the deceased’s life. In the meantime a serious fire destroys the kitchen in the retirement center, and one of the residents is accused of arson. Against Ty’s wishes, Vi sneaks into the injured man’s hospital room to question him and comes away convinced of his innocence. And she can’t bear the thought of anyone being accused of a crime he didn’t commit. Both incidents keep these senior citizens on their toes interviewing everyone involved and looking for a former coworker of Jeremy’s who has disappeared. As they tenaciously pursue the answers to these crimes, they put themselves squarely in danger’s way.

200 pages, Paperback

First published April 10, 2013

About the author

Nancy Gotter Gates grew up in Columbus, Ohio where she began writing poetry almost as soon as she learned to read and write, publishing her first poem at age eight. Marriage, motherhood and positions as public relations director for a school district, Girl Scout council and regional library precluded writing anything but news releases and newsletters for many years.

Series:
* Tommi Poag Mystery
* Emma Daniels Mystery

Reviews

[Taylor Nicke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this at an antique store and picked it up because of the cat on the front. I was pleasantly surprised to read about two senior citizens who are best friends that solve murder mysteries in their free time because they can. This particular book had a mini mystery along with the main murder they were working on. It felt a little slow at times when talking about their day to day activities at the retirement home but overall it was very entertaining. Glad I found this and I’m interested in reading some of the author’s other works.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful cozy. Vi lives in a very nice retirement facility. While she's showing her apartment to a prospective resident, her cat, Sweetie, bolts off the balcony into the woods. The ladies try to locate sweetie but instead stumble across a body. Vi and her friend Ty investigate the death as well as a mysterious fire at the facility. Enjoyable read!

[Ann Fleming · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful read but had some editing issueas

[Rebecca Baughman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun book. Very easy to read.

[CoffeeTimeRomance andMore · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is something to be said for being a gutsy golden-ager, but Vi and Ty take it to a whole other level. Not content with the variety of activities at GH, they worm their way into murder and arson investigations. This time around Ty is a much more active participant, and Vi is still every bit as pushy. While their antics are somewhat entertaining, I find it hard to imagine these two septuagenarians, whose days revolve so heavily on when and what they are eating, having the time to hunt down murder suspects.

Lototy
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance & More

Official Review @ Coffee Time Romance & More

[Susan Beamon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a pleasant cozy mystery that didn't take too long to read. I was stuck in the basement doing laundry. I have lots of books down there too, so I picked up one to read while the laundry machines were doing their jobs. This book concerns two retirees about my age looking into things that happened around them, because why not? One of those things was a fire in the kitchen of their retirement community. A fellow retiree was blamed, and our pair think that is a rush to judgement. The second project is a body that one of out retirees stumbles over while she is looking for her cat. This is a charming book, full of normal life and pleasant suspense.

[Harlequin Books]

Miniseries: A Glendon Hills Retirement Center Mystery