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The Claire Saga #2

An Alien Appeal

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"McCaffrey does it again! A delightfully wild ride full of unforgettable characters that will stay with you long after you read the last page." –Christy Cooper-Burnett, author of No Way Home An Alien Appeal picks up where The Wise Ass left off, expands the roster of mystical and magical characters, reunites Jimmy with his last sibling and finds Jimmy and Everett traveling through space to Proxima b to answer to that planet's elite for Everett's decisions and Jimmy's continued existence. All of Jimmy's wishes come true, including arguing his friend's case before the highest court in this galaxy, but there are prices to pay and Jimmy's life hangs in the balance. Love is tested and irrevocable choices are made. These colorful characters' continuing evolution embraces love, interstellar courtroom drama, loss and tears. Of course, Claire plays her central role in the resolution of it all, but nothing remains the same. Beware the law of unintended consequences.

239 pages, Hardcover

Published December 23, 2021

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About the author

Tom McCaffrey

25 books92 followers
Tom McCaffrey is a born-and-bred New Yorker who, after a long career working as a successful entertainment attorney in Manhattan, relocated with his wife to a small town in Northern Colorado to follow a road less travelled and return to his first passion, writing. Despite the local rumors started by Claire the mule, he denies being in the Witness Protection Program.

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Community Reviews

5 stars
735 (62%)
4 stars
327 (27%)
3 stars
90 (7%)
2 stars
21 (1%)
1 star
12 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews
Profile Image for Montzalee Wittmann.
5,413 reviews2,378 followers
May 10, 2026
An Alien Appeal
By Tom McCaffrey
This follows the first book, right where it ended. We find that Jimmy's sister has a very interesting life, too. Then Jimmy goes on a trip with his male Alien neighbor's home plant to face court. More odd stuff happens. Another fun book.
Profile Image for Elise a.k.a. PAPERNERD.
511 reviews33 followers
April 8, 2022

I read "The Wise Ass" previously, which was awesome.

This book continues the saga of Claire, the talking Mule - and the fun hodge-podge of people in the story, who keep entertaining and keeping us in awe...and I love it !

I laughed sometimes so hard, almost made me wet my pantaloons...
and spill my coffee.

I have still the 3rd part ahead of me in this trilogy.
But judging my the first two books, I bet I will just be as happy after reading it !

WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND !!!

Profile Image for Dan.
36 reviews
May 3, 2023
Second book of The Claire Trilogy. With all the talk of AI in the news today, it's time to sit back and use your imagination for a change. Relaxing, comforting, interesting story 🤔. I really enjoyed this 😊.
1 review
Read
March 25, 2022
I usually read mysteries, not sci fi, but I loved this trilogy. Transported me to a positive, happy head space….wish it was possible. Will read all Mr. McCaffrey’s wonderful stories.
Profile Image for Sonia Evans.
120 reviews
April 18, 2022
I just love Tom McCaffrey's quirky storytelling and his great sense of humour.
Profile Image for Scott Reas.
44 reviews
February 9, 2022
out of this world

Occasionally you need to leave the rational world behind and live a bit of fantasy…..
With Tommy McCaffrey’s clan that is your reward. Enjoy this bit of blarney, as it’s a true gift. You won’t be disappointed!
38 reviews
May 17, 2022
A great read

I am a fan of and mostly read western genre but the first 2 books in this series have been wonderfully entertaining. I can't wait to start the next book. You won't be disappointed in this seris.
72 reviews
February 5, 2022
A great romp!

Adventures and consequences of one's actions. The value of friends and the shared emotions, both happiness and sadness. Life is what one makes it.
4 reviews
January 26, 2022
Very entertaining. Don't read many books like.these.

I am excited to read about your characters. Looking forward to red the next book.
Thank you for such an entertaining read.
4 reviews
January 24, 2022
Thought or Entertainment provoking?

I read a lot but have to say this series is unlike any read I’ve encountered. It can both entertain you and bring up some interesting thoughts. If you find the story just to preposterous then you may be missing the point for you. Adventure is just a page away.
128 reviews1 follower
Read
January 20, 2022
Haven't read much science fiction since Isaac Asimov, but this one was entertaining. Looking forward to the final installment.
Profile Image for Etaoin.
45 reviews
February 15, 2024
Great Book in an Amazing Series

McCartney's writing skills have improved palpably as this wonderfully engaging series has progressed. Love this book, looking forward expectantly to the next. Great characters, truly lovely emotional engagement and clean writing drew me in.
Profile Image for Christy Cooper-Burnett.
Author 36 books239 followers
July 22, 2021
Tom McCaffrey has done it again! This book is every bit as good as the first in the series. Sometimes the second book loses its luster a bit—not the case with this series. The Alien Appeal is such a fun and entertaining read. It kept me up late a few nights simply because I just had to keep reading! That’s the sign of a fantastic book in this readers opinion. The characters are relatable and believable. And even though this storyline has a fantasy vein, the author pulls it off brilliantly. I found myself believing that a talking mule is not only absolutely normal, but wishing I had my own ‘Claire’. Read this book, it’s well the time.
6 reviews
April 23, 2022
Finally a really good teller of tales!!

I have opened too many books recently, only to close and take them off my device. Not so with the first two books in this series. Both books were fun, well written and totally enjoyable. We all need love and magic in our lives.
Profile Image for Annie.
52 reviews1 follower
January 7, 2022
As good as the first one, loved the story line and all the characters.
452 reviews6 followers
December 28, 2021
This second book of the trilogy does not disappoint. It does take things, people, aliens, space travel, and (somewhat) cross-pollination in several different directions. I was not quite prepped for the ending, but delighted at the cliff-hanging emphasis on the next in series to come.
Jimmy Moran, Gina Moran, Claire, Everett, and Michelle along with their rather mismatched gang of mind-reading, transformative, and multitalented friends and companions keep us guessing as to which area of quantum physics we would like to have re-interpreted for us so we can decipher issues such as Hobson's Law, inter-galactic travel, morphism by proxy, and other fun themes without too much stress on limited human intelligence or complex determinism by adjunctive means.
I thought "The Wise Ass" was good, but this 2nd journey moves beyond that initial feeling of entertainment to the outer limits of not just speculation but determined action and of course, the law of unintended consequences.

Mr. McCaffrey has taken Claire's initial mockery of human sluggishness to the new height of multi-species intentional interaction.
I loved it. I can't wait to find out how this all comes together. I've already set my reading alerts to let me know when KMAG will hit the bricks of electronic publishing. The first two have struck gold, IMO, so the final sequence of reading enjoyment is now just around the corner.

Thanks to the author for making my reading at the end of a very onerous year much more enjoyable than I expected it to be.
Hit me up, I am ready to be amazed.
14 reviews
April 11, 2022
Claire's crib

Book one got me hooked. Can't wait to read the next one. A fantastic trip across time and space. Casa Moran for your delight.
767 reviews1 follower
April 5, 2022
Wonderful!

Enjoyable romp! Who would have ever thought that an alien could travel so far away in a spaceship for two days and be gone from earth for a year? Well that's what happens and it's downright scary. But if you read on you will see how it's done. Thanks to our author Tom for his vivid imagination. Next book please!
13 reviews
April 3, 2022
Book 2 is a wonderful read also.

This is the first time that I can remember reading two books in a trilogy and being completely thrilled with both of them. Two "5 stars" and looking forward to reading the third book of the Clair Trilogy.
Ron Johnson
104 reviews
January 16, 2022
Magical

I finished The Wise Ass and immediately got the 2nd in the Claire trilogy. This book gave us a deep dive into the characters and their personal outlooks. The more yo get to know them, the more you love them as a family. If you love good people and good animals (along with a little intergalactic space travel) you will enjoy this book as much as I did. The only drawback is having to wait for book 3. Enjoy!
1 review
January 31, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed the characters and the plot (a flight of real sci fi fantasy) of this book. It was a quick read, because I had trouble putting it down. The pleasure of the read was diminished because there are frequent "typos" in the ebook text. They show up as homophones. I wonder if the author uses voice to speech and then doesn't run spell check or have an copy editor! It makes me sad that such a clever author didn't make sure his work was presented at it's best.
5 reviews
February 1, 2022
I've been in love with Tom McCaffrey's fantastical characters from the first page of the beginning of this Trilogy (The Wise Ass), so of course, I had to know the further adventures of Claire, the mule who talks, and the other new friends with strange and wonderful powers. I'm currently awaiting the third book, due out soon. The characters are well developed and make me wish this story could be true and that I could live in this neighborhood!
Profile Image for Larry.
39 reviews1 follower
February 12, 2022
Great Story Evolution

Tom is having a lot of fun with this story and we are receiving some fantastic entertainment from his fun. The only sad thing is the binary if you are doing text to speech. Listening to my Kindle reader say 1001101 for 10 minutes (or less) is very annoying. If you are reading manually then there is no problem - just skip over it. For those of you who multitask you know what I mean.
Still the story is fun and entertaining. So for me it is a good read.
Profile Image for Shana Pare.
937 reviews6 followers
December 25, 2021
Excellent

Claire wins another one as she dispenses her love and life experience. There is sadness in this story but it is also a discussion on how we expand our capabilities of loving ourselves as well as others. This is a fun series and I look forward to seeing what Mr. McCartney does with the final book.
892 reviews4 followers
January 3, 2022
5 Stars

Everett is called back to his home planet for bringing Jimmy back to life. Jimmy tags along to be Everett's attorney. Jimmy's trip through a wormhole changes him both physically and mentally, causing problems after he returns home. This book wasn't quite as good as the first one but still gets 5 Stars.
4 reviews
January 4, 2022
Surprising myself

I read the first title of this trilogy out of curiosity because it wasn't the type of book I usually read. I was enthralled from the beginning, and couldn't wait for second one to appear. I really enjoyed the second book also , and it's still not my usual type of story!! Tom McCartney is a great, imaginative storyteller. Hurry number 3!
5 reviews
January 13, 2022
Page turner. Unexpected characters. Solid story line and the magic ingredients of love and the mystery of the unknown in the universe!
The Wise Ass introduced me to this family of odd friends and neighbors with extraordinary abilities!
And then, it’s fantasy, and sci-fi, a science lesson, diverse friendships and family of characters gathered by their most unusual abilities!
Write on T!
7 reviews
January 17, 2022
Weird and Wonderful

Not my usual choice of subjects but I am hooked. I usually read westerns and when I tried to explain the subject matter of these books to my wife she just looked me like I had turned into an alien being. I can't wait for the final book of this trilogy. Tom McCartney's mind is a weird and wonderful thing.
44 reviews
January 21, 2022
Read this book in a day!

I love Claire, the mule who talks. Then the rest of the 'misfits' are special, every one of them. A totally different story that reminds us that we all have our secrets and if we are lucky enough to find others that we enjoy and get along with...gather them into yr circle.
7 reviews
February 15, 2022
Trust me on this

Do not start reading Tom McCaffrey here with An Alien Appeal. Go get The Wise Ass and immerse yourself in the amazing community created by Claire and her friends. You won't want to miss a minute of their fellowship. An Alien Appeal will be all the more delicious if you meet the characters as old friends.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews