“The Cat Who Came to Breakfast” by Lilian Jackson Braun

This is another novel from the series about the American journalist Jim Qwilleran, his “psychic” cat Koko and his other Siamese – a female called Yum Yum without any super abilities. She is just charming and very independent – that’s all.

Since “The Cat Who Turned On and Off” many years have passed. Qwilleran is no longer a poor reporter striving to win a yearly prize of $1000, just so he could make ends meet. On the contrary – he is now filthy rich – a multi-millionaire. In one of the books that never came my way he somehow managed to inherit an enormous fortune. As a result, he no longer needs to rent an apartment in a shabby neighbourhood. He has a house of his own. He also had a girlfriend now – a librarian called Polly Duncan. They don’t intend to marry, but they keep that warm attachment that makes their both lives better.

At the start of the book Polly announces that she is going to Oregon for two weeks, which makes Qwill worry. Then – answering to a call from his friends – he himself undertakes a trip to the so called Breakfast Island to investigate a series of suspicious accidents marring the success of a newly opened resort, of which Qwill himself disapproves, though his own foundation was among the sponsors. He takes his cats with him to spend a fortnight in a tiny cottage.

The cats haven’t changed since our last meeting at all – no sign of their getting older. They still like long-distance jumps, and the restricted space of the cottage is an ordeal to them. To amuse himself, Koko starts messing with dominoes. Before long Qwill discovers a new possibility: every time Koko pushes a few dominoes onto the floor, his owner counts the pips on them, substitutes A for 1, B for 2, etc…. L being Double-Six – and tries to spell words. Finally, with the help of those “tips” from Koko he unravels the whole mystery.

The island, he soon discovers, is a site for a serious cultural clash. There are four cultures involved: the natives (descendants of ship-wreck victims who have lived on the island for centuries and call it “Providence Island”); the members of the “Grand Island Club” (the owners of rich estates who mainly spend their summers here and call it “Grand Island”, which is the only name that suits them); the “mainlanders” (who used to come to the island in small boats for fishing in peace – to them it’s “Breakfast Island”) and the “tourists” or “vacationers” (those who come to spend a few days in the newly opened hotel and numerous B-and-B’s). The tourists call it “Pear Island”, which is also the official name of it – the one used for maps.

The name of the island is not the only controversy between the four cultures – the conflict goes deeper into history of the island. The natives – terribly poverty-stricken, but independent and proud of their heritage – resent the implication that they descend from pirates, which is popular with the hotel and resort owners, who use it in their marketing campaign. Qwill suspects the islanders might be behind the so-called accidents (which, of course, don’t stop with his arrival, and a few more fatalities take place).

While running his investigation, Qwill manages to meet and rescue a young and beautiful heiress (not that he needs another fortune), rides out a hurricane and has other exciting adventures – and finally, as I’ve mentioned, solves the mystery completely, but leaves it to the police to do the dirty job of collecting the evidence.

I must mention that of the three books I’ve read from the series, this one is my favorite. Qwill – though rich now – is still a dear and mixes easily with all the “commoners”. He still never touches any booze; still works, though doesn’t have to. He wears simple clothes, eats simple food and donates most of his money to the greater good of his town and its surroundings (which is exactly my idea of what the rish people should do). The people he meets on the island (belonging to all four cultures) are mainly quite likeable (with a few exceptions), and book itself has made me burst out laughing a few times. Elisabeth Appelhardt, a mysterious rich heiress quietly fighting against the dictatorship of her domineering mother – and winning with Qwilleran’s help – is given the most attention from the author. I like the girl: she teases my imagination, and I sympathize with her, given what she’s been through. The Bambas are simply a very nice couple; June Halliburton is thoroughly unpleasant, but it doesn’t mean she deserved that horrible death… but no more spoilers for today. All I’m going to say is that there are many other interesting characters in the book you might love to meet one day.

Do I find Koko’s psychic abilities more convincing this time? Perhaps, just a little, but not much. It’s quite entertaining though. Cats add a lot of charm to the whole thing – not only Qwill’s cats, but also the numerous strays that overpopulate the island and make friends with humans for the sake of free food.

Do I recommend the book? Certainly, unless, that is, you don’t like cats.