Catspaw (Cat)

Book Description

The most popular novel in Joan D. Vinges bestselling Cat series is back in print for the first time in trade paperback. Cat, a half-human, half-alien telepath, rose from a childhood in the streets of a city halfway across the galaxy to become a hero. He helped stop a powerful psion who was bent on seizing control of the mines which produce the ore that fuels spaceships throughout the galaxy. But the most popular Cat novel, a bestseller when first published, and one of Joan D. Vinges most enduring works, is Catspaw. Several hundred years from now, in a richly imagined New York, Cat finds himself protecting one of the most powerful women in the galaxy. Cats been through a lot, but nothing can really prepare him for the backstabbing and doubledealing of the rich and famous. Using his telepathic gift and street smarts, Cat has to fend off unseen dangers that surround him and his charge.Between the dangers of a beautiful married woman, an unseen telepath who seems hellbent on thwarting Cats pursuit of the threat to his VIP client, and a power-mad fanatic who has fooled everyone but Cat, the action never stops in this enormously entertaining noir SF thriller.

Customer Reviews:

Intrigue, adventure, exciting- you get it all.......2004-12-26

I loved this book. I've read the entire series of the main character, Cat, but Catspaw I believe is best in the series. What's more, the book can stand alone. The unique writing kept me interested the entire journey, with the 1st person view of the main character, but his abilities to read minds lets you have the perspective of other characters in the book as well. I liked Cat's personality. He's real, with flaws, and fears, and yet does the right thing without being a do-gooder. Even the villians in the book seem real, and you can almost- but not quite- understand why they are the way they are.
This story encompasses Cat being pressed into service to be a body guard for a political member of the very government he hates. You get political intrigue, a hint of romance, and a splendid view of a futuristic world with a well thought out plot. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

MUCH Better Book than "Psion".......2004-08-08

"Catspaw" is a MUCH better book than its prequel, "Psion." As with "Psion," I don't care much for its theme that humans, especially wealthy powerful ones, are evil. But, for "Catspaw," that's pretty much overridden by how well Vinge writes and by the tightness of the plot. About the only thing I didn't like in the book was the occasional lapse into unnecessary sexual details in about five different places. Other than that, this is a very well-written book that I highly recommend. If it weren't for the sense of loss a reader would suffer without having read "Psion," I'd suggest skipping that book entirely. Most of the necessary information comes out in this book. But, it's not complete until almost halfway through the book.

Works great as a stand-alone........2004-07-20

This was the first book I'd read in this series, many years ago. At the time, I was more impressed with it than I probably would be now, because I didn't recognize that the world she was building was somewhat standard cyberpunk (never even heard of cyberpunk at that time). Therefore the world seemed more original to me than it actually is (also illustrating one of my standard ideas about genre fiction--if someone who has never experienced a genre before suddenly comes to it, the most hoary and ancient cliches of that genre will seem dazzlingly fresh and familiar).

However, though the world fascinated me, in the end, the real heart of the series are Vinge's characters. Cat, Lady Elnear, Argentyne, Jiro, are all wonderfully drawn, and Vinge portrays them with a great deal of heart and honesty; she plays fair with the reader. Good social commentary too, with a message that is both uplifting and sobering; she explores a theme I've seen other authors do as well but one that I think is quite profound, that human connections are necessary to allow human beings to succeed in the face of evil (Cat's bond with Argentyne and his link to Mikah are what enable him to ultimately succeed in his goal). I recently bought a copy of PSION and I'm working my way through it, eager to meet Jewel and some of Cat's earlier friends.

I loved this..........2004-04-14

Whoah! I've read this book three or four times already! I love it so much. and Cat is just a great character you can just fall in love with him. I really hope others read this book too. i still haven't read the 1st or 3rd books to this series but i feel like i understand them perfectly. but i still really wish to read them. I've never liked a book quite this much.

What a page turner!.......2004-01-27

I'm a new fan of Vinge, but now i'm hooked. after reading only one of her books i'm stuck - addicted even. Catspaw is a fascinating adventure with surprizes everywhere.
the premise is simple, a young man is recruited by the powerful security agency of an extremely wealthy family to protect one of its members from being killed. the young man, known only as Catis specificall chosen because he is part alien and this part gives him telepathic abilities. as Cat arrives at his destination to protect this VIP his world begins to change, and it will never be the same.
this book is fascinating, cvaptivating, and if you read it you'll never get any work done.
the entire alien blood series(Psion, Catspaw, Dreamfall) by vinge is amazing in its capacity to entangle you in a strange world that you feel you can completely relate to. i've read all three and i;m dying for a fourth to come out!

Average customer rating:

Ireland--a catspaw
Elizabeth Lazenby
Manufacturer: The Charter Pub. Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Average customer rating:

Great Reference for Traditional Boatbuilders

How to Build the Catspaw Dinghy
Woodboat Magazine Editors
Manufacturer: Wooden Boat Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Boating | Water Sports | Sports | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 0937822361

Book Description

A detailed manual on the building of a superior rowing and sailing dinghy. A modified version of the famous Herreshoff Columbia dinghy, measureing 12' 8".

Customer Reviews:

Great Reference for Traditional Boatbuilders.......2001-12-31

This is an excellent reference for those who wish to build a sailing dinghy using traditional methods. However, it is somewhat dated. The book acts as though things like plywood and epoxy are not in existence. You'll have to go a long way to convince me that copper rivets are better than weatherproof deck screws. Regardless, if you are trying to understand traditional methods of small craft construction, this book is a real time saver.

Catspaw II (Harlequin Intrigue, No 103)(Catspaw 2) (Harlequin Intrigue, No 103)

Average customer rating:

sequel to the brillant Catspaw
Cute adventure romance

Catspaw II (Harlequin Intrigue, No 103)(Catspaw 2) (Harlequin Intrigue, No 103)
Anne Stuart
Manufacturer: harlequin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Romance | Subjects | Books

Harlequin Intrigue | Series | Romance | Subjects | Books

Regency | Romance | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0373221037

Customer Reviews:

sequel to the brillant Catspaw.......2004-08-27

Catspaw II (Harlequin Intrigue #103, 1988) is the sequel to Catspaw (Harlequin Intrigue #9, 1985). There was over three years between the releases, but when read together, you will see they flow flawlessly as one story. A sequel that is as good as the original! A rarity, indeed. With Anne Stuart's brilliance dazzling Romance readers for over twenty years, the two novels demonstrate her amazing talent from the very start. They are Stuart at her very best. It's a shame Harlequin does not release both of these tales together under one cover. They had a tiny touch of dating in a few places, but to us who were readers back then, it's more like a hint of memory lane! But frankly, you will be so wrapped up in Ferris Byrd and John Patrick Blackheart you won't notice or care about anything else. These two characters are simply amazing.
Ferris Byrd is a self-made woman, but she tends to find herself more casual these days because her reformed cat burglar fiance likes her that way. Only, Blackheart is making Ferris wonder about their engagement. Oh, she loves him, but she is having doubt problems - same problems she faced in the first novel - she fears the lure of excitement is just too much for Blackheart to resist. So when he starts vanishing, without saying goodbye, and is gone for weeks at a time, she suddenly fears the worst, especially since there are big burglaries in the news all over Europe that sound like Blackheart it on the prowl again.

When the book takes up, it's exactly six months after Catspaw left off. They are engaged. Ferris is still living in her old apartment, though with new locks Blackheart installed. She is packing to move to his apartment, but on the rainy day, she is beginning to question if she has made a good choice. Her car had die and had to be towed to the garage, and worse, her house keys are in her purse. Going back to the garage is useless; they have already closed. So Ferris is left with breaking into her own apartment. After she goes their her cat burglar routine, coming from training from her husband-to-be, she is horrified and angry to find Blackheart has been sitting his in car watching her. She was not amused he enjoyed her bit of B&E. Neither were the police, when they nearly site her for tossing garbage around the area, since she used the trash cans to stand on to get to her balcony. She has to go out into the rain and pick up the mess. To say the least, that only lets her temper with Blackheart grow.

When she comes back, and finds he offers no excuses for his absence and says only he had been to England on business, she is far from pleased. When he is making coffee, she goes through his kit, finds burglar's tools - which he said he did not have need of anymore - and a passport, showing he had been to every country where there had been a big jewel robbery. She is not a happy camper. When he refuses to explain why he lied to her, she tells him the engagement is off.

Blackheart is furious Ferris refuses to trust him, but he is not going to involve her in the nasty things happening to him. Someone is trying to frame him for all those burglaries. Worse, now he is back in San Francisco, he discovers he is being set up to take the fall for two different robberies. Blackheart has to save his long-lost little sister from the clutches of jail, foil the robbers intent of making him their fall guy, and convince Ferris what she really doesn't trust is not him, but herself.

Ferris ex-fiance and his mother, characters in the first tale, are back. There is also a secondary romance between Blackheart sister, Dany, and the policemen doggedly determined to see Blackheart in jail.

All in all, it's Stuart Magic! Craft, imagination, insight, sexy characters that steal your heart, all stirred into one potent brew. It just does not get any better than Ferris and Blackheart.

Cute adventure romance.......2002-07-04

from back cover: "Ferris Byrd had no intention of marrying a cat burglar. she trusted her fiance', but when news came of jewel robberies in European cities Blackheart had recently visited, she began to wonder. Had he taken to the rooftops again?"

Catspaw: The Famed Trial Attorney's Heroic Defense of a Man Unjustly Accused

Average customer rating:

Excellent: On the field and in Court, Nizer was a God
Stop repeating yourself
spellbinding
Nizer is Amazing.
Louis Nizer was my Grandfather

Catspaw: The Famed Trial Attorney's Heroic Defense of a Man Unjustly Accused
Louis Nizer
Manufacturer: Carroll & Graf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Civil Procedure | Procedures & Litigation | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Criminal Law | Law | Subjects | Books

True Crime | True Accounts | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

My Life In Court

ASIN: 0881849561

Book Description

A riveting account of the legendary trial attorney Nizer's most dramatic and challenging case--the 18-year ordeal of a man falsely accused of murder. "The story it tells will shock (and) Mr. Nizer's role in the case is a heroic one".--F. Lee Bailey.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent: On the field and in Court, Nizer was a God.......2000-11-11

This book shows one of our greatest legal minds, a close relative of mine, at work. Very few people know that in addition to being a star attorney, Louis Nizer (the author of the book, not myself) was an all- star baseball player in the ill-fated Norewigan pro- baseball leage. This book unpacks both, and Nizers love of felines. A smash hit!

Stop repeating yourself.......2000-06-03

Legal thrillers are my favorite genre of books; however, Attorney Nizer either assumes his readers are not paying attention or stupid. I was very tired of the repetition which caused me to put down this book several times. It is a riveting story which makes this book worth while, but be prepared to be annoyed at the author's technique. It might work well with a jury, it doesn't work well with an educated reader.

spellbinding.......2000-05-24

As the story unfolds the tension mounts. It left no doubt in my mind that this was truly an unjustly accused and convicted man. I was also greatly impressed with the dedication and compassion of defense attorneys.

Nizer is Amazing........1999-11-02

Louis Nizer wrote this book at age 90 ! Unbelievable ! This is an incisive true account of the 4 trials of Murray Gold for murder, his mistrials, his convictions, his mental deterioration, and his eventual paralysis of will. It illustrates perfectly the chaos that ensues when the formal court system bumps up against the mentally ill defendant. The defendant sabatoges not only his case, his attorneys,his family, and the judge, but himself as well. The results, as here, are catastrophic. The only real ray of hope in this man's ordeal was the skill, creativity, persistence, and compassion shown by attorney Louis Nizer. I hope he lives to be 150. They just don't make them like that anymore !

Louis Nizer was my Grandfather.......1997-08-05

Louie was my step-grandfather. All of his books reveal the truth of his existence. Louie had a passion for the law that exceeds words or description. An injustice to Louie was a sin against G-d and man. This book wrote itself a the story unfolded during its authorship. I remember having dinner with my parents and Louie (and my glorious grandmother and Louie's precious wife..Mildred) as Louie in his later years was engrossed by this case and its twists and turns. I was unable to put the book down and I hope you enjoy it too..and it gives insight into how a lawyer could love the law and his profession with intensity and passion. Email me with thoughts: swollins@aol.co

Average customer rating:

Very good reading
the resident genius of romance at her best
Catspaw by Anne Stuart

Catspaw
Anne Stuart
Manufacturer: harlequin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 037322009X

Customer Reviews:

Very good reading.......2005-04-20

Ferris Byrd is sent by her fiancé, state senator Phillip Merriam (who has pretentions to the US Senate and possibly the White House), to assist his mother with San Francisco's Puffin Ball. The famous emeralds that are part of the charity event need special security, and everyone insists that Blackheart Inc. are the only ones for the job. Ferris, however, has reservations about hiring the owner, John Patrick Blackheart, ex-cat-burglar, to safeguard the gems.

Ferris dislikes Blackheart, though (or because) she's drawn to him, he's drawn to her, sparks fly, the jewels are stolen, Blackheart is framed, all what one would expect. What rates 5 stars is the fact that Stuart is one of what seems to be precious few authors who can elicit an emotional response from a (n admittedly jaded) reader. (Emotion in a romance novel...what a notion)

Blackheart does make a charming hero, Ferris is not the annoying heroine she could easily be, and the supporting cast is well drawn. The action moves right along; there are no places that seem to be just filler for the middle of the book, and the action sequences at the end, though possessed of suspenseful elements, were not so dragged out that I wanted to flip to the end already.

As an aside, this book originally cost $2.25. While I was looking for it, I was seeing copies for more than $9, and not much under $4. While I might pay as much as a new Harlequin for this (including shipping), I wouldn't go higher. It's good light reading, but not that good!

the resident genius of romance at her best.......2004-08-26

Some writers learn the craft and their works improve with time. You go back and revisit some of their earlier works and you see flaws, but you smile at the talent so shiny and new. I don't think Anne Stuart, resident genius of romance, ever went through that period. She seems to have stepped into Romance writing with a clear purpose, and had never deviated from the brilliance. This is very clear when you go back and reread her early work for Harlequin Intrigue or Harlequin American Romance, from 15-years or more. Most works that old, already show dating badly, yet Stuart's works not only hold up remarkably well, they simply shine with her clear purpose. Stuart loves writing romance, that sizzle and pop chemistry created by the special woman and man meeting. Few writers really have the grasp of male characters the way she does. And more importantly, few can really give you the baddest of bad boy - the Gamma rogues that make Alpha males step aside when they see them coming, the hero totally outside of laws, and yet makes them utterly compelling. She takes unrepentant killers, madmen, assassins, gunslingers, a court jester, a cult leader, even a cop unable to be a manhunter anymore and a lawyer willing to break the laws to keep his lady safe, and she makes these men outside the norm so breathtakingly mesmerizing all the readers can do it sit back wonder at her magic and enjoy!

Catspaw - Harlequin Intrigue #9 published in 1985 - is one of these dusty gems sitting on my Keeper Shelf. And it's there for a reason. It's also included in Thieves, Spies And Other Lovers (By Request) Anthology. Quite a shame this, along with it's sequel Catspaw 2 Harlequin Intrigue #103 are not reprinted in the same volume. My old HIs are showing yellow pages, so I would appreciate new copies, and fans of Stuart who missed these would scoop them up. Because it's Stuart at her very best.

Ferris Byrd is a self-made woman. Ferris is really Francesca Berdahofski, from a large family outside of Chicago. Her mother was Italian, her father polish, and while there was a lot of love with her nine brothers and sisters, she saw woman having babies too young and having a lifetime of regrets. She did not want to live with the same regrets. So Francesca, now the cool Ferris, is semi-engage to a lawyer running for the Senate. She is the well turned out, perfectly coifed woman of snobby elegance, even though underneath lurks the jeans wearer, binge-cleaning mild slob that enjoy old movies and ice cream. She should have known when she named her grey tomcat, Blackie that it was an omen. She named him after one John Patrick Blackheart, one of the most eligible bachelors in San Francisco. Blackheart - the name fitting the man in her mind - is a reformed cat burglar. Now, he runs a security firm that takes on special cases to provide complete security. Ferris is charged with the display of priceless emerald and a charity ball, and she has been instructed to hire Blackheart to see the emeralds are returned to their owner at the end of the night in mint condition.

Ferris is immediately ruffled by Blackheart, who immediately decides Ferris is a finely create veneer he is interesting in cracking. He finds Francesca must more attractive and sets out to provoke her at every turn. Just as she admits she is
falling in love with him, the emeralds are stolen and evidence points to Blackheart being unable to resist his old trade.

Ferris/Francesca is a delightful creation. You could easily have disliked her stuffy persona, but not when you get to see Francesca underneath. Blackheart, is pure Stuart Bad Boy, so sexy it will knock your socks off. Their falling in love is just so utterly heart stealing. Seriously, this is Stuart flying high, her talent dazzling, her prose evocative. If you are a Stuart Fan and have missed this diamond, then don't hesitate to lurk around until you find a copy. If you have never read this talented writer, then you cannot have a better introduction. Stuart proves it takes a thief to steal your heart! Just be sure while you are checking around for that used copy to get Catspaw 2. You won't miss the second tale in the series.

Catspaw by Anne Stuart.......2002-08-22

I LOVED this book! It was funny and intriguing. The main characters, Patrick and Ferris had a chemistry like none of Ms. Stuart's characters. Ferris was the typical spitfire, while Patrick was the sexy hero to tame her. They both turned each other's lives around and caught the bad guy! It's a love story to read over and over, I have. It doesn't matter who dunnit, the real story is Patrick Blackheart and Ferris Byrd.

Average customer rating:

great book(s)
Another intricate world from a favorite Sci Fi Author!
Meet Cat....

Alien blood: Psion, Catspaw
Joan D Vinge
Manufacturer: DoubleDay
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00071HVZO

Customer Reviews:

great book(s).......2007-03-12

This is a great book from begging to end. The characters are very well developed. The main characters `Cat,' is a deeply flawed person and the author dose a great job of showing that. The story held me the entire time, even through normally be the dull story building parts. I love the interactions between the characters, I think that is the meat of this book. The climax left me wanting something more, but then the whole book is full of great picks with few valleys. The people and events keep the tension that runs through out the book high and I really don't miss the classics single climax that completely ends the story-dead. Since it is really two books in one it is a great deal. I highly recommend this rook

Another intricate world from a favorite Sci Fi Author!.......2005-05-13

Before I begin into this review I will tell you that I read Catspaw (The second in this trilogy) first. Wholly hooked by Joan Vinge's intricate world, I HAD to go back and read the first.

Psion is a really poignant introduction to poor Cat, young man for the life of him cannot catch a break.

He is a street urchin for most of his years, unable to even remember the mother he was born to. He is a thief, a shill, and many other things that keep him alive, sometimes with out being beaten in the underground of Quarro. He is a half breed, half human, and half Hydran (only called that because the were found in Hydrae Centari). Hydrans are Psions by birth, able to perform feats that seem magic to dead head humans. Only they don't see it as magical, they see it as threatening.

Add to that the hydrans are incapable of violence and it is easy to see why the Hydrans ended up at the losing end of the Human expansion across the universe. (If this sounds like a parallel to the early West, you are probably in the right).

Cat's half-hydran geneaolgy has made him an outcast even amongst the dregs of the universe, and he doesn't even know why.

After an arrest for one in a long line of offenses, Cat is brougth to the attention of an institute for Psion's human and otherwise. It is a break of a lifetime, even if Cat can't use the talent they insist he has.

Eventually they break through to him, and his talent, fractured when he witnessed his mother's death, his talent dying with her. He only survived because of his human heritage. He finds that he is a good Psion, the best there is at reading minds.

He and the others in the institute are approached by Quicksilver, a human Psion who is also a notorious criminal. Before Cat can join the team he is expelled from the project because of difficulties with the scientist running the program. That program was the one thing keeping him from servitude, and the contract laborers are quick to pick him up.

He is sent to Cinder to work in the mines until he works off his sentence, or more likely until he dies.

Quicksilver and the team is there as well, and the plot gets all the more twisted from there.

Catspaw:

After his adventures, Cat earns enough credits to put himself through the university, and all he wants is a normal life. If there is one thing I have learned about Cat's life is that what he wants is almost never what he gets!

He is recruited to protect the TaMings, Elnear TaMing, who is to be selected for a place on the senate, if she can live through the assasination attempts. Cat, his gift burned out by his act to save the status Quo, is given it back, if only temporarily, to ensure that Elnear stays safe.

This is quite a politically charged book set on Old Earth, where only the wealthiest families still live. Cat must find the assassin and foil a plot to ursurp the TaMings.

Really an excellent read! Give it a go, you won't regret it!

Meet Cat...........2003-10-15

This is actually a Trilogy with an extra story. Psion,Catspaw and Dreamfall. Alien Blood is Psion and Catspaw in one book. There is a short story in Phonix in the Ashes about Cat also.
That being said this is a fantastic trilogy that I would love to see continued.

Cat is a mixed breed psion that is thrust into a world he hates and doesn't want to understand. It is the story of the street tough tossed into the world of the rich-but that is only the baseline. Cat is an engaging character and the writing itself leaves you feeling like you are immersed in his world.

These are books that because of slightly mature themes I would recommend for anyone 13-100.

Average customer rating:
Catspaw
Louis Nizer
Manufacturer: Random House Value Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0517110768
Release Date: 1993-10-19

Average customer rating:
THE CATSPAW
LE QUEUX
Manufacturer: JENKINS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000S57MF8

Average customer rating:

Good read!

"...and unfortunately, motive is epidemic."

Catspaw

Catspaw

a fast paced, well thought out adventure

Catspaw
David L. Fey
Manufacturer: Falcon Publishing LTD
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Anthologies | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0974695912

Book Description

The dictionary generally defines Catspaw in two ways: 1) a situation in which one character is unknowingly duped into doing something for another (a ruse) and, 2) a sailor's knot. Both meanings have significance in this tale where deceptions and motives abound and take the reader from the deepest jungles of Bolivia to the bowels of Red-Eye Swamp in South Louisiana's Atchafalaya Basin. Assassins, drug dealers, a crooked lawyer, a demolition expert, police and a family of Cajuns populate the fast-moving plot that covers thirteen days (by chapter) in Tanner's efforts to save his life. A computer system salesman, he has no formal training to deal with his enemies at their level, and must rely on his quick thinking, his logistical skills and the advice of a private investigator to guide him through the uncharted waters where criminals reign.

Customer Reviews:

Good read!.......2005-03-04

I really enjoyed this book. It had all the ingredients one looks for in a thriller and it has a bundle of subplots with inventive and diverse characters. That could normally invite confusion but in this case, the plot is strategically fabricated over a brief, finely calculated thirteen days, by chapter. And for me, it stayed together. Great story, great characters. Deke Tanner will likely remind you of someone you know...it did for me.

"...and unfortunately, motive is epidemic." .......2005-03-02

"...and unfortunately, motive is epidemic." Wow. That may personally be a bad thing for our main man, Deke Tanner, but it certainly offers a thrilling ride for the reader. I really like the treatment of this character. I'm not knocking the James Bonds and the Jack Ryans of the world, but it's refreshing to encounter a protagonist who is forced (self-preservation being the #1 emotion last time I checked) to engage the bad guys foremost with his wits, his logic, and his unpredictable nature instead of battling baddies on their own turf with minimal resources. In other words, he's a believably ordinary guy applying a mix of standard military training, hunting acumen, caution and intelligence to the tasks at hand. He's no hot-shot, he's not bionic, he doesn't work for the government or the legal community, and he doesn't have pro bono blood running through his veins. In fact, he's not even particularly lucky.
Now, take that great character style and imbed it into a hard-charging thriller storyline stretching from St. Louis to the Mississippi Delta to Louisiana's Atchafalaya Swamp with life-like bad guys (come back, Mano, readers will want an entire book on you), assassins, cops and Cajuns and you're left asking, "WHY HASN'T SOMEBODY MADE A MOVIE OUT OF THIS?"
If you enjoy being able to predict a book's ending when you're only half-way through, pass on this one. Otherwise, open the book, open your mind, and enjoy the ride...it's definitely worth your time. Once you get tight with Deke, go back and read Fey's first novel, Whitetail, which introduces the reader to Deke at the nasty age of eight. 2 Cool.

Catspaw.......2005-02-25

This book kept me on my toes. The inner games that the author plays with the action is absolutely teriffic! The ending left me wanting more. I can't wait until the next book!

Catspaw.......2005-02-25

This book kept me in suspence the entire time! It was well written and the ending was sensational!! The action kept me on the edge of my seat. In essence, it was a WONDERFUL READ!!

a fast paced, well thought out adventure.......2004-09-27

The world of drug trafficking is paved with the blood and souls of its victims and quite often, the players themselves. Yet another new drug ring is under the ever-watchful eye of the DEA and things are about to get very complicated. During a planned drop some things go awry...intense explosions, shootings, missing people and missing cash in the amount of two million, not to mention the disappearance of 40 kilos of pure cocaine. The players are left scratching their heads and blaming each other, eventually losing a great deal more than a future drug deal.

Meanwhile, down in Texas, Deke Tanner is enjoying the great outdoors until a shadow from his past pays a visit. Compelled to clear the threat of exposure Deke hires a Private Investigator to do some digging. What he finds does not put his mind at ease and leads him to take actions that he wishes he didn't have to.

The character list now becomes full with diversity. From a small town cop to a mob family boss, an innocent young woman who can speak to the animals of the swamp, to her sister who is through with her lowlife criminal husband, from good old boy Deke Turner who may end up paying for his loyalty to friendship, to a mysterious female operative who is a wiz with explosives and stealth, the protagonists are anything but boring. The plot is twisted and complicated but full of suspense and intrigue.

There is a bit of repetitiveness in regards to the facts of the story. I felt that the author was trying to be sure that everyone understood what had happened, what was going on and what was coming. It would have been better to spell this all out exactly as it unfolded when it occurred rather than rehashing the facts from every main character's viewpoint, but this approach still worked and in the end the reader is pretty clear on what all happened. At least as sure as the main character is.

"Catspaw" is a fast paced, well thought out adventure that will have you smiling at the power of small town family and wondering what might really be going on out in the big world in which we live.

Review by Heather Froeschl of BookReview.com.

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