Or, to give it it’s full title:

What the Cat Knew (Reg Rawlins Psychic Investigator (Paranormal Cozy Mystery) Book 1)

Having decided to trend back in the direction of fantasy, but still keeping with my current cozy mystery reading binge, this one turned out to be a good choice.

Blurb

Reg Rawlins, professional con, has really gotten herself into a bind this time.

The fortune teller gig started as a scam, but she suddenly finds herself tangled up in the case of Warren Blake, a man who she thought was dead. It turns out he may still be alive, but in mortal peril.

Reg has always taken the quick exit, the easy way out, but running out on this racket might mean someone else’s death.
Staying in it might mean hers.

My review

What the Cat Knew by P.D. Workman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Reg grew up in the foster care system. Considered a ‘difficult’ child when she insisted her imaginary friends were real, it’s no wonder she hid what she was told were her mental health issues, and slipped into a lifestyle just on the wrong side of the law. Pretending to be a psychic is her latest scam. After all, she’s always been uncannily good at reading people. And Black Sands, with its eclectic mix of people claiming supernatural abilities (they must all be deluded, or also running scams, mustn’t they?) offers a new start, far enough away from anywhere with existing warrants for her arrest.
But then odd things start to happen to Reg, starting with a client reading she would never have dreamed up, and yet the client is blown away by the result.
I loved that it took so long for the supernatural elements to really develop in this charming, suspenseful read. Reg is so convinced it’s all make-believe, that she’s really resistant to the idea there might be something more to her childhood experiences than mental health issues. There’s Sarah, who claims to be a witch, and Corvin, the drop-dead gorgeous ‘warlock’ that Sarah tries to warn Reg off. Not to forget Starlight, the black and white cat she rehomes from the animal shelter to be her ‘familiar’, but who keeps biting her at inopportune moments for no reason she can imagine.
The mix of mundane and magical is masterfully done, alongside the central mystery, and the gradual wakening of Reg’s abilities. Her stubborn insistence that they can’t be real leads her into all sorts of troubles of her own making in a quite believable way. The writing is invisible, meaning the reader is fully immersed in the story, and the dialogue often adds that touch of humour I so appreciate.
Imagine how surprised, and pleased, I was to discover there are already 21 volumes in this paranormal cosy mystery series! I am already reading another.

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