Cat of the Century (31 page)
Read Cat of the Century Online
Authors: Rita Mae Brown
RITA MAE BROWN
is the bestselling author of several books. An Emmy-nominated screenwriter and poet, she lives in Afton, Virginia. Her website is
www.ritamaebrown.com
. She does not own a computer. God willing, she never will. Sometimes the website manager sends your queries. The safest way to reach her is in care of Bantam Books.
SNEAKY PIE BROWN,
a tiger cat born somewhere in Albemarle County, Virginia, was discovered by Rita Mae Brown at her local SPCA. They have collaborated on eighteen Mrs. Murphy mysteries:
Wish You Were Here; Rest in Pieces; Murder at Monticello; Pay Dirt; Murder, She Meowed; Murder on the Prowl; Cat on the Scent; Pawing Through the Past; Claws and Effect; Catch as Cat Can; The Tail of the Tip-Off; Whisker of Evil; Cat’s Eyewitness; Sour Puss; Puss ’n Cahoots; The Purrfect Murder; Santa Clawed;
and
Cat of the Century,
in addition to
Sneaky Pie’s Cookbook for Mystery Lovers.
Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen, along with sleuthing
cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, corgi Tucker, and the other
residents of Crozet, Virginia, return in a new
Mrs. Murphy mystery on sale in Spring 2011.
Until then, don’t miss
A NOSE FOR JUSTICE
by Rita Mae Brown
The first in a new series!
When Mags is fired from her banking job in New York City, she flees to the Nevada ranch that belongs to her great-aunt Jeep, bringing along her wire-haired dachsund, Baxter. Mags is still getting used to the rhythms of rural life when she is recruited to help Jeep and her neighbors with a burgeoning problem: A local corporation is attempting to divert their water supply to Reno, and is willing to go to any lengths to do so. When the conflict escalates to murder and Jeep may be a target, it’s up to Mags, Baxter, and Jeep’s German shepherd mix, King, to sniff out the real killer before it’s too late.
Full of grit, wit, and four-legged derring-do,
A Nose for Justice
is a rare breed of mystery—guaranteed to make readers roll over and beg for more of Rita Mae Brown’s magnificent storytelling!
On sale in October 2010
Cat of the Century
is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2010 by American Artists, Inc.
Excerpt from Hiss of Death copyright © 2011 by Rita Mae Brown
Excerpt from A Nose for Justice copyright © 2010 by Rita Mae Brown
Illustrations copyright © 2010 by Michael Gellatly
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Bantam Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
B
ANTAM
B
OOKS
and the rooster colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Brown, Rita Mae.
Cat of the century / Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown ; illustrations by Michael Gellatly.
p. cm.
This book contains an excerpt from the forthcoming title Hiss of Death by Rita Mae Brown. This excerpt has been set for this edition only and may not reflect the final content of the forthcoming edition.
eISBN: 978-0-553-90729-2
1. Haristeen, Harry (Fictitious character)—Fiction. 2. Murphy, Mrs. (Fictitious character)—Fiction. 3. Women detectives—Virginia—Fiction. 4. Women cat owners—Fiction. 5. Cats—Fiction. 6. Crozet (Va.)—Fiction. I. Gellatly, Michael. II. Title.
PS3552.R698C37 2010
813′.54—dc22
2009047661
Cover design: Beverly Leung. Cover illustration: © Daniel Pelvin (cat), © Shutterstock/MisterElements (yarn)
v3.0
