Cat Lady: The hot, must-read Richard & Judy Book Club novel for summer 2023 from the Sunday Times bestselling author

Product Information

Really gets the reader to think about what matters in life Unputdownable and completely wonderful!’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I like to think I’ve got quite a varied sense of humour, and apparently this was “laugh out loud”, and maybe it is to some but hell no, not to me. This is the story of a woman who is unapologetically herself, a cat lady. Over the course of the book her life spirals in all different ways possible, and you do feel sorry for her as a character. But this book is just plain weird, it’s fifty shades of messed up. The heroine Mia is in her 40's with a successful career. She married her husband in her 30's and he's divorced and has a son who she is Stepmother to. However, her husband's ex still spends a lot of time at their house and Mia doesn't like her. Mia has a cat called Pigeon and neither her husband or his ex particularly like the cat. Her husband doesn't like the cat in their bedroom so they have separate rooms. Mia is quite a cold fish as a wife!

Een klein boekje, zakformaat als je grote zakken hebt. Super vrolijke en aantrekkelijke cover en die stijl wordt doorgezet doorheen het hele boek. Veel te lezen valt er niet maar dat geeft niet want er valt zo veel mooist te zien. En te lachen. There isn't much of a synopsis for this novel so I wasn't sure what I was going to get but it day say 'very funny'. It wasn't! Mia has made all the right choices. She's married, she has the nice house, the good career. But life isn't about fitting into a box. And there's another woman inside her who's just clawing to get out . . . Some of the characters in this book were truly unlikeable and I absolutely despised them, such as Tristan (Mia's husband), Belinda (Tristan's ex wife) and Tristan and Belinda's circle of friends. Some of the things that Tristan, Belinda and their friends came out with were absolutely disgusting and I felt so sorry for Mia for having to deal with awful people like that in her life. I am 2/3 through this book but don’t think I can finish it. I’m just not finding it funny at all. There is no funny side to homelessness, adultery, grief and abuse etc. I really don’t care what happens to Mia or Pigeon. It has been such a dreary read so far. No ups, no downs.I promised my mother in law that she could have this book once I had read it, because she truly is a cat lady - not in a weird way. But, I can’t give her this book. It’s so messed up that I feel like giving her this would be a massive mistake. It’s not funny, it’s just wrong. I have read some things in this book that I really wish I could un-read.

Mia has been living in terms of what society expects from her, rather than what she wants in fear of judgement. However, when a particular event happens, she begins to live life for herself (and obviously her cat, Pigeon) I did find Mia quite relatable in some aspects (however, some things she did truly had me cringing and feeling disgusted). I think a lot of people worry about something happening to their fur babies, which obviously Mia really struggles with that. However, I thought it was quite problematic that she attends groups that are about particular things that she does not suffer from. Would I recommend it? If you're a cat lover then yes, you'll probably relate to it and like it but I wouldn't call it funny. I found a lot of it quite depressing really. It's not a book I would recommend to friends.Mia is quite put upon at home, especially by her husband’s ex wife. Not something I think a lot of women would endure and I was overjoyed to see Mia handling her own with the woman’s snooty attitude. Tristan, her husband is irritating and very annoying and her high powered boss is ignorant and selfish but someone who also lives a life different to their inner feelings. Dawn O’Porter challenges the stereotypes of the typical ‘cat lady’ with this beautiful and emotional read’ Reader review Dawn O'Porter challenges the stereotypes of the typical 'cat lady' with this beautiful and emotional read' Reader review⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ An ode to finding your people and a celebration of the small things that bring us together’ Emma Gannon

But life isn't about fitting into a box. And there's another woman inside her who's just clawing to get out . . .PRAISE FOR CAT LADY:'My book of the year' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'A reminder to live your life your way. Don’t get me wrong, if you got rid of all the uncomfortable encounters, or at least toned it down a little, it would’ve had the potential to become quite an impactful story about mental health and self discovery, and at times it was. But sweet hell, some of the encounters and thoughts that the main character had were just unnecessary and outright disturbing. I did enjoy the development of some of the characters, especially (colleague designer) and how she fought for what she believed to be right within the company, even if it did feel a little half- hearted at times. In contrast to this though, others just outright disturbed me, the main being (creepy babe guy) who had a questionable understanding of what consent was at the best of times and was just straight weird. This is a mature top range rom-com, where the "rom" is on the the periphery and the "com" is what this is all about. A delightful dark-ish comedy set around a "my pet has died" grief counselling group and essentially about forming and living one's best-self and not taking on a label that society expects from you. One of the best 'rom-coms' I have ever read, well written and pushing boundaries throughout, yet still remarkable insightful, heartfelt and most of all funny! A ground breaking book that re-imagines the "cat-lady" taking her and pet ownership to new heights! A recommended Autumn read! A 9.5 out of 12, super fun Four Star read.I do not recommend this book to anyone who identifies as a Cat Lady, crazy or otherwise. Ironically I brought it forward on my reading schedule, because I was in the mood for something funny or heartwarming. It’s not in any way funny (unless you find people dealing with grief, trauma and other mental health issues amusing.) I found most of it both boring and distasteful, and then something horrible happens. It was heading for 1-star, which is rare for me, but I’ll admit I did like the ending, which redeemed it a little - but not enough to recommend it.