A
successful, British executive--a wife and mother--has her mind and soul
metamorphosed into the family cat.
In his novel Cat Flap,
British journalist Alan S. Cowell presents a modern fable: Dolores
Tremayne--wife, mother and a successful corporate executive of African British
descent--wakes one day and discovers that part of her has migrated and
metamorphosed into the body of the family's "finely bred, highly
pedigreed" indoor cat.
The human Dolores sets off on a
Lufthansa flight bound for a high-powered business meeting with a prestigious
car company in Munich, Germany. Her feline self--her mind and soul, aka
"X"--stays behind and gains a surprising glimpse into the daily life
of her sexy, white husband, Gerald, a former drug dealer-user and stalled
novelist. His first book had been "well-received, if not well sold or
marketed" and a three-book commitment looms over him, along with his
daily, demanding responsibilities as a house-husband to his and Dolores's two
little girls.
One day, when Gerald exits the
apartment, curious X slips out and follows him. She discovers that he is a
serial philanderer juggling numerous shocking exploits. Being trapped in the
body of a cat shutters all of Dolores's emotional human instincts and
reactions. However, through some creative ingenuity, X and human Dolores join
forces as avenging spirits.
Cowell (The Terminal Spy) has never shied away from exploring dark themes in his
writing--those found in newspaper journalism, politics, war, risk taking and
spying. Readers will eagerly suspend their disbelief, immersing themselves in
Cowell's cleverly conceived, satirical novel that probes contemporary issues of
race, identity and sexuality.
Cat Flap by Alan S. Cowell
St. Martin's Press, $24.99, Hardcover, 978125014659, 240 pages
Publication Date: July 31, 2018
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NOTE:
This review is a reprint and is being posted with the permission of Shelf Awareness. To
read this review on Shelf Awareness: Reader's Edition (August 3, 2018), link HERE