Cat-A-Lyst

I had to write this after reading some reviews here putting this book down. I loved it. Maybe I'm biased because I am a cat-lover, but I also enjoy silliness, so maybe that's why I enjoyed it more than the others who wrote here. I have been known to read Piers Anthony's silly and punny fantasies, and this one ranks up there with or above those. Recommend this if you like those, especially if you like cats, and definitely if you are a fan of Alan Dean Foster's sillier works. Sirius Recommends Book Reviews.

...for me at least. While it is true that Alan Dean Foster has crafted some fine, entertaining adventure stories in his long and distinguished career, Cat-A-Lyst isn't really one of them. Words like cartoonish and juvenile descibe it best, but there is no doubt that this outlandish comedy will offer some fun for the feline fancier, but those looking for a more serious tale better give this one a very wide berth, it's as silly as they can get. It reads as if Foster just jotted down some whimsical ideas while on a Peruvian vacation and then stitched them together with some book ended axe grinding at the movie and television industry (perhaps his stint as a Star Trek writer left him with some scars?). Ostensibly it is the tale of one Jason Carter, a reluctant Hollywood Heartthrob who just wants to be taken seriously as an actor. While filming a Civil War epic Carter finds a computer disc. Said disc contains hints of Peruvian treasure. Thanks to a somewhat enigmatic and salty tongued costume matron (who isn't what she appears to be) and some convoluted research on her part Carter and Company are soon enough in the wilds of Peru, searching for the hinted at treasure and finding something quite different, thanks to a mysterious cat that pops up out of nowhere and tags along. Things go from the comedic to the downright silly in no time flat as alternated dimensions are discovered and intellectual carrots arrive on the scene. Needless to say that, if you are in the mood for frenetically paced, feline focused cartoon fantasyu fun, then check Cat-A-Lyst out, you just might like it. Recommended, believe it or not.

This is *not* serious sci fi - quite the opposite. I actually really enjoyed it. There's missing Incan civilisations, inter-dimensional energy beings (that look like suspiciously like housecats) battling for Earth, good vs evil, etc, and then there's the odd stuff...Maybe I'm a bit biased (due to being a mad cat-lover), but I found it quite interesting and funny. Better than Cogerspace, but not as good as Quozl.