This is the first book I’ve read by Miranda James. I found it to be a well written story. It was a fast and easy read. The words felt as though they just flowed effortlessly from the author’s pen (keyboard).

ARESENIC AND OLD BOOKS, indeed the entire Cat In The Stack series, is told from the perspective of the lead character, who in the case is a man. I’ve never read a cozy with a male lead before. I found it to be refreshing. Charlie Harris is an enjoyable, and I love his interactions with his Main Coon cat, Diesel, and that Diesel is readily excepted into so many places. He goes everywhere!

There are a few fun supporting characters as well, such as Charlie’s girlfriend, Helen Louise, his housekeeper Azalea, and his friend and co-worker, Melba, plus a few others.

As for the mystery, it too was different from others I have read in cozies. While he was at the center of things, Charlie didn’t play a real big role in the solving part of this one the way most protagonists do. And while it was a good story and mystery, everything seemed to wrap up rather quickly at the end. I kept waiting for a little action and/or the big “ta-da” moment, but they never really came.