Nightcats.
By Kristen J. Sollee.
What if the bond between women and their cats was far more powerful, and bloodier, than anyone realised?
Set predominantly in New York City in 2005, Nightcats follows Vera, a goth waitress who feels completely stuck. She has a dead-end job, an awful boyfriend and little idea of what she wants from her life. The one constant is her rescue cat, Sammy, so when he suddenly disappears, finding him becomes Vera's priority. What begins as a search for a missing cat soon leads her into something far stranger.
I was immediately intrigued by the idea of vampiric cats, witches, ancient mythology and a secret history connecting women and their feline companions. The story moves between three different periods, taking us from an abbess in the 1200s to Cassandra in 1920s England and finally Vera in early 2000s New York. Gradually, their stories reveal more about the mythology behind the cats and the forces surrounding them.
Vera was the character I connected with most. At the beginning she feels as though she has very little control over her own life, particularly within her relationship, but searching for Sammy forces her to act. I enjoyed watching her become more confident as she uncovered what was happening and began to understand the much bigger world she had stumbled into.
There is a strong feminist thread running throughout the book. Each period shows women dealing with different forms of control, judgement and expectations, while cats, historically associated with witches and women who refused to conform, fit naturally into that exploration. I particularly liked the idea of women reclaiming power through something that has so often been portrayed as suspicious or threatening.
The mythology was interesting too, particularly the inclusion of Bastet and the Egyptian influences. I actually wanted more of this. There were so many intriguing paranormal ideas introduced that I would have loved a little more explanation and a deeper exploration of how everything connected.
I had fun with Nightcats. It is weird, macabre and completely committed to its premise, while underneath the blood and supernatural chaos is a story about women finding their agency and the extraordinary bond between humans and their cats.
A peculiar and entertaining choice for spooky season, especially if witches, mythology, vampires and murderous cats sound like your kind of combination.
Thank you to Jamie-Lee and the team at Black Crow PR for running this book-tour. The book is out now and available to purchase.
