Book 88: Reserved for the Cat by Mercedes Lackey
Book 88: Reserved for the Cat (Elemental Masters #6).
Author: Mercedes Lackey, 2007.
Genre: Historical Fantasy. Re-told Fairy Tale.
Other Details: ebook. 400 pages. Unabridged Audiobook (10 hrs, 44 mins). Read by Mirabai Galashan.
A young dancer, penniless and desperate, is sure she is going mad when a cat begins talking to her mind-to-mind. But her feline guide, actually an Elemental Earth Spirit, helps her to impersonate a famous Russian ballerina and achieve the success she’s been dreaming of. Unfortunately she also attracts the attention of another Elemental Spirit- a far more threatening one- and the young dancer must once again turn to her mysteriously powerful four-legged furry friend. - synopsis from author's website.
This novel is a loose re-telling of Puss-in-Boots and opens in Paris in 1910 where Ninette is let go from the ballet company she dances with. Once the cat, Thomas, reveals himself he leads her to England and the seaside town of Blackpool where he encourages her to assume the identity of a Russian ballerina. She falls in with a theatrical group headed by an Elemental Master and adventures ensue.
I always love stories about cats and this magical cat was very appealing. Having read a number of these tales, there does seem to be a similar theme running through them of an innocent threatened by an evil magic user. Still one could say that is the theme of many fantasy novels and fairy tales. I did not feel this was one of the stronger in the series though I still enjoyed it.
This was a dual read/listen and I felt that Mirabai Galashan did a wonderful job of voicing the characters including Thomas. During the summer afternoons I listened to this in the garden with my own cat and read the accompanying pages on my Kindle later on.