Clowders by Vanessa Morgan

Amazon Digital Services, 2018

ASIN: B078GTVF7Z

Available: Kindle edition

Author Vanessa Morgan acknowledges that the real city of Clervaux, in Luxembourg, is not noted for supernatural events, or for being a haven for cats.  However, in the fictional world of Clowders, the human inhabitants of  Clervaux are vastly outnumbered by cats, a clowder of cats (“clowder” is the collective noun used to describe a group of cats). The story starts when an American couple, Aidan and Jess, move to Clerveaux with their young daughter, Eleonore. Aidan, a self-absorbed wanderer, has been hired to work in a veterinary practice in Clervaux, and Jess has agreed to the move to please him and save their marriage. What they have not been told, although it is common knowledge among the villagers, is that a tengu (a spirit of the mountain and forest found in Japanese folklore) protects the village’s cats, and if a human kills a cat, the tengu kills nine humans.

Aidan and Jess are driving home from an unsatisfying night with colleagues from the veterinary clinic, when Jess accidentally runs over and kills a cat.  The tengu stalks the family, although they are still ignorant of the curse.  Others, who have lived in Clervaux much longer, sense that they are all doomed, but still do not tell Jess and Aidan.  When the villagers learn about the accident, they turn against the newcomers, fearing that they will be among the nine victims.  When Jess and Aidan finally learn about the curse, they plan to leave.  But can they escape?

Morgan does a good job in describing the flaws and foibles of the characters.  Although the death of the cat was simply an accident, the characters’ weaknesses and actions contributed to it.  For example, although Jess had drunk the least, was her driving impaired by drinking more than usual because of worry and jealousy at Aidan’s flirting with another woman?

In the ebook version I reviewed, Morgan gives away the plot before the book before the book’s introduction. There is one instance of in which “of” is mistakenly used for “off”. Morgan has a good story here; Clowders is worth reading. Recommended.

Contains: moderate sexuality, moderate gore

Reviewed by Robert D. Yee