Net Galley gave me access to an ebook version of this text, which provided an interesting look at twelve decades of life in Edinburgh, Scotland, through the eyes of a cat. After the cat Grimalkin dies without going through his fabled nine lives, he returns as a ghost eight different times to visit the house where it died. These returns, or “hauntings,” provovide him an opportunity to follow for most of those visits the life of the charwoman who had saved him in that first life; in fact, he is at her side when she finally dies. The hauntings allow Grimalkin to comment on the changes taking place in Scotland over the course of a century.

DNF at 13%. The writing style did not appeal to me. The story seemed interesting and I love books about or with cats, so I know it will appeal to many readers.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Ghost Cat by Alex Howard. Grimalkin's journey through 120 years of Edinburgh was both enchanting and moving. Howard's portrayal of the cat's experiences and the subtle historical details made me feel like I was walking the streets alongside Grimalkin. While a few sections felt a bit slow, the overall story was heartwarming and reflective, leaving me pondering the passage of time and the meaning of companionship. A delightful read for anyone who loves a mix of history and the supernatural.

Grimalkin curled up by the fire in 1902 feeling a little off. When he woke up, he found himself in the afterlife. Grimalkin is granted an unusual gift, the ability to live out the rest of his eight lives as the Ghost Cat. Grimalkin returns to his home a 7/7 Marchmont Crescent in Edinburgh each time and learns a little bit more about life, death, and humans. He finds the woman who rescued him as a kitten in his first few lives and even gets to be by her side when she passes. He finds himself learning more about humans and he even manages to help a few of his new friends. A wonderfully charming novel!

It's been a long time since I opened a book and finished reading it in two sittings. I fell in love with Grimalkin the cat in 1902 and grew to adore him even more by 2022. And if that wasn't enough, the author cleverly dropped little historical facts like a trail of breadcrumbs. So much so, that every time I saw a little number tucked at the end of the sentence, I couldn't wait to find out what little nugget of information was waiting for me.

This is a five star for me: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for this ARC.

3.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley for an arc of this book! This was a cute and cozy read that follows a cat and his nine “lives”, 8 of which he lives as a ghost. Although I enjoyed this book, I was expecting to actually see each life, but it turns out that each one is simply until he falls asleep on that day (so each life is only a handful of hours). I really liked the aspect of hearing the thoughts of Grimalkin (the cat) as he experienced each new development through time (each life is in a new time/around a decade or so after the previous), but it moved a bit slow for me.

When Grimalkin dies earlier than his destined time without using any of his 9 lives — so he is given the chance to live nine lives as a ghost cat —we experience history through his eyes over 12 decades — ending in 2022. He returns to his cat life eight times, seemingly at random intervals of time, for just a day each time.

This is an enchanting, cozy book set up so that each chapter is its own story but we follow the same main character Grimalkin -- makes it easy to pick up or take a break— Grimalkin is loveable, curious and endearing. We immediately get attached to the cat and his adventures through time — this story is a fun, quick, cozy, heartwarming, imaginative read.


Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC. This is my honest review.

DNF at 61%

In theory, a historical fiction following the nine lives of a cat time traveling throughout history is intriguing and something I would thoroughly enjoy.

This book, however, seemed to have many flaws that left me frustrated with the narrator, unattached to any of the characters, and simply just bored.

First off, the knowledge and inner thoughts of Grimbalkin the cat seemed very inconsistent with what a house cat would know. For example, how would he know to call the time period the “Victorian Era” when he is currently living in it? While the point of the story is to flush out the curiosity of a cat viewing history unfold, it just felt like Grimbalkin connected the dots too quickly and somehow had a very good understanding of politics and history. It just seemed too convenient in many situations.

Then there is the writing. Truth be told, it felt like I was reading a middle grades book, but the subject matter was more adult. It felt like a very surface level story, and I did not feel attached to any of the characters. The middle grades type of style mixed with the history of England and some more adult themes felt a little incompatible.

This is definitely a book where the premise seems so interesting, but the execution simply fell flat.

Do NOT make the mistake I made: Despite appearances, this is not a middle-grade book! One of the chapters in it is full of expletives (not gratuitous ones, however). Which is a pity because tweens would adore this book.

Adults will find this spectral feline tale pretty alluring, as well. Born in the Victorian Era, cat Grimalkin’s life is cut short; to make up for it, the cat in the sky allows Grimalkin eight more shots at life (making nine, of course). Grimalkin visits the house at 7/7 Marchmont Crescent in Edinburgh over 120 years and marvels at the changes. I really enjoyed Grimalkin’s reactions to the changes of the 20th and 21st centuries. Recommended.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing and Hanover Square Press in exchange for an honest review.

hmm i really wanted to enjoy this book but truthfully, almost DNF'd it. i feel that the premise aimed to have the same charm as books like "before the coffee gets cold" or any of the japanese magical realism books, but missed the mark in a few areas for me.

first, the structure of the chapters became redundant quickly, as our perspective was limited to pure observations and little to no action. additionally, i didn't have any particular or strong interest in the characters, besides eidlih*, and wasn't entirely convinced that our narrator did either. on that note, the characterization and observations of grimalkin felt very insignificant and inconsistent throughout. finally, i felt that the chapters became bogged down with an overload of superfluous details that didn't contribute to the story or atmosphere.

one of the redeeming aspects of the book was the sweet relationship with eidilh, but due to the pacing of the book and limited interactions, the relationship lacked depth, especially because she gets mentioned less and less as the story progresses. overall, loved the concept but i feel that the execution could have used some work.

thank you to netgalley and black & white house publishing for providing me with an advanced digital review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions!

This was a really cute story, and it made me smile to think that cats really do have nine lives. The kitty in question has his first like in Victorian era Scotland, and gets to see how times change up until the early 2000s, helping some people along the way. Just a sweet story

There are few things I love more than cats, books and ghosts. So naturally I was interested in reading The Ghost Cat.

I feel like the best audience for this book would be a younger crowd. The book details changes in history that I think a younger audience would be able to learn from.

Personally, I was hoping for more of a connection with each “haunting.”

But I loved the relationship with Eilidh. It was a great representation of the bond between human and cat. Very beautiful.

Thanks to NetGalley, Alex Howard and Hanover Square Press. I’ve written this review voluntarily.

This was cute and cozy. I think alot of people who are fans of all Japanese cat lit fics will enjoy this one. I just would have preferred a longer story and one that went into more depth with each of the cats’ 9 lives

I really wanted to enjoy this story more than I did. The premise of following a Ghost Cat through history in Edinburgh sounded fantastic and delightful, unfortunately, something about this story just did not work for me. I loved Grimalkin as a main character, but I think there just wasn't enough story for me overall. Grimalkin has the opportunity to live out his nine lives, as a ghost cat, for roughly 120 years, but each of his hauntings feels incredibly brief and has only minimal details. I would have loved more story to go with each fo haunting, especially for the 3 in which Grimalkin gets to go outside into Edinburgh. As a pet owner/lover I really appreciated the book's POV from a cat's perspective, but do be aware that while this story has its cozy moments it also has several incredibly sad parts. This would be a good read for anyone looking for something similar to Before the Coffee Gets Cold or anyone with a love of Edinburgh. Thank you to HTP and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

What a unique idea for a book!
3.5 rounded up - mixed feelings about this one! I wouldn't call it cozy per se because there are some very emotional and sad moments, but it does have a cozy vibe too.
Traveling through history from Grimalkin's POV was interesting! It did move a bit quickly from time to time and I could have spent more time on each era/event, but I do enjoy history. Fairly quick read and enjoyable overall!

Thank you NetGalley and HTP for the ARC!

This was a sweet and fun setup to a tour through Edinburgh (and contemporary) history. I liked the Grimalkin perspective and the interweaving of cat-myth and reality. It was a pretty easy read that went fairly quickly. It's a quirky way to tell a morality/life lessons tale, and likely won't be for everyone, but I enjoyed it.

Being that we have a new cat I had a new interest in a book involving cats. Add something haunted and I was all in. Really enjoyed this book. Thank you

2.5/5

Thank you Net Galley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for allowing me to read an eARC for “Ghost Cat.”

This book was cute and cozy.

I loved the idea and concept. It just overall really didn’t have much sustenance and was pretty surface level. I loved following Grimalkin through history, starting with the invention of electricity and ending with Queen Elizabeth II’s death. My issue is I wanted more of everything. I wanted more historical details, more descriptions, more depth to each haunting, and more personality of Grimalkin.

Overall a quick ok read.

Let me start off by saying that I have mixed feelings for this book. While there is quite a lot of cat content, and the main character is a cat (Grimalkin), a highlight, the story is mostly focused on historical changes and advancements of the decade in question. It's very creative to imagine what a "ghost cat" would think of and adapt to these differences, and it's cute that he has the personality of a distinguished gentleman from the late 1800s! I was very invested in the story, especially in the middle portion; however, towards the end, some events altered my otherwise high opinion of the book. Namely, there were some very disparaging remarks about the physical appearance of certain characters that I perceived were used to add humour to the story. This turned me off quite a lot, as I didn't think it was needed or was funny, and it was fairly immature. I was susceptible to reading these remarks and imagined other readers might feel the same way. The humour is definitely hit or miss throughout the entire book. Otherwise, the book is best suited for cat lovers who also have an interest in historical fiction.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for this review copy. I will post a full review on my blog and social media during the week of publication.

This was a big DNF for me. I really tried, but honestly, it was incredibly dull. I kept going back to It, but the cat's personality seemed a bit annoying, the bits about how he starts to acclimate to the futures he sees is cheesy, and I just couldn't see an audience for the book - at all - other than people who enjoy books from a cat's point of view. This was a big no for me.