Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett

There has never been a cover that drew me like this one (pictured below). Cats? Magic? Shiny, golden, Art Deco-esque patterns?

If a cover was designed to be art and catch the eye, it is this one.

Not to mention the premise: cat shelter + magician + cozy romance/fantasy? Exactly what the doctor ordered.

A woman who runs a cat rescue in 1920s Montrèal turns to a grouchy but charming wizard to help save the shelter in this heartwarming cozy fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of the Emily Wilde series.

Agnes Aubert leads a meticulously organized life—and she likes it that way. As the proudly type-A manager of a much-needed cat rescue charity, she has devoted her life to finding forever homes for lost cats.

But after she is forced to move the cat shelter, Agnes learns that her new landlord is using her charity as a front—for an internationally renowned and thoroughly disreputable magic shop. Owned by the disorganized—not to mention self-absorbed, irritating, but also decidedly handsome—Havelock Renard, magician and failed Dark Lord, the shop draws magical clientele from around the world, partly due to the quality of Havelock’s illicit goods as well as their curiosity about his shadowy past and rumors of his incredible powers. Agnes's charity offers the perfect cover for illegal magics.

Agnes couldn’t care less about the shop—magical intrigue or not, there are cats to be rescued. But when an enemy from Havelock’s past surfaces, the magic shop—and more importantly, the cat shelter—are suddenly in jeopardy. To save the shelter, will Agnes have to set aside her social conscience and protect the man who once tried to bring about the apocalypse—and is now trying to steal her heart?

Summary via Goodreads

But was the book good? I can hear you asking, and yes. Yes, it was.

Sometimes going from third person (like in my recent read The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu) to first person can be jarring, but Heather Fawcett has always written first person (in my opinion) with the attitude of a third person author. The prose is detailed and descriptive and the world she created — 1920s Montréal with magicians — was as vivid as one could wish.

Agnes was a delight. While I usually (slight spoiler here) have a hard time standing characters who want to “find the good in people” all the time, the way Agnes was written took it in a different direction. While she was still determined to find the good in people, she also still stood up for herself, expressing clear boundaries with the people who had done her wrong, whether inadvertently or not.

I loved the cats. I think animals who cannot talk are sometimes more difficult to write than animals who can, and while the cats sometimes got involved in the magic, they weren’t magic themselves - other than the usual amount. They had great personalities and their shenanigans were fun to read without it growing too cutesy or overdone.

Havelock was fascinating and intimidating, but also funny and a fun character to read. The dynamic between Havelock and Agnes was satisfying, and Élise, Agnes’ sister, was a fun addition and a great side character.

The romance, as it were, was interesting in that it was not neatly tied up in a bow nor was it too fast or driven at first by the ‘lusts of the flesh’. The deepening of the relationship centered around real care and the characters spending time together, understanding each other and realizing they had the same goals. It was sweet and soft, and not at all boring.

I genuinely enjoyed this book so much. I ended up reading it in three days, Sunday night spent until almost half past midnight, reading in bed, something I have not done in awhile.

I did know there was a high likelihood I would enjoy this book. I have read Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries (loved it!) and have the second book on my shelf, ready to read very soon. If you like cozy fantasy and romance, Heather Fawcett is a perfect author to choose.

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