Whales and Tails Mystery Books In Order

Publication Order of Whales and Tails Mysteries Books

Whales and Tails Mystery is a series of novels written by Kathi Daley. The books are cozy mysteries with a romantic element.

+The Story

If you have ever read any story by Kathi Daley, you probably think you know what to expect from Whales and Tails. And in truth, you wouldn’t be wrong. Kathi loves animals. She also loves mysteries and idyllic little settings. And the Whale and Tails books have plenty of those aspects.

The focus of the Whales and Tails mystery series is a character called Caitlin. Her home is a fictional island within the San Juan Islands.

That is a location off the coast of Washington state. Caitlin Hart’s family has been living on the island for a very long time. In fact, she is a fourth generational islander who currently lives with her aunt in a cabin near the ocean.

The economy isn’t in the best place, so things are a little bit of a struggle for Caitlin who must work hard to make her way. Luckily she has her best friend Tara with whom she works to open a coffee store of sorts designed to cater to people and animals.

Caitlin is an animal lover. She has a dog of her own, though she eventually comes across a cat that proves to be more help but trouble. Kathi loves her characters and she creates such an amazing cast in the Whales and Tails Mystery series.

The human characters are interspersed with animal characters that are almost as interesting. Animal lovers will enjoy these books not only because Caitlin is an animal lover but because of the way Kathi uses the animals in this series.

To an extent, the Whales and Tails Mystery series brings to life the exact same themes that tends to appear in many Kathi Daley novels. The protagonist here is an unsuspecting individual working in a seemingly ordinary arena but who shows a penchant for solving crime.

As idyllic as Caitlin’s home might appear to be, she cannot help but stumble through crime; and she is often forced to put her crime-solving skills to the test as some of the cases intersect with her own life.

One might be tempted to argue that these books bring nothing new to the table. However, even though the motif feels a little familiar, Kathi’s stories are still very entertaining to read.

And her characters are just as lively.

+The Author

Kathi Daley has made quite a name for herself because she writes so many books every year; in fact, she probably writes more books in any given twelve month period than some of her fans can read.

A writer of cozy mysteries, Kathi cooks, gardens, cycles and reads when she isn’t writing. She also enjoys going to the beach with her grandchildren whenever the opportunity is presented.

Kathi lives near Lake Tahoe with her family. The idyllic landscape is a source of inspiration for the author.

+Romeow and Juliet

A member of the island council is dead. Caitlin and her dog take it upon themselves to solve the murder. While they go about doing just that, Romeo, the cat that followed Caitlin home has began ruffling the neighbor’s feathers.

Romeo has set his eyes on Juliet, the neighbor’s expensive show cat.

You can probably enter the Whales and Tails mystery series from anywhere. However, if you want to get a flavor of Kathi Daley’s work, this is as good a place to start as any. Caitlin Hart is an animal lover’s dream.

The protagonist of the story, Caitlin loves animals and she does everything she can to help them, this including helping her aunt manage a cat sanctuary. In fact, she has plans to open a shop that will help get stray cats adopted.

And she is never far from her own dog. The island where Caitlin lives is an interesting place. The characters are funny and charming and interesting in their own way. But they are overshadowed by Romeo and Juliet, two cats that look like they might be destined to get together.

Things are set in motion when Caitlin and her best friend Tara go looking for a suitable place to house their coffee shop. What they discover puts a pause on their plans.

There are a few additional plotlines running through the book. Caitlin and Tara have a bone to pick with outside developers who want to build condos on the island, a step that would ruin the quiet and serene environment.

There is also Caitlin’s Aunt Maggie who has plans to run for an Island council seat, not to mention Caitlin’s own efforts to get a loan in order to open her shop. The murder mystery is pretty good but it isn’t the central attraction.

+The Mad Catter

Caitlin knew Alice was coming. However, she didn’t know of the role the beautiful white cat would play in revealing the source of Aunt Maggie’s illness, not to mention the truth behind the death of a woman.

This book, the second in the Whales and Tails Mystery series, closely follows the first one. Caitlin is still working to get her Coffee Cat store ready. Her aunt is still dealing with her illness.

When Caitlin stumbles across the body of a local woman, she attempts to sniff out the real killer. Things are not nearly as bad for Kathi Daley’s hero this time around. Not only are the renovations for her Coffee Cat store going well but her aunt seems to be on the mend.

Finding a nefarious killer doesn’t seem to be the worst use of her skills. Though, the return of a childhood crush definitely becomes a distraction. Kathi’s characters are just as amazing as ever, not only the humans but the animals.

The mystery is solid but, as with most of Kathi’s work, it isn’t the primary attraction. In fact, for hardcore fans of mystery, it is little more than passable. But that isn’t a bad thing. The Mad Catter has plenty of entertaining aspects.

While this book could be read on its own, completing its predecessor would allow ‘The Mad Catter’ to make more sense, at least for those people who care enough to follow these characters.