Cat Lady is one of those books where the cover really misrepresents the contents. Anyone picking it up thinking it will be a “fun” read is going to be very disappointed.
Mia lives with her husband, step son and beloved cat, Pigeon. She has a demanding and successful career and her life runs to a strict timetable. It quickly becomes apparent that Mia is not happy and barely coping, her awful childhood has shaped her into a woman who appears to have it all but in fact has only one bright spot in her life, her cat.
She is so desperate to feel something she even joins a support group for people who have lost their pets.
The book soon takes a series of very dark turns as Mia’s life falls apart. Can she find out what she really needs in life to be happy?
Dawn O’Porter is a very accomplished writer but I’m not sure this novel completely works. The central theme is that you can be happy alone with your pet ( or whatever you love) and that’s fine, society shouldn’t judge you for it. The term Cat Lady shouldn’t be used in a derogatory way. However, in some places the story, and Mia’s actions, are shoe horned round this central theme and don’t make much sense. I found the middle section rather irritating and it was difficult to find much sympathy for Mia. The ending was sweet but jarred with some of the darker passages. It seemed a little neat. All in all, good but not great. Thank you to #netgalley and #harpercollins for this ARC

I really struggled with this one, I didn't like any of the main characters, the only connection I had was the main character Mia's relationship with her cat, Pigeon. It was almost identical to my cat Tatti.

*Spoilers ahead *

The story is of Mia, who on the surface looks like she has it all, good job, a husband and a stepson that she loves. But she joins a support group for people who have had a pet die, despite Pigeon being alive and well, to connect with people and be with people that understand her connection to her pet. She has a very stern and stoic appearance from the outside with any displays of affection saved for putting together her stepson's lunch and time spent with Pigeon. She and her husband have separate rooms so that she can spend the night sleeping next to Pigeon. Her life is slightly complicated by the ex-wife who is in her home too much and detests her cat and her boss, daughter of a very rich man given money to start her own business without any talent or skills.

Mia's life falls apart when her husband butt dials her while having sex with his ex wife on their kitchen counter, and worse pushes Pigeon off the counter. She then gets sacked for trying to save the business and so begins a turn in her character, fleeing the family home with a tote bag and Pigeon she ends up a mess and but starts to open up to people and see that she can be more herself, she goes back to her home and tells her husband, and the newly moved in ex-wife that she's going nowhere. Just as she starts to get a grip Pigeon is killed when the ex-wife leaves the door open and the house cat ends up hit by a car. My cat Tatti dies in May and to read the description of all the emotions, what Mia had lost, how she felt brought it all back and I lay in bed crying as I read it, she then remembers the death of her mum and, with my own mum's death 3 years ago, the tears continued.

The book ends on a happy note and it was one of the few times I didn't want a book to continue, and know what happened to the characters next, it was a perfect book in that way.

Overall I'm glad I stuck it out, but it was hard to do sometimes, it was quite late into the book that got emotional and gripped me, but it would be an easy holiday read in two or three sittings.

I'm giving it 4 stars because of how well written it was around Pigeon's death and dealing with that, and I really enjoyed the bits at the pet bereavement group where the characters were nicer and likeable.

I live on my own, my best relationship has been with my cat and I’m probably the textbook definition of a crazy cat lady. So I should have loved this……

However, after the shower scene and the mention of marmite it quickly became very apparent that our love for pets is very different. Mia was not a character I could relate to in any way shape or form. She goes to a pet bereavement group when hers isn’t even dead, schedules sex with her husband and sleeps in a separate room with Pigeon the cat being her preferred bed partner.

Then there is her husband’s ex wife who is still very much in his life and their home. The pavlova would have been on her face in my house, not on the floor is all I’m saying! The awful, bankrolled by daddy, boss and numerous other characters that Mia has in her life may be the reason she has mental health issues. No wonder she prefers her cat!

Also I’m not sure what day Mother’s Day falls on in America but here it’s always Mothering Sunday so her going to work and her step kid going to school felt like a plot fail.

While this book wasn’t for me or what I expected I’m sure it will appeal to those who like unconventional characters. Just be warned it does contain the death of pets.

This is a difficult book to describe for me, there are some great scenes with laughter but also some really sad ones. Mia is a complicated character, stiff and formal at work but there is a softer person hidden inside obscured by a difficult childhood. Her only true companion is her cat Pigeon, who helped her previously at the time of her greatest need. She attends a therapy group for those who have lost pets, even though Pigeon is still alive, finding like-minded people there who give her support. What does come across clearly is the effect of the loss of a beloved pet on the owners (I use the term owner loosely in the case of cats as they are obviously the masters in the relationship), something that struck a chord with me with the recent loss of our cat. So in summary not a book to sit and read to cheer you up, but sometimes it is good to read something to help you reflect on your own life, although it still manages to stay positive and to give hope. Note - After submitting a 4* review score I sat and thought back on the book and how it made me feel I have updated my score to a full 5*. I'm also thinking of getting another cat.....
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

As soon as I started to read this book I was really intrigued by Mia, the main character. This book follows her life, marriage and career as she struggles to find a place that she feels she can fit in.

Through the duration of the book you grow to understand Mia more; learn about her difficult upbringing and start to sympathise with her quirky self. By the time I got to halfway, I couldn’t put the book down. I adored this ending and overall the book warmed my heart.

A different book to my usual ‘go-to’ but I can’t wait to keep an eye out for more of this authors books.

I am a big fan of Dawn O’Porter and have read her previous books and enjoyed them all so I was looking forward to reading
Cat Lady, and I was not disappointed. Her writing style is so recognisable and she always manages to create realistic and relatable female characters and this book has another.

I loved how she highlighted the bond between pets and their owners and I’m sure this resonates with pet owners everywhere.

While obviously sad at times, I would recommend this book and I can’t wait to pick up Dawn’s next story.

‘𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙨𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙩 𝙙𝙤𝙤𝙧. 𝙀𝙢𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙. 𝙄 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙗𝙨, 𝙨𝙤 𝙄 𝙜𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙞𝙛 𝙬𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙖 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙩’𝙨 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙢𝙚.’

I’d seen a few reviews of this one on instagram and it sounded like something I’d like, so I was super excited when I got accepted for an ARC.

I was expecting a hilarious and light hearted read and although parts were funny, I actually found a lot of it quite sad. It’s a story of Mia learning to deal with her quite brutal past and uncomfortable present.

There was an assortment of well written and varied characters - some I loved, others not so much (I’m looking at you, Belinda). They added so much colour to plot and really helped carry the storyline. There was so interesting subplots with Mia’s work life and ‘friendship’ groups.

Mia is an interesting character with many quirks - and a slightly unhealthy relationship with her cat, Pigeon. She was a wonderfully flawed character whose none existent filter made me howl at times, don’t want to put any spoilers in but the doctors surgery part was hilarious! There were a few slightly ick moments for me, but they weren’t too off putting.

The plot was interesting and seeing Mia’s character develop throughout was lovely. The ending wrapped up really neatly in just the way you’d like, proper feel good ending.

Although the book was amusing and had some cracking one liners, it was rather deep and upsetting in parts. So I would definitely recommend checking out CW/TW’s before reading. But on the whole, it was a really good read that had me fully invested and rooting for Mia throughout.

Thank you Netgalley for sending me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I didn’t read it straight away but once I picked it up, I read it in almost one go. Some of my friends follow me on good reads and it would be interesting to know if they regard as a mad cat lady! I can relate to so much of Mia’s story - her independence, her dress sense but most of all her feelings about her cat and the dread she has of losing her best friend, Pigeon (her cat!). What a good name!

At the start of the book, Mia has few friends but as her story progresses she becomes close to people she meets in a support group for people who have lost a pet, in particular a cat. Bit by bit you learn Mia’s own story. She learns more and more about herself. We meet her husband, his first wife, her stepson, her sister and we find out how she relates to all of them and the other way around.

Her career is also a big part of the book. Without giving any spoilers, you find out how she is seen by the people she works with. So often we do not see ourselves as others see us.

There is a lot of sadness in the book, (some of it due to her childhood) but there is also humour. The book ends on a positive note. It is beautifully written. I recommend it even to those who are not cat lovers as Mia is so much more than just a “cat lady”.

The cover leans you to a lighter read but this kinda isn't. Yes Mia has a cat and she loves her cat - Pigeon - more than life itself. More than husband Tristan, more than her job, more than everything. Definitely more than Tristan's ex-wife Belinda, the bane of their lives but intertwined due to step-son Oliver. But with Pigeon still in the land of the living, why in heck is she attending a "pet bereavement group"? Is she readying herself for the inevitable? Pigeon is getting on a bit...
The rest is hard to describe and so I won't. Suffice to say it's all a bit larger than life and occasionally bonkers - well, actually a lot bonkers... But also really funny. And sad. Very sad in places. If I believed in trigger warnings I would probably give one here but remember "pet bereavement group". It's also cringing in places and, did I mention bonkers already?
But amongst all that, it's also quite real. And poignant, and uplifting. And the characters are spot on. Mia especially, with all she goes through. She has it all, but she has nothing (apart from Pigeon). And then she starts to lose it all... Belinda is often comedy gold too...
Ok so there are a few niggles in the book that didn't work and one glaring one which others have mentioned so there's no need for me to, but they were only tiny and easily glossed over in the big picture of my enjoyment of this book. Nothing jarred me enough to take me out of what I was reading. I stayed in the book, enjoying every moment. All the way to the sort of predictable, but satisfying end...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I really enjoyed this book. It took me a few chapters to get into it and I initially didn’t like Mia at all but, having loved and lost quite a few pets, I really enjoyed both the premise and all of the slightly mad characters. Essentially a very lovely book about grief and loss with some very astute observations about kindness too.

As a self-confessed cat lady (I am typing this whilst sat cuddling my cat!), you can tell that the author is a true ailurophile. It is a laugh out loud relatable book with lots of poignant and sad moments too. The main character, Mia, has had a difficult life and lives a double life to manage this – professional, wife and mum to the world and cat lady in private. She meets a wonderful set of unlikely friends who help her to negotiate some huge life changing situations with humour and cat therapy. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who wants a feel-good read with a difference.

Mia is married to Tristan, who has a son, Oliver, and and ex-wife, Belinda, who is on good terms with. Almost too good terms with it feels to Mia.
Mia has a cat called Pigeon, who is her world. She can't envisage a life without him and secretly attends a support group for people who have lost their pets.
When Mia's world falls apart, she is at a loss of who to turn to, she makes a few bad decisions which cause her even more grief.
On the advice of a stranger, she manages to pull her life back together, complete with new setbacks, but is able to realise that she didn't really like her life and relationships as they were.
I really identified with parts of this book, being a committed Cat Lady! There are parts when you want to shout at Mia to stop being a doormat, but others you want to give her a big hug but have a sob yourself..
I did enjoy reading this.

Quite an entertaining book. Humourous in places, touching throughout. I have read a few books lately where the protagonist is lucky enough to have a well aid job and no real financial concerns, so when they have time away through illness or crisis, they don't starve or worry about red letters-this is such a book. Having said all that I enjoyed it well enough.

Initially what drew me to this book was the title. According to my family and friends I am the quintessential cat lady, crazy or otherwise.. I also call one of my cats Pigeon so the author could have been writing about me. Apart from these coincidences I thought the whole book was wonderful, the author knowing just how much to tug on the heartstrings. I found myself laughing out loud at some parts of the story and sobbing into my pillow at others. Even if you aren't a cat parent give this book a try, you won't regret it.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

A very quick read for me but I expected it to be more humourful. The themes in this book are quite deep but kind of not really taken seriously, but not funny?

As a self-proclaimed cat lady I thought I would relate more to the MC Mia but I just couldnt - I didnt like that she went to support groups she didnt need to go to, it wasn't funny it was just kind of offensive?

I dont know, it just didnt sit right with me.

I nearly didn't finish this one, I struggled to keep momentum but in the end wanted to know how this chaos would wrap up and actually, i did like the end so it wasn't an overall bad read. Im just not sure i would read it again.

We all know the stereotype of the crazy cat lady that would rather live on her own, or we think we do, in this story of cat lady Mia. She is a manager of a jewellery company, a wife to Tristan, a stepmother to his son Oliver and the owner of a cat called Pigeon. But as things start to unravel in her life, people start to view her as the crazy cat lady without really understanding the relationship with her parents and the difficulty she has with dealing with the past. She attends a weekly pet bereavement group without having any grief to speak of and she is fierce in places that sometimes leads to hilarious consequences!

I really enjoyed this book. I have read only O'Porter's first novel The Cows and found this to be rather a similar take on modern society and a little corner of London. It was witty, sometimes hilarious, and I warmed easily to the character of Mia who understandably has found herself a bit lost in the world. She wants certain things from life and is led to believe she is this 'crazy cat lady' when she just needed to make sure she surrounded herself with the right, loving people.

A heartwarming read, funny and insightful.

Cat Lady by Dawn O'Porter was so much more than I expected - funny, emotional, empowering and inspiring, it is a book that I know I will revisit regularly in the future.
Despite a difficult childhood Mia finally has it all together.- a successful career as part of a designer jewellery company, a happy marriage to Tristan and a great relationship with her stepson Oliver and of course the devotion of her beloved pet cat Pigeon. This is Mia's life, and she is happy- or is she? If she is really honest with herself she doesn't like her boss, a spoiled wannabe It Girl who is still funded by Daddy, and finds many of her co workers frustrating. Her home life is a little fraught because of the level of involvement of Tristan's ex wife , who they are trying to remain on good terms with because he thinks it will be easier for Oliver. The only real comfort she has is Pigeon, and she lavishes that cat with affection and attention even when it causes conflict with her husband.
When Mia's world comes crashing down one afternoon she watches as her family unravels and her career enters a dramatic death spiral, but it is only by reaching rock bottom that she can figure out what is really important to her and where she wants her life to go.
This book may start a little slowly for some people, especially since Mia is a character who is a little difficult to warm to at first , but trust me, as you get to know her, you'll find yourself rooting for her and cheering her on. There is a wonderful dark humour woven throughout the book, and I often found myself chuckling at a particularly ridiculous scenario or witty exchange. As we learn more about Mia's past it is easier to understand why she is the way she is when we first meet her, and it was heart warming to go with her on her emotional journey towards self acceptance and greater self awareness .
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own,

I Have finally come to the conclusion that, unfortunately, Dawn O'Porter is not for me.
I always pick up her books and expect something lightweight, witty and fun to read. This one unfortunately left a bit of a weird taste in my mouth - it just feels like another story about a cooky millennial that's like, totally odd and different.

This was a really likeable book: easy to read and with glimmering threads of humour weaving their way throughout the chapters. There are parts that are daft/ unlikely/ exaggerated but I definitely enjoyed Dawn O'Porter's style of writing which made some of the daft/ unlikely/ exaggerated parts easier to forgive.

Cat Lady is amusing whilst highlighting some real life issues and I definitely found myself wanting to pick it back up and get back to reading - I loved the characters and the plot (in the main).

There's an overall feeling of warmth and all told I found it an enjoyable rad. Did the ending all seem a bit twee & convenient? Mostly, yes. Were there a couple of parts that didn't add up or feel necessary? Also, yes. Would I happily pick it up to read again? Absolutely, yes.

Well this book was not what I was expecting! This is a unique and original book as we follow the main character Mia as she undergoes some major life and relationship changes.
This books has humour and a range of emotions and covers grief, loss and societal expectations from a unique point of view. It is a quick, quirky book that I enjoyed reading.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC in return for an honest review.