amateur-sleuth, law-enforcement, pets, family, friendship, small-business, small-town, cozy-mystery

Great characters! Fast paced! Full of twists and red herrings! Who would think that becoming the new librarian in the small town of Lavender, Texas would lead to being murdered? Or that a cat would be the better sleuth by first finding the body and later in finding important clues? I loved it, even though cats aren't my favorite (allergic).
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Beyond the Page Publishing via NetGalley. Thank you!

Mystery writer Sabrina Tate now lives in Lavender, Texas, with a black cat, who is considered El Gato Diablo, the bad luck cat, by superstitious town residents. While efforts to change her cat Hitchcock’s image are slow to take hold she is determined to prevail. In the meantime, Hitchcock proves to be an invaluable assistant when it comes to solving crime.

In the Black Cat Steps on a Crack, the 4th Bad Luck Cat Mystery, Jane Alcott, the new librarian, goes missing the very day she meets Sabrina. In fact, Jane misses a meeting that evening she scheduled with Sabrina to take publicity photos of the new author with her cat. The next morning Sabrina gets a call from the construction site of the new library alerting her to the fact that Hitchcock is there nosing around. Sabrina rushes to retrieve Hitchcock only to find him digging in the dirt, uncovering clues that lead to the dead body of Jane Alcott.

As Sabrina begins sleuthing she finds that Jane is quite disliked by the construction crew because she interferes and slows them down. However, Jane is also quite generous, offering help to others when she could. Bryan, husband to Sabrina’s best friend Tyanne, is the first suspect since he works on the construction crew. Then there’s a strange fellow who is going around town trying to find out anything about Jane from folks who knew her. Sabrina finds herself split between working on her second novel and investigating Jane’s murder.

Kay Finch makes it easy to appreciate the give and take between Sabrina and Hitchcock. Ms. Finch also fabricates a well-plotted mystery with surprising twists and interesting diversions. Engaging characters and realistic dialogue, along with a good pace make this a very entertaining read.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and the publisher in return for an honest review. This is not the first in this book series but can be read as as stand-alone (which is good since it's my first book by Ms. Finch). Sabrina, the human protagonist, is an author working on her second mystery. She lives in a cottage owned by her aunt, along with her amazing cat, Hitchcock. The death of a town newcomer results in the police focusing on Sabrina's best friend's husband, Bryan. Sabrina is determined to get to the bottom of things, while also keeping her Aunt Rowe (short for Rowena) from doing something dangerous. In Rowe's case, that involves a group of women renting the cottages and doing their 'bucket lists' of items like zip lining, line dancing, hiking, as well as scrap-booking all of the events together. This was a pleasant cosy and I recommend it.

Sabrina is back. I have read all of the previous books in this series and was happy to see another one after several years break. Sabrina is back with Hitchcock, "the bad luck cat". The premise capitalizes on the superstition that black cats bring bad luck. Throughout the book, Sabrina tries to dispel that silly notion. As the owner of a black cat myself, I find that a dumb superstition and can sympathize with the character in her protection of the cat. This is an interesting lead for the story. Hitchcock, of course in perpetuating the bad luck concept, finds a dead body. Sabrina is on hand because she is chasing down Hitchcock. She becomes involved to prove some of the people in town wrong that believe her cat brings death and bad luck. Sabrina sets out to figure out who would want the new librarian in town dead and why she has no past. In between that she has to keep and eye on her Aunt Rowe who is involved in some bucket list things herself. It is an entertaining read that has almost no low points. YOu are kept involved all the way to the end which was a surprise.

The fourth book in the Black Cat is an entertaining read as Sabrina Tate and her black cat, Hitchcock investigates the MURDER of the librarian, Jane Alcott. Sabrina learns there is no information on June and she had no relative and was buying expensive gifts for her friends. She had anger all the construction personnel as June wanted things down her way. There is a stranger who appears to be watching June's house and There break-ins and the places trash. Matters become important when Tyanne's husband becomes a person of interest. Who is June Alcott? Will Sabrina and Hitchcock find an answer before another death?
I highly recommend this book and series.
Desert recipes are included.

Disclosure: Thanks to Kensington Books for a copy through NetGalley. The opinions expressed are my own own.

I love Hitchcock and friends. The main character, Sabrina, is working on writing her second book when she gets sidetracked by a murder. A friend is under suspicion and so Sabrina works to prove him innocent, while trying to find relatives of the murdered woman, write her novel and keep her aunt safe from "crazy" bucket list item. While this is part of a series, it works well as a stand alone.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not big on pet centered cozies, but I found this one to be charming, with well developed characters, and plenty of twists and turns to keep it interesting. Definitely interested in checking out more in this series.

"The Black Cat Steps on a Crack" by Kay Finch the fourth book in the Bad Luck Cat Mystery series. I enjoyed this book and have purchased the previous books so I can start at the beginning and be all caught up.

Even though I haven't read the previous books in this series, it didn't cause a problem as this can be read as a stand-alone. I think this will be one of my favorite cat mystery series.

I like the Protagonist Sabrina Tate a mystery writer and her black cat Hitchcock who once again are at the center of a murder. I appreciated the focus the author put on the stigma associated with black cats as my mum was actually just telling me how in the UK they are lucky!

The characters are well developed and very likeable, such as her Aunt Rowe and who doesn't love a cat named Hitchcock. I enjoyed the small town setting of Lavender, Texas

There are plenty of twists and turns to keep me wanting to find out what will happen next. The book is engaging from start to finish, grabbing you from the very beginning. I cant wait for the fifth installment in this series, I recommend this to cozy lovers.

I requested and received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Beyond the Page and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my OWN.

The author picks up right where the previous installment left off. I love that in this series, the animal is not one that is beloved by all, it really makes it stand out. We have the gang all together again, caught once again in a murder that hits a little too close to home. With shady characters added in everywhere and a nice sub mystery thrown in, this book is anything but boring!

The Black Cat Steps on a Crack is a great cozy mystery with great characters. Well written and well developed characters. I will love to read more by this author.

I'm so happy this series is continuing! It's a great cozy series and I love when the animals have their own personalities too! Sabrina and Hitchcock are still great and the mystery is well written. Definitely a good series for someone who loves cozy mysteries especially for cat lovers.

I was very happy to see this series picked up by another publisher.
Fans can rest assured that the series continues with the same great characters and an interesting whodunit.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

Sabrina Tate is not only writing mysteries, she is living them! When the librarian for the new town library is found dead after missing a meeting with Sabrina, it looks like her BFF’s husband is the prime suspect. Being the nosey Nelly that she is, Sabrina finds herself in the middle of the mystery that seems to lead back to her own home base.

Sabrina’s sidekick, her black cat Hitchcock, is considered bad luck in the town of Lavender, Texas, but Hitchcock isn’t your average kitty, he seems to have a knack for leading Sabrina to clues and getting her out of stick situations. Together they dig deeper into finding out who killed the librarian and why. But hopefully they won’t run out of lives between the two of them before the killer is apprehended.

I’m not usually fond of how cats are portrayed in books, but I actually like Hitchcock. Could be that black cats have a special place in my heart, but it’s likely the authors writing that won me over. This is the first book I have read in the series and I will be reading more. No problem reading this as a standalone.