The Dead Cat Tail Assassins follows Eveen, who is an undead assassin in the Dead Cat Tail Assassins guild. She doesn't remember her life before being resurrected and becoming an assassin, only that she made a deal with a goddess before she died to become such. Amidst festival celebrations she is contracted by an unknown client and though Eveen expects it to be like any other contract, it quickly turns into anything but. When the target triggers a memory for her, which is most definitely not something that should be able to happen, Eveen and her target set out to figure out how they are connected and why this contract was drawn up in the first place, but the clock is ticking because if the contract isn't settled by morning, there will be hell to pay.

I went into this as a fan of P. Djèlí Clark's cheeky and dark humored writing, and this did not disappoint. The opening was a bit awkward ("Memories, wouldn't know much about those"), but once through the first chapter I feel like the stage was set and the story had found its legs. The larger story elements were somewhat predictable, but Clark approached them with a fresh perspective and pulled off an ending I didn't see coming!

Spoilers below:

The progressive telling of the festival story was flawlessly integrated. I think that's a mechanism that can be hard to do smoothly, and Clark did that so well. The sowing and reaping regarding Sky's origins are pretty obvious, but not tedious, and I don't feel like that was intended to be surprise reveal at the end as much as it was a secret the reader was let into that the characters in the story needed to work to to get everyone to the fantastical ending with sister gods from different dimensions ready to cross swords.

There's definitely some underlying gently pushed themes about power, consent, and humanity, but those are bonus features to a fun and darkly-humored adventure. This was such a fun read and though it won't be for everyone, I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who likes Tamsyn Muir, Martha Wells, or similar authors.

P. Djeli Clark NEVER MISSES!! I cannot think of one of his books that didn’t have me captivated within the first few pages, giggling, and shortly thereafter saying a few expletives! The characters and the world building are always on point!! And I absolutely LOVE how he always represents the Black Diaspora!
If you’re a Clark fan, definitely add this one to your TBR to get your P Djeli fix in. Bravo sir 🙌🏾

Thank you, Net Galley and Tor for providing this arc. P. Djeli Clark creates a black sci-fi masterpiece that rivals Lovecraft Country. Eveen is an assassin who has one crazy night that includes, magic, time travel, zombies, extensional dread, and surprisingly a good amount of food. I truly believe the story should be read without a lot of context I will say there is a load of gore but crafted perfectly. I can't wait to read more of Mr. Clark's works.

Could barely get out of the first chapter. I loved RING SHOUT, but this is not for me.

Didn't vibe with the characters OR the plot.

This was an action packed and unique Novella. So much character growth and plot was accomplished in a mere 200 pages.

The premise of the story immediately hooked me and drew me in. We learn quite a bit about our main character right off the bat. Undead assassins, dressed up as cats who complete contracts for unknown entities to assassinate rivals. Yes please!!

I really appreciated the descriptions of the assassins, and how they eventually became undead assassins. I feel like it gave a lot of depth to the characters and explained a lot of motivations surrounding the contracts. I really would love to have more novels about these assassins I especially found "the quad" very interesting. The old man was also super interesting to me.

P Djèlí Clark is very well-known for amazing characters and unique storylines and this is no exception. I highly recommend the Novella for a short action packed thrill ride.

This was awesome! It's a short book, but there is so much world-building, and the setting is fantastic. I don't want to say too much about the plot setup because it's so short and that could spoil the experience, but it's a little twisty and very action-packed. P. Djèlí Clark is an auto-read author for me now - a good novella is very difficult to pull off, but I have very much enjoyed all of the ones from this author. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

"The Dead Cat Tail Assassins" by P. Djeli Clark is a riveting adventure steeped in rich world-building and relentless action. Set in a vividly imagined world, Clark intricately weaves together elements of fantasy and suspense, immersing readers in a captivating narrative from start to finish.

Clark's attention to detail brings every corner of his universe to life, from the bustling city streets to the shadowy underworld of assassins. Each setting feels meticulously crafted, providing a backdrop that is both immersive and intriguing.

From exhilarating chase scenes to pulse-pounding showdowns, Clark delivers non-stop thrills that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. The pace is relentless, driving the narrative forward with relentless momentum.

I'm glad that this book was my first contact with P. Djèli Clark's prose. It was a very good reading. I enjoyed the whole time I was diving into this world, the characters were amazing, the world building was good and the book's executation was very much satisfying.

The mind of P. Djeli Clark will never cease to amaze me, but this novella fell a little short of what I've come to expect from him.

The premise was promising: a woman who has died has been brought back to life under the condition that she will kill in the name of a goddess. While out on a job, she comes across something that calls into question everything she's been told about the world and her place in it. While the read was entertaining overall, I feel like the execution of the plot was lacking. The worldbuilding had the potential to be wonderful and similar in scope to Clark's Djinn series, but I'm not gonna lie: it felt kind of called in in this instance. For a novella it felt quite long and drawn out but without a good payoff at the end. I've always felt that no matter the genre, a well-written novella is tightly plotted and contained, with immaculate pacing. In my opinion, this one did not have that.

Absolutely and utterly wonderful. P. Djèlí Clark is a masterful worldbuilder and writes the <i>coolest</i> female lead characters, and that is just too much power for one author to have.

<i>The Dead Cat Tail Assassins are not cats.

Nor do they have tails.

But they are most assuredly dead.</i>

With that kind of tagline, it would be hard to go wrong with the novella itself. In fact, the only thing that was really "wrong" with this for me was that it was only novella-length.

Eveen is a master assassin, one of the Dead Cat Tails. Resurrected in service to the goddess of assassins, she remembers nothing of her former life. So when her former life sneaks up to her and slaps her in the face, in the form of a mark, she is wholly unprepared.

But she is prepared to fight for what she needs, even when that fight is against assassins of her own guild. It was super fun to see the different assassins and their unique skillsets. Because of the page number constraint, it did feel a bit like assassin after assassin, without room for the story to breathe in between the attacks.

And that's where I feel this would have been better served as a full-length novel, and not just because I enjoyed this so much and would selfishly like to see more of it. The pace was rather breakneck, and I really do feel like if there was a bit more breathing room, time for more character work in those downbeats, this would be an even stronger story. As it was, it was a lot of fun and very, very cool, but it didn't have the time and space to creep into my bones.

As mentioned, the worldbuilding was topnotch. Though this was short, not only the setting but the mythology and the culture of the world were impressively developed. It would be a pity for Clark not to come back to this world in other stories. 👀

Eveen the Eviscerator is a member of the Dead Cat Tail Assassin guild. She is not a cat, does not have a tail but is very dead. She signed a contract with a goddess to be her assassin and be reanimated after death. Why? She doesn’t know as all her memories were wiped as well… until she signs a contract to kill somebody she remembers. There are very specific rules regarding contracts and Eveen may have to break them all in order to save herself and her mark.
Very well told novella which left me wanting more! This could easily be a series. Great characters, very funny at times as well as action packed.
Thanks Netgalley for the ARC- my opinions are my own.

Loved this book! I was already a fan of the author but I think this is my favorite of his so far. I've already posted a 5 star review kn Goodreads in support of this title.

I did find some grammatical/typo issues during my read. Are you accepting this feedback in some form? I've highlighted them in my Kindle copy so I think I'm able to pull those and send them somewhat easily.

2.75 on StoryGraph

Re-Readability:
This is not one that I think I would ever re-read. I had a fine enough time with it for the most part, but didn't love it.

Characters:
The characters were fine, but I just didn't get particularly invested in them. Fennis was probably my favorite and he was only in a couple of scenes. There just wasn't much character development for me personally, and I didn't feel like I got to know the two main characters super well, despite being with them the entire time.

Plot:
The overall plot is a cool concept, specifically with the resolution... however, I am personally not the biggest fan of "assassin after assassin after assassin coming after the main character and they just keep fighting and fighting and fighting." John Wick 4 vibes, and while I do enjoy cool action... it can absolutely be too repetitive for me, and this was.

I also found some of the dialogue a little bit too corny/campy/unserious.

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins is another winner by P. Djèlí Clark, who I don't think has ever missed (like ever), but has especially become one of the sages of fantasy novellas.

Novellas are having a bit of a renaissance in speculative fiction, and for good reason. They allow for more character and thematic development without requiring a story to feel stretched beyond it's limits. Unfortunately, many SFF authors struggle to work within the novella format, either trying to shove entire epics into less 200 pages, or stretching out what should have been a short story.

I've never found Djèlí Clark to have this issue with any of his novellas (including The Haunting of Tram Car 015, Ring Shout, or The Black God's Drums. Clark understands exactly what kinds of stories absolutey thrive as novellas and The Dead Cat Tails Assassins is no exception.

The Dead Cat Tails Assassins follows Eveen, a member of the titular guild of highly skilled assassins. They aren't cat, but they are the resurrected dead! The story follws Eveen has she undertakes a new contract, and finds that her target is much more than she bargained for. What results is a novella full of twists, turns, hearts, and humor.

Every element of this novella shines so bright, despite often being set at night and in the underbelly of society. Despite being a novella about causing death, this is novella that is so earnestly about being alive. It is about the joys of life, and how even in tragedy there is nothing like the feeling of a hearbeat or of air breathing out of your lungs. The journey of life is not always easy, but it is worth living; despite the ups and down, backs and forths, bad decisions, and places we never end up in. As Eveen works on her latest contract, and everything that results from it, she learns more about her life and the joys of being alive despite her dead...status.

In this exploration, Clark finds so much humor and levity. Eveen is dry, witty, and sarcastic, and Clark surrounds her with a cast of characters that you will either come to love or love to hate. There are some anachronistic jokes that they characters don't even know they are making (but we readers sure do), and everyone insane plot development is remarked upon as such. I also really appreciated how Clark balanced the humor in the book. Some books that are trying to be witty and sarcastic (such as the Malevolent Seven by Sebastien de Castell) often overdo the humor the point where it becomes awkward and annoying. Clark packs this novella full of humor without ever feeling like it takes away from the humanity of the characters. These aren't MCU-level quip machines without distinguishable personalities. Everyone has their own sense of humor and sense of personhood that radiates from the page.

The worldbuilding is fun and full of a surprising amount of what I might call "science fantasy" without ever descending into magical or scientific gobbly-gook. All of the speculative elements are perfectly calibrated and streamlined in a way that serves the characters and the story, rather than just feeling like window-dressing. Clark is a master of novella-sized worldbuilding. His novellas always know how to make the world feel fully realized and lived-in without resorting to tomes worthos of info-dumps. I fully believed that this world existed without needing to know the national dish of nations our characters don't even visit.

At less than 200 pages, this should be an immediate read for everyone who loves a bit of assassin-ry in their fantasy. Heck, I would visit this world and these characters at any page length! It is a perfect morsel of fun and heart and that we all need a bit more of in our lives. I was perfectly satisfied with what Clark served me here, but I would absolutely devour more stories of Eveen and this world.

Concluding Thoughts: P. Djèlí Clark returns with another knock-out novella, this time featuring an undead assassin whose latest project is shocking in more ways than one. Full of heart and humor, the cast of characters and witty banter will win over most readers as the plot twists and turns in surprising (and occassionally brutal) ways. While many of the characters in this book are dead (but not cats!), this is a book that celebrates life, in both its ups and down. Clark never misses with his novellas (or any of this works!), and this novella will delight new and old fans alike. Pick this one up.

How to describe The Dead Cat Tails Assassins? It’s best to go in blind. Just imagine John Wick as a charismatic undead contract assassin! Set in an urban Tal Abisi, the dead and undead coexist and the business of killing has its own set of rules underwritten by a fearsome bloodthirsty goddess. Eveen is one of her acolytes, part of the titular Dead Cat Tails assassins now tasked with an impossible kill - and that’s all you need to know. The writing is engaging, fast-paced with a dash of humour and the plot advances naturally. The villain is not your typical moustache-twirling baddie. Every character has a unique voice with quirks and personality. Even the side characters are memorable.

Great between longer series or getting out of a reading slump. Just don’t be fooled by the short page count - this novella packs a punch! I had so much fun reading this. Great for fans of Piranesi, N.K. Jemisin and T. Kingfisher.

An e-ARC was provided by the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions remain my own.

-4 stars

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins is a standalone novella, and my first P. Djèlí Clark book. This novella follows a resurrected assassin named Eveen, who contracted to “ship” her mark Cyanna. Once Eveen and Cyanna’s paths cross, we are quickly thrown into an overnight mission across Tal Abisi during a city-wide festival, meeting many unique characters along the way.

This story is both quite funny (had my laughing outloud at times) but also quite dark, making it an engaging and compelling read. I loved the world building, folklore and characters, and was surprised by how quickly I was immersed in the world. My main critique is that I really wish this story had been longer! That being said, reading this novella has inspired me to pick up more books by P. Djèlí Clark!

Thank you, NetGalley, Tor Publishing Group, and P. Djèlí Clark, for the eARC.

I went into this story pretty much blind, aside from knowing that Eveen was an assassin. I liked Clark's writing style. The characters were likable and funny. Seeing more development and learning about their past would have been nice. The world, goddesses, and magic system were also interesting to read about. I wish the book were longer and not as fast-paced so we can get more in-depth information about the world and characters. I enjoyed the story and the twists that came with it. Although, at the beginning, I struggled to get through it because it’s very descriptive, which sometimes felt unnecessary. The world-building also felt specific to the city they were in. I would’ve liked to know more about the world's environment in general and how the magic system worked. This was my first read by Clark, but I’m definitely interested in reading more of his catalog.

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins was exactly what I expected, precisely what I was hoping for, and most certainly everything I could have asked. P. Djèlí Clark's novella is somehow fantastic fun and incredibly dark at the same time, the first driven by the characters, and the latter by the story.

For a woman who has no memory of anything before she was resurrected as an assassin, Eveen is a surprisingly deep character. She's an assassin with principles, a woman who's not afraid to break the three unbreakable vows if it means doing the right thing - a fact that has already gotten her in trouble once before. She is lonely, with only a work-friend to count on, but she has her penny dreadfuls, stories of heroic daring and monstrous enemies that she hoards and quotes from on a regular basis.

I can't say much about Sky without spoiling some key aspects of the plot, but she's one of those characters who grow on you, a plot device who reveals a personality that makes her a match for Eveen. Their weird, awkward, impossible friendship is what exposes the heart of Eveen, inviting us to understand who and how she is.

The world-building here is fabulous, with a wealth of cultural elements, some interesting bits of geography, and a depth of magic and mythology that's more real and more immediate than many readers may be used to. We see that especially in the events leading up to the climax, but I'll say no more for fear of spoilers.

Okay, so I'll say one thing more. There's a character involved in that climax who speaks in a phonetic dialect that I really struggled to read, so much so that I found myself skipping half conversations and trusting the other half to provide context. It's the only thing keeping this from being a full 5-star read, but irritating and distracting enough to pull it down to 4.5 stars.

As I was reading The Dead Cat Tail Assassins, I had two theories in mind as to what was happening and how it would all be resolved. As it turns out, I guessed right on the what, but could never have anticipated how crazy the how would end up being. Definitely worth a read!

The fact that this book is described as "introducing" a new world makes me desparately hope that this is a brief introduction to a world that P. Djèlí Clark plans to spend more time in! The second I saw Clark had an upcoming novella I rushed to request a copy—he writes such fascinating and fleshed-out alternative histories and worlds that invite you to revel in the texture of the story. It could be a problem for some readers, actually, being introduced to a world that you could spend hours and hundreds of pages in... only to realize that you only have a novella-amount of time!

THE DEAD CAT TAIL ASSASSINS is no different. For a story about assassins, this is a genuinely funny novella that had me laughing along as I read. The interplay of magic, science (via alchemy, but I'll keep saying it's science in the context of this world!) and folk/community traditions really flesh out this world, and the sensibilities of the characters within it.

If you're already a fan of Clark, you won't want to miss this one. If you've not had the pleasure... congratulations on your new reading list!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for providing this ARC.

I love P. Djeli Clark. His world building and sense of place are top tier. For a short book, the characters and setting were extremely well developed. The history and magic system in DCTA is well thought out and relayed to the reader without clunky exposition. I also loved the irreverent humor sprinkled throughout.

I don’t see it specified anywhere that this is the beginning of a new series, but it is certainly left open for more. I hope so because I would love to see more of this world and these characters. Definitely recommend for all fans of fantasy who love intricate worldbuilding and interesting characters.