Cat Fight had an enticing premise and a few standout stylistic choices, but ultimately didn’t claw its way to the top for me.

I was moderately excited about this debut. A messy, sun-drenched domestic drama with an undercurrent of secrets? Yes, please. The pacing is on the slower end for a thriller—more emotional standoff than high-stakes showdown—but I appreciated the ominous news clippings woven between chapters. They teased a darker past for Coralie and hinted at something awful looming near summer’s end… even if neither fully paid off.

The final act is where the claws should’ve come out, but the tension kind of fizzled. For a book compared to Big Little Lies, this felt more like Mildly Irritated Truths. There’s a thread of grief, some tangled relationships, and a whiff of summer scandal, but I kept waiting for the story to go deeper. Or to snap. It never quite did.

Still, it held my interest—and I think readers looking for a lighter domestic drama might find something to enjoy. Just don’t go in expecting fireworks.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC (now available for fellow readers).

DNF’d at 38%. I wanted to love this one, but based on blurbs, I was expecting more a little more thrill, a little less domestic drama. I usually don’t mind character-driven stories, but this had 3 of the least interesting main character ladies, with a very slow-burning plot. Down the road I could see this one possibly working for me a bit more, but at the moment it’s very much a “not right now”— nothing about the 3 leads or their marital drama hooked me.

I am a big fan of neighborhood dramas so when I read this was BIG LITTLE LIES meets TIGER KING I was sold. It definitely is an apt comparison! I almost DNF this as the beginning is a slooooow burn but I am so glad I stuck with it. I went from “this is a lot about cats” to “omg this book!!!” and that is the energy I want. The addition of the vox-pop chapters added to the suspense and upped the mystery as to what was coming. The ending is where most of the action is and ultimately it ended being a wild ride.

I really enjoyed getting into this book, it had that concept that I was looking for and enjoyed the overall concept of this. The characters had that feel that I was wanting and enjoyed the idea of a big cat being spotted. Kit Conway was able to create a strong storyline and the characters were everything that I was expecting.

This was a book! I considered dnfing this basically the whole time for multiple reasons, the main one being that this was advertised as a lit fic and not as a thriller?? Which is what this definitely is??

Aside from that, I thought this was okay. The characters themselves are all interesting, but skipping around between all three women kinda made things confusing, especially towards the beginning. I also thought the documentary snippets were interesting, but kinda unneeded. I did listen to some of this on audio, and that made the snippets slightly more interesting since they're done with a full cast, but the rest of the book isn't which was a choice.

I did think the whole big cat part of this was interesting, but somehow really understated?? Like it was the whole point but?? Idk I'm so confused by this whole book.

I will also say that their is a really graphic scene of one of the main characters almost killing her cat which made me almost dnf (for the 3234 time) - Socks deserved so much better than these stupid people.

Thank you to Atria and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

loved the premise and thought the idea is really original but this writing style is just not for me. every single chapter feels like it ends like an ad break in a trashy daytime soap opera with a "aha" cliffhanger thats not addressed for 6 more episodes.

Cat Fight by Kit Conway is a suburban suspense novel that is being marketed as Big Little Lies meets Tiger King.

Coralie King went from a zoologist to Queen Bee of Sevenoaks, a rich suburb in London. During one of her ultra exclusive dinner parties, her husband Adam is convinced he saw a panther on the hood of his car. What could be a mass hysteria moment instead is spun into an opportunity for Coralie to revive her failing career. The newbie to the neighborhood, Emma Brooks, doesn't believe there's been a big cat sighting but if it takes the heat off of her home remodel project, she's willing to take the distraction. And then there's Twig, back in Sevenoaks and living in her childhood home, the former punk rocker is jaded with the way her life has turned out. As the big cat sighting gets everyone riled up and bones, paw prints and scratches are discovered, questions arise wondering if this is the work of an actual big cat or if it's something more domestic..

This is one of those books where the blurb and the cover drew me in but I wasn't all that sold on the finished result. This is a debut, so I am definitely down to try this author again sometime! I felt like it took a long time to get into the actual action (like 60% of the book) so it was definitely a slow burn. Once you get to that point though it did pick up and the end was satisfying-ish.. I don't know y'all, this was a hard one for me to rate! If you like suburban drama filled novels that have that slow burning suspense, give Cat Fight a read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kit Conway and Atria Books for this ARC!! Publication date: June 3rd 2025.

In a small corner of an upscale neighborhood called Sevenoaks, right next to a wooded area, three families live as friends. They get together for cookouts. They watch out for each other’s children. They see what’s going on in each other’s lives. But they don’t know each other’s secrets.

Adam is the one who first sees the big cat, maybe a panther? It had been sitting on his car. His wife Coralie was a zoologist, so she knew it was possible that a wildcat could be living in the woods nearby but it wasn’t very likely. And when she noticed that he’d just been smoking something stronger than tobacco, she is dubious about what he saw. But she promises him that she will look into it. And as the weeks go by, she does investigate. Adam, meanwhile, gets more paranoid and refuses to leave the house at all.

Emma and Matt are trying to upgrade their house in a renovation that includes a third story. However, they have to get their plans approved before they can do anything, and their neighbors hate the new design. There are chat groups just about how much everyone in the neighborhood is against this renovation. But in the weeks that follow Adam seeing the cat, Emma notices that everyone is talking about the cat instead of their renovations. So she goes out of her way to keep people talking about that cat. But just how far will she go?

Twig and Blake are least concerned about the panther. Their daughter Skylar had cancer, and while she is in remission, there is a vaccine available to help protect her from getting cancer again. However, it will take a lot of money, which they do not have. Twig has been working on a GoFundMe campaign, which is struggling, until she adds in information about the wildcat sightings. Talking about the panther and about her time in the band Pineapple Punk brings the donations in, and makes her old music hit the charts. But Twig is so focused on Skylar that she isn’t paying enough attention to her son Elwood, who becomes obsessed with the cat, or to Blake, who is distracted by something else entirely.

As the summer goes on and the stories about the panther get wilder, these three families are affected by the gossip, by the obsessions, and by the cat itself. But as the secrets start coming out, that cat won’t be the only thing these families have to worry about.

Cat Fight is a debut novel about the panther who lives next door. Told in alternating perspectives of Coralie, Emma, Twig, and clips from a docuseries named The Mystery of the Sevenoaks Panther, which include interviews from several people throughout the community, this story unfolds in crazy ways. It’s too much of a mystery to call it a character-driven novel, but it’s a little slow for a full-fledged thriller.

I loved this story. I do think it could benefit from a little editing, making the story tighter and moving it along faster. But I still thought it was a lot of fun. I think readers who enjoy domestic thrillers about upscale enclaves and the families that keep secrets there will enjoy it, as well as anyone who has ever wanted to find a wildcat roaming around their neighborhood.

Egalleys for Cat Fight were provided by Atria Books through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.

This book, about a posh suburban London neighborhood being upended by a panther sighting, had promise but ultimately fell short for me. From the beginning, I didn't find anything endearing or funny about the characters, so I never understood the book's tone. I was expecting something more over-the-top, which didn't happen until the end, but by that point I had lost interest.

This was a fun and enjoyable read. Was it the best I've ever read or thought provoking? No. But I had a good time with it.

Erm, well, this book was a bit off for me. It was slowly quietly moving along with a dysfunctional neighborhood with plenty of secrets going around. And of course the reader knows it must be heading to a denouement. But the lead up was too long and convoluted for something labeled to include "gasp-worthy twists and turns." I only saw one twist and it was more like whiplash from a freak accident. I think I would have enjoyed it more had the premise of the story been presented a bit differently because it wasn't a bad read, just not the read I anticipated. If you like slow burn, character driven stories dealing with family drama and trauma, this is a good read. Just don't expect "fun and propulsive."

Thank you Atria Books for my #gifted copy of Cat Fight! #AtriaInfluencer #atriabooks #AtriaPartner

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐂𝐚𝐭 𝐅𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐊𝐢𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐰𝐚𝐲
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟑, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

This is a debut novel by author Kit Conway and is marketed as Big Little Lies meets Tiger King. I loved Big Little Lies (but I’ve never seen Tiger King) so I was really excited for this one. It takes places over the course of one summer and follows three women who use the hype of a large cat sighting to achieve their own crazy agenda. I will say, it was a fairly entertaining novel, but I did find it a little hard to follow at times. There was drama and there was dark humor, but it was also drawn out at times. I just don’t think I was the right target for this one or I didn’t read it at the right time. I would still read this author in the future and would encourage you to give this one a try if the premise sounds interested to you!

Posted on Goodreads on June 2, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around June 2, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on June 3, 2025
**-will post on designated date

Thank you Atria Books @atriabooks and Kit Conway for this free book!
“Cat Fight” by Kit Conway⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Suburban Suspense. Location: A suburb in Kent, England. Time: one hot, frenzied summer.

Former zoologist Coralie King is now Queen Bee of Sevenoaks, a wealthy suburb of London. When husband Adam spots a panther on his car hood at one of her exclusive dinner parties, Coralie is quick to reassure her guests they’re in no danger. She sees the sighting as a perfect opportunity to promote her ecological endeavors. New neighbor Emma Brooks doesn’t believe there’s a big cat, but is willing to use the concern as a distraction from her home remodel application. Meanwhile, former punk musician Twig Dorsett never thought she’d return to her childhood home in Sevenoaks, but when her daughter became ill, she and her wife traded their bohemian Bali life for London suburbia. The frenzy around the big cat sighting reaches a fever pitch when gnawed bones, pawprints, and scratches are discovered. But much more is going on in this wealthy neighborhood, and the big cat might be just the distraction they need to hide their own secrets.

Author Conway has written a dark, twisty novel about suburbia and the lengths residents will go for their own agendas-some more sinister than others. Her characters are definitely morally grey, which should be delightful. But with morally grey characters, there have to be some likable or at least engaging traits to keep us interested. And, in my opinion, thats the problem here. There’s no one to really root for. I love that she included a map; and her descriptions of nature in all its glory are beautiful: (Wild chives resplendent with their lilac crowns. Violet balls of California lilac. Drifts of honeysuckle.) Conway’s book is full of entitled suburbanites behaving badly, but it’s not Desperate Housewives or Big Little Lies. If you’re into unhinged big cat encounters, there are always reruns of Tiger King. It’s 3 stars from me for the nature descriptions and the admirable attempt to weave a lot of stories and viewpoints into one book.🌵📚👩🏼‍🦳

This was such a ceeky, fun, enjoyable romp of a novel. Secrets and lies mixed with some absurdity - what's not to love?

A twisty tale set in the London suburbs of three women and a leopard loose in their neighborhood. This starts very much like a mean mommies novel where Emma is looked down upon by Twig and Queen Bee Coralie but it quickly turns to something else. Did Coralie's husband Austin really see a big cat on the top of his car? Turns out he did but how and why did it get there? Coralie knows and Emma wants to know as does Elwood, Twig's small bullied son who worships Coralie. And it's Coralie on whom this hangs. Her back story is murky and Conway doesn't give you the whole picture until late in the novel. Emma who loves Disney is suspicious of her and also of Twig, a long time friend of her husband Matt. And Twig's struggling with her marriage to Blake and the illness of their small daughter but she was once a singer and she's reissued one of her songs. This has domestic drama in the marriages and an underlying menace thanks to Coralie. Gotta admit that it wasn't what I expected but I found myself turning the pages because I wanted to know what would happen. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Great debut.

A good and fun debut! Nothing mind blowing but just and enjoyable read. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for read and review

I wanted to love this book, I found the synopsis intriguing- the book itself is so poorly written that it was a struggle to finish.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the egalley.

hmmm, 2.5 rounded down? This book was described by the publisher as Big Little Lies meets Tiger King. So I was super excited. I think this is actually an apt comparison in broad strokes, but Liane does a much better job balancing the cast of hilariously self-centered suburbanites and writing a plot that compels readers.

I thought this book had a promising premise, a slowwww middle, and a decent climax. I think the characters and pacing could have used some more work. This being a debut, I would read another book by this author if others had reviewed it more favorably.

I love the cover of this book, it immediately caught my attention. I read the synopsis and was sold after seeing it compared to Big Little Lies and Tiger King, both I loved. I thought this book was very entertaining and a fun read. The suburban drama made it hard to put the book down. The final twist was perfect and I will definitely be recommending this book. I saw that this book is a debut, so I’ll definitely be keeping this author on my radar for future books.

Thank you so much to Atria for the gifted book!

Oh man, I wanted to love this one so much! Whoever came up with the tagline that this was "Big Littles Lies" meets "Tiger King" really should get a raise. Although, comparing any book to a Liane Moriarty book is always hard to live up to.

While the idea and concept promised a fun time, sadly I was so bored with this one. I thought the characters and all the lusting and cheating was gross and just was excited for it to be over.

I wish this book success though!