It’s rude and crude and hilarious and touching and full of heart and as fabulous as I’ve come to expect from Dawn’s novels.

It’s engaging and charismatic and witty and so real, so human.

Dawn has a knack of portraying the seemingly mundane daily life but with added spice. Everything’s ramped up a little bit but it feels so familiar, you can identify yourself and others in every page.

Now I admit, I’m not a huge lover of cats. I do like my neighbour’s cat but I think that’s because he thinks he’s a dog. I don’t dislike them generally, but I probably wouldn’t choose to have one - not least because my dog hates any other animal. But I like that they’re getting the love and attention they deserve in this book. You can tell how much Dawn loves them.

One theme I really did like was that of pet grief. My dog is only 4 so I’m hoping (touch wood and fingers crossed and all that) he’s still got a way to go, but just the very idea of losing him hurts. Pet grief is a real thing and people deserve to have their feelings acknowledged, which this book does so well.

It’s so fun and easy to read. I read it in just two sittings. The only reason I didn’t do it all in one is it was getting late and I needed sleep, but if you start it early in the day, then you’ll definitely get it read in one go, it’s almost impossible to put it down.

I didn’t think anything would top her novel “The Cows”, which I read at least once a year, but this is just as good. I’m starting to rely on her books as go-to reads. I could see all of her novels as TV shows or movies and I really hope that happens in the future.

This is a book I’d recommend to all the women in my life, no matter their ages. I think they’d all get something different out of it, but they’d most certainly all get joy.

I loved the main character of Mia. Sure, she was perhaps a little odd at times, but I loved her all the more for it. She was engaging, endearing and funny. The other characters almost became inconsequential to me. Not because they’re badly written, no. Exactly the opposite. But because Mia is such a powerful figure that I didn’t want to stop reading about her.

It’s a rollercoaster of emotions. You’ll find yourself crying and laughing in the same paragraph. It’s very touching, very moving, but overall, you’ll finish it feeling joyful and hopeful.

Such a wonderful book.

Mia is a Cat Lady and by Cat Lady I mean a woman who owns a cat. However, she is very obsessed with her pet, Pigeon.

Throughout the book you follow Mia’s life, Her husband Tristan, Step-Son Oliver and her career as MD to a jewellery company who want to expand into Selfridges.

Without giving any of the story away, this book shows Mia when she’s on a high and when she’s at rock bottom.

Honestly, this book was a delight and very funny.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for this ARC.

🐱 I've never once had a cat, never been fussed about them one way or the other but holy cat I loooooved this book!

🐱 As I knew I would really, because it's Dawn O'Porter it's clearly now a given. I adored The Cows and So Lucky in equal measure and now of course, Cat Lady.

🐱 Mia is definitely a controversial character, some of her actions questionable, well actually had me shouting out loud "What are you doing now, woman!?!"
It was crazy and it was superb 👏 and I absolutely recommend!

My thanks to @harpercollinsuk @netgalley and #DawnOPorter for the exceptional read and the chance to read early ❤️

This is my third Dawn O'Porter book and quite honestly, I am always left a bit lost for words! I would describe them as car crash books - they're not pleasant and quite horrifying in places, but yet you can't look away.

Cat Lady follows the story of Mia, a rather troubled middle aged woman with a very close (and possibly questionable) relationship with her cat. It is hard to sum the book up without giving too much away, but this book delves into the stereotype of a cat lady, as well as following Mia through a turbulent period of her life.

As a cat lover myself I can relate to a lot of this book, but it also left me feeling quite uncomfortable in places - I don't have quite the same relationship with my cats as Mia does with hers!

Although leaving me uncomfortable at times and unsure of where the book was going, it was an entertaining and emotive read and the last third was actually quite emotional, leading me to shed a few tears. Therefore I give this book a solid 3.5. A very confusing and odd yet clearly engaging and emotive read - might be quite an eclectic taste though!

Cat Lady by Dawn O’Porter is a novel that tells the story of Mia; a good wife to Tristan, a good stepmother to Oliver, and, of course, a pet lover with a cat named Pigeon. Mia plays the part she thinks the world expects from her but below the surface her true self claws to get out. When her perfectly curated life begins to unravel and shocking events shatter her conventional family life, Mia is faced with a choice, does she conform to a judgemental society or does she forget it all and live the life that will make her happy?

In this novel, O’Porter plays with the ‘crazy cat lady troupe’ like a kitten playing with a ball of yarn, examining the strange hatred and even fear that people often feel towards cats, and the disdain that casts upon the people who, like Mia, love cats.

The story explores a web of issues and topics from childhood trauma and domestic abuse to sexual harassment. It also delves into a very different kind of grief, that which comes from the loss of a pet, and any reader who has experienced such a loss will be able to relate to feelings of loss, confusion and despair that are laid out in these pages.

As well as having a sad side to its narrative, Cat Lady also offers a healthy dose of humour and satire. Plus, there are many sex-positive scenes that revolve around the forty-something-year-old Mia, something that is often rare in media and publishing.

Ultimately though, this is a story about finding who your true and happy self can be, once you let down the walls and the façade that you have created and open yourself to friendship and compassion.

A totally quirky but funny enjoyable read from Dawn. Many moments for a good chuckle amongst some delightful characters, plus the odd rogue. The book maybe not to everyone's taste hence the 4 stars, but I loved it as it certainly brightened my day. There is so much more beneath the humorous surface, compassion and accepting the outsider that the book exudes the joy to be had from a strong sense of community and support. Just thoroughly entertaining.

Another hit from Dawn O’Porter, written with her usual blend of drama, humour and real characters. I love her style and ability to create realistic characters and a gripping story. Really enjoyed, will recommend.

I don’t know what I expected from this book but I loved it! Such a great theme with big stories explored and the stories from the characters was incredible! And who could not be charmed by someone who loves cats! But not the kind of cat lady you would expect

Mia always lands on her feet, like her cat Pigeon. But despite all her success and seemingly perfect life, she's lonely. So when she tries to seek out some human connection, she finds it in a support group for people grieving their beloved animals. She never exactly says she's grieving, she just doesn't correct their assumptions either. But this lie might be the first of many that starts her perfect life unravelling like a ball of yarn in the hands of a kitten.

As a cat lady myself, I had t o read this book - I love a story that challenges the assumptions and stereotypes that have pushed women around and held them back. This story has some painfully relatable moments, with a few moments of witty humour but it definitely packs an emotional punch for anyone who's ever felt like they're at their breaking point.

Mia was an interesting character. She was very polished and cold at first, not letting us see the real her underneath- the her that is crass, crude, brazen and bold. She is the definition of 'too much' a wonderfully spectacular way. But her personality for me was very erratic and I found it hard to get to know her.

I adore Dawn O'Porter and her writing - this one wasn't quite for me as I couldn't find myself connecting with the main character but I'd still recommend it.

So to start with, I loved the look and sound of this book, and I was definitely drawn in as a fellow cat lady myself.

I'm still having a hard time knowing what to say other than this is a book about a woman who on the service appears to have everything sorted, but if you scratch through the layers there are some small holes there.

At times this was relatable and at other times not so much. I wonder if it's because I'm not really in line with the main character or the same point in my life, so felt parts didn't resinate with me.

I adore cats and had been looking forward to reading this. Read in one sitting and enjoyed, even if I didn't quite like all the attempts at humour.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I always enjoy Dawn O’Porters books and this one was the same.
Crazy over the top characters that I feel I shouldn’t relate to but it do.
The story is quite sad and covers loss and life and how people deal with it.
I really enjoyed it

I really enjoyed this book, I knew I would having loved all the other books by @hotpatooties
It’s got the Eleanor Oliphant and Meredith, Alone vibes 💞

The characters were quirky, flawed, loveable and dislikable (is that a word?! Sounds weird!)
Interesting story line which I’d say lots of pet lovers who’ve gone through a loss will relate to.

There were moments of laughter, of tears, of cover your eyes and cringe 🦀🦀 with a variety of topics covered even if briefly.

Not my fav Dawn O’Porter book & the reviews have been quite mixed so won’t be for everyone but I definitely enjoyed it!

Super funny and original as all Dawn O'Porter's books. Fans will not be disappointed. For anyone who loves more animals than humans, who feels unappreciated at work or feels is about to have a full blown meltdown. Loved it, laughed a lot and cried a bit.

I Love Dawn OPorters books, but was less sure on this one - it felt like it sometimes used humour to hide and make light of mental health issues and general unhappiness - for cat lovers yes, for cat ladies...maybe not.

Get ready for CAT LADY, the fresh, frank and very funny new novel from the Sunday Times bestseller, Dawn O’Porter

I'm sorry but I did not find this book very funny. There were parts that raised a smile but reading the synopsis above you would be expecting a side splitting romcom of a book. What you actually get is a thought provoking, introspective sad story.

Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed the story, probably more than I would have if it was laugh a minute with no depth. Occasionally it feels like the author is trying to hard to create a sitcom moment and it feels rather slapstick and out of place from the rest of the narrative.

I could relate to the characters and empathised (yes for that read cried like a baby at parts) and would recommend it to others to read - just not as a 'funny new novel'.

This book was not really for me,as a cat lover,it was at one point distressing,lots of unlikeable characters and situations and I am sure lots of readers wiill enjoy the humour but for me it just didnt’ reach the mark

This is a novel that readers will either like it dislike. I am in the latter camp. Most of the characters are dislikeable, selfish and unrealistic including the protagonist. Cat lovers and I am one of them will find one of the episodes distressing. Two stars.

I do not recommend this book to anyone who identifies as a Cat Lady, crazy or otherwise. Ironically I brought it forward on my reading schedule, because I was in the mood for something funny or heartwarming. It’s not in any way funny (unless you find people dealing with grief, trauma and other mental health issues amusing) and I found most of it both boring and distasteful, and then something horrible happens. It was heading for 1-star, which is rare for me, but I’ll admit I did like the ending, which redeemed it a little - but not enough to recommend it.

Mia has made the best of her life after a difficult childhood: good job, nice house and a stable marriage. OK so she loves her cat Pigeon more than her husband Tristan, is irritated by most of her colleagues, has no friends, and has to put up with her husband’s awful ex-wife Belinda for the sake of her stepson Oliver - but whose life is perfect?

This is another of those books about quirky oddballs finding their place in the world that have been super popular in womens’ fiction in recent years. Lots of them are very good, unfortunately this was not. Writing in first person present, Mia describes every tiny action of her life in minuscule detail - from what she puts into Oliver’s lunchbox, to having a shower, to her and Tristan’s grotesque middle-age sex. Maybe other readers would find constant references to Belinda’s juices hilarious, I didn’t. Nothing much happens in the first half, there’s a bit of awkward social commentary, and Mia reinforces every stereotype about people who love cats.

There are some weird inconsistencies: there is one mention of the pandemic “ There is a woman sitting next to me with a horrible cough. ‘Not Covid,’ she says, turning to me.” but it doesn’t otherwise feature at all - I know the UK is supposedly “getting back to normal” but there’s no other indication that this is set in the future.
Also at one point Mia describes Tristan being confronted by Belinda’s lover because she was stalking him after he refused to leave his wife - but unless they got together straight away, she wouldn’t have been there surely?

There are few remotely likeable characters in the whole thing - not including the heroine - her colleague Fliss, her put-upon sister Liz, and the members of her poor maligned support group. An example of how she thinks: “She is reading a copy of Cosmo, which makes me assume she has an STD. Poor her; it must come with terrible shame.” The only part of the book which was not completely predictable is the work subplot, and what happens to poor Pigeon (sorry for the spoiler alert but again - don’t read this if you love cats.) I haven’t read anything by this author previously and won’t be doing so again.
I received a complimentary ARC from NetGalley and am posting this (brutally - sorry) honest review with no pleasure but as a warning to proceed with caution.

If I had only read the first chapter I don't think I would have bothered carry on reading as it just doesn't seem to make any sense at all. However I'm so glad I did as this just proves that you can be a crazy cat lady and still have a wonderful life! Mia seems to be the woman that has it all and then looses it all. But she comes out better because of it. Just a nice happy go lucky read for all the cat lovers out there.