The Fontana Duology
by Shirley Rousseau Murphy
Coauthored with her husband Pat J. J. Murphy
Shirley Rousseau Murphy, author of the award-winning Joe Grey mystery series--a writer hailed for her "magical whimsy and deft writing" (Cats magazine) who "has raised the stakes of the feline sleuth genre" (Kirkus Reviews)--teams up with her husband to conjure a charming supernatural adventure involving the devil, a thief, a bet, and a spirited phantom cat.
Book One: The Cat, the Devil, and Lee Fontana
Hardcover and ebook: William Morrow, 2014Paperback: Avon, 2014
To the devil, the span of human life is as brief as spit on the wind. But the challenge of playing with flawed humans, like a cat toying with a mouse, is endlessly amusing. However, if the devil loses a wager, he will harass a person's descendants until he eventually gets his due. Which is why he is tormenting Lee Fontana.
The night before Lee is paroled, Satan terrifies and tempts the thief with the promise of one more successful robbery. But Lee has a secret ally looking out for him. The prison cat, a ghost, will tail the ex-con on his dangerous mission--an adventure that moves across the country and spins far beyond our present world into the vast realms of afterlife, a story in which ghostly Misto revels in his added ethereal powers and expanded freedom.
Book Two: The Cat, the Devil, the Last Escape
Hardcover and ebook: William Morrow, 2015Paperback: Avon, 2015
Brad Falon, one of Satan’s longtime puppets, orchestrated a deadly robbery and set up his old friend Morgan Blake to take the fall. Now, Morgan has been sentenced to life in prison, and his wife Becky and young daughter Sammie are devastated. Alone and afraid, in need of comfort and a friend, Sammie turns to Misto, the ghost cat.
Behind bars, her father Morgan makes fast friends with an old con named Lee Fontana who knows a few tricks about outwitting evil. They plan a wily escape to bring the real killer to justice and clear Morgan’s name for good. All it will take is outsmarting the Devil one more time. . . .
Purchase these books
The Cat, the Devil, and Lee Fontana can be purchased at Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, and Kobo.The Cat, the Devil, the Last Escape can be purchased at Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, and Kobo.
Quotes from the Reviews
Book One
"Superbly crafted paranormal thriller. . . . The Murphys have spun a yarn that takes the reader on a magical journey filled with mystery, intrigue and the supernatural. . . . Kudos and accolades to the authors for creating such a suspenseful page turner. I venture to say you may have to wait for Hell to freeze over until you encounter a better read." --Lenny Gittleman, Cat Chat with Caren and Cody
"This is a novel that’s most definitely an attention-getter. From the title, to the cover, to the amazing plot and characters, this literary duo captures the imagination and provides a perfect one-day read. . . . A wonderfully written book, readers will love the whole story of this yellow tabby-cat ghost who is, by far, the brains of the outfit. Quill says: Everyone who reads Murphy’s feline sleuths will be delighted by this definite ‘must read.’ --Amy Lignor, The Feathered Quill
"This compelling departure from the Joe Grey series will have you flying through the pages, anxious to find out what happens next. . . . The relationships are complex and true-to-life, and the post-World War II landscape is drawn beautifully. . . . This is one mystery not to miss!" --Amy Sikes, ReaderToReader.com
"This whimsical mystery is set in post World War II America. Even those who do not like cats will love Misto. The story is cleverly wound between the lush descriptions to draw the reader deeper. Though it is just a little slow in the beginning, readers will be glad they hung on to the end." --Kaitlin, Coffee Time Romance
Book Two
"An engrossing story. Darker than a cozy, the plot is intriguing and harsh at times. . . . As the characters get more desperate, they are tested in ways that will ultimately define their true character." --Sandra Martin, RT Book Reviews
"The second soul wars conflict between The Cat and The Devil . . . is a wonderful supernatural thriller due to a fully-developed cast. This time the audience understands why Misto believes enigmatic Fontana is worth saving. Readers will . . . relish the convergence of the past, present and future." --Harriet Klausner, Alternative Worlds II
"One of the best fantasy/mysteries I have ever read. Wonderful characters who keep you in suspense throughout the whole book." --Stephanie Chestler, Amazon.com reader review
"I found it very difficult to put the novel down each night when it was time to go to bed. . . . Many tidbits and details add such an authenticity to the era that makes history fun. I highly recommend this book for those wanting to see evil faced squarely by those with the courage to do so no matter the potential cost." --A. Burgin, Amazon.com reader review
"Shirley and Pat Murphy give us a very accurate look back in history to the court and penal system of the past. Lee Fontana comes through for the family he didn't know he had and the connection with past and present meld to form a strong bond that would last and defeat the dark spirit who stalked him. . . . I loved this book!" --Janet Long, Amazon.com reader review
Pat and Shirley Murphy
Excerpt from The Cat, the Devil, and Lee Fontana
The prison cat sat observing that dark and hungry shadow, peering out from beneath the guard's desk just as, earlier in the evening, he had watched the rutting goat play hell with the sheep out at the prison farm. The cat had known Satan even in goat form and knew why he was there. His silent hiss was fierce, his claws kneading, every angle of his lean body tense and protective. He didn't like the devil sniffing around Lee again, poking and prodding as he'd done ever since Fontana was a boy, showing up always with the same vendetta, willfully tormenting Lee, wanting what he thought was his due, wanting to get back at Lee for an effrontery that Lee had had nothing to do with. Lee had been only a child when his grandpappy faced off and bested the devil, but Lucifer wouldn't let up, he wouldn't back off, not until Lee gave in to his dark desires or, in death, went free at last, still unbound to the slave maker.
The yellow tomcat had lived at the prison most of his life, he'd arrived there as a tiny kitten in the pocket of a prison guard, had been bottle-fed by the guard and two inmates and, when he was old enough to be let outside, had learned to hunt from the resident prison cat. He had taken over from that aging beast when she passed on to enjoy another life. Indeed, Misto himself had died there at the prison, at a ripe and venerable age. That body, only one relic from his rich and varied incarnations, was buried just outside the prison wall with a fine view of Puget Sound, of its roiling storms and its quiet days cloaked in coastal fog. The very night that a guard buried Misto, as fog lay heavy over the still water, the cat had risen again, appearing as only a tangle of vapor mixed with the mist, and he wandered back into the cell blocks.
He wasn't ready to leave McNeil. The prison was home, the ugly cells, the exercise yard, the mess hall with its ample suppertime handouts, the kitchen with more scraps than a dozen cats could devour, the overflowing garbage cans, the dense woods and grassy fields, with its band of wild and amorous female cats and, out at the prison farm among the dairy barns and chicken houses, a fine supply of rats and fat mice to hunt and tease, and what more could any cat want?
During Misto's lifetime most of the prisoners had been friendly to him. Those who were not had been kept in line by the others. Now, returning as ghost, he had gotten his own back with those men in a hurry, driving a fear into them that would prevent them from ever again tormenting a cat or any other small creature. When, after his death, he'd materialized in the prison yard and let the inmates see him, some claimed another cat had moved in, likely one of Misto's kittens that was a ringer for him. But some prisoners said Misto himself had come back from the grave into another of his nine lives; they knew he wasn't yet done with the pleasures of McNeil, and he soon became a cell-block myth, appearing and disappearing in a way that offered an exciting and chilling new interest for the bored inmates: a ghost cat to tickle their thoughts, to marvel over and to argue about. Lee Fontana observed the ghost and smiled; and kept his opinions to himself. As for Misto, it wasn't the comfort and pleasure of the island alone that detained his spirit there. He remained because of Lee Fontana.
Read a longer sample from inside The Cat, the Devil, and Lee Fontana
Excerpt from The Cat, the Devil, the Last Escape
The cat prowled the prison rooftops invisible to human eyes, a ghost cat, a spirit cat unseen by anyone living. He could make himself visible when he chose but that wasn’t often. A big, rangy tomcat, long and lank, his golden ears ragged from past battles during his earthly lives. Now, floating free between those lives, his mission was keen as he searched for his quarry, for his dark and indestructible adversary.
Padding across the shingles he paused at a noise from the walk below, dropped to a predator’s stalk and slipped to the edge, to peer over.
But it was only a guard passing between the buildings with a pair of inmates, the men’s shadows cast tall by the lowering sun. The shadow that Misto sought was not among them. When, in the softening light, some unease made the men glance up to the roofline they saw only wind-scattered leaves dancing across the shingles.
The men moved on and so did the ghost cat, scanning the walks below him, alert for that errant shade, for the demon that, unlike the cat himself, harbored no trace of goodness. For the wraith that haunted his human companion, that tormented Lee Fontana. In the windows of the prison offices warped reflections moved about as prison staff finished up for the day. He heard the casual click of a door closing but not a stealthy sound. Across the roofs the prairie wind scudded, tickling through his fur, turning him suddenly so giddy that he ran in circles, tail lashing, his yellow eyes gleaming. He played and raced unseen until the light shifted, far clouds dimmed the dropping sun and, sobering, the cat turned steady again and watchful.
Away at the far reaches of the prison grounds the vegetable gardens shone bright green in the sun’s last rays. Ears sharp forward, he surveyed the dim corridors between the young fruit trees that the prisoners tended but nothing stirred there, he saw no foreign presence. Tail twitching, he looked up past the gardens, out past the prison wall to the blowing wheat that rolled to the horizon. The ghost cat had, earlier in the day, sailed weightless on the wheat’s flowing crest diving and somersaulting, giddy with play, forgetting his quarry as he reveled in his ghostly powers, in his weightless and windblown freedom. Now, he could see nothing spectral waiting there within that golden pelt. Nor did anything unwelcome move among the farm buildings or within the fenced paddocks where the cows and sheep browsed, casting their own docile shadows. The animals remained content, nothing evil lingered among them. They would know, the animals always knew.
Read a longer sample from inside The Cat, the Devil, the Last Escape