Ah, spring! The brighter days and singing birds have a way of lifting people’s spirits, as well as those of their animal companions. But the season can also bring out the first blossoms of murder. As the redbuds open in Crozet, Virginia, Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen is especially excited—until a health crisis sends her reeling into the forbidding world of hospitals and doctors, treatments and procedures. Surviving this journey will be tough, but Harry has her animal friends—and her ever-helpful husband, Fair—to support her. Others are considerably less A promising nurse’s lifeless body is discovered without a mark on her. Then another hospital employee, who had seemed in perfect health, is also found dead. There’s a mystery afoot—and that’s one thing Harry and her menagerie can’t keep their noses out of. Mrs. Murphy ( )

I was looking for a cozy after my previous reads, but this was not the right choice. Even more ridiculous than the previous books in the series, with long polemic and political digressions I could have done without. ( )

Too much political ranting

Written by someone who really doesn't understand how insurance companies really work. Yes, they can be obstructive but they can also do a lot of good if you educate yourself on how they work. ( )

Ms. Brown is still using her fiction to beat her readers over her head with her political views. I still love Tee Tucker, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, but the subplot was both unrealistic and annoying. When Harry is diagnosed with and treated for breast cancer, does she cry and scream and rage at the unfairness? Nooooo, she goes and works out and solves multiple murders. ( )

There’s a whole lot to like about “Hiss of Death”, the nineteenth “collaboration” between tiger cat Sneaky Pie Brown and her human, Rita Mae. This series is guaranteed to tackle some tough issues and the latest one doesn’t disappoint. It gives readers an inside look into what happens when a woman—in this case, lead character Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen—is diagnosed with breast cancer.
The book opens with Harry and several friends from Central Virginia Hospital gearing up for the annual race to raise money for breast cancer research. The story takes a dark turn when Harry finds one of the committee members dead. And Harry’s yearly mammogram reveals suspicious cells, which a biopsy confirms are malignant. Brown guides readers along Harry’s treatment path with gentleness and compassion. Her insights into the importance of a cancer support group are right on the money.
Then, the killer strikes again. And Harry suspects that something sinister is going on at the hospital.
With the help of her animal friends: Tucker the corgi and cats, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, Harry unmasks the killer and almost gets herself killed in the process.
This is a serious subject that is handled well and Brown is careful to say at the end of the book that Harry’s treatment path is fictitious and real cancer survivors may have an entirely different course of treatment.
“Hiss of Death” is a good read and I was glad to see that Pewter the cat finally got the last word after being the butt of jokes for eighteen books!
Reviewed by Susan Santangelo, author of “Moving can be Murder” for Suspense Magazine ( )