Rating: 
Summary: Murphy, Tucker, and Pewter ride again...
Review: First off I'd give another half-star rating, as I did enjoy the book, and I must really like the series a lot, as I keep coming back for more.
I won't summarize the plot, as that is the job of the book jacket, and many of the other reviewers have done an excellent job of that already.
I do really enjoy learning about something besides forensics (although those are pretty fascinating too), during the course of a mystery...for instance, I had no IDEA that fox hunting was such a complicated sport, I thought you just got on the horse, used good manners in the field, and chased the critter. Typical nawthenah...
The beauty, grace, complexity and depth of Southern culture is presented here in Ms. Brown's Crozet series and while of COURSE it is seen as superior to that of the Northerners and Westerners, she does not rub your face in it to the point where you just dismiss Crozetians as small-town Southern Snobs.
When having animals use human speech to communicate between species, it is difficult not to fall into either omniscience or over-cuteness, and both the Brown ladies seem to negotiate this fence line fairly well. What I have trouble with are the little errors... for instance, what sex IS Harry's horse Gin Fizz? In one book, she is a mare, in another he is a gelding, and in this book, s/he is both. Now THERE is a mystery if you like....
Also, Harry, who is by her own admission emotionally inhibited, is very much out of character with her accusation "You did it!" directed at the murderer during the burial. This may be sort of rationalized by the preceeding events just sort of blowing the cork out of the bottle, but it is not in character for Harry, who usually does think things through...and THEN she goes ahead and does something risky.
All in all, this was an improvement over the last two of the series, as things are MOVING again. I am looking forward to the next one...and must admit I AM curious as to what kind of foal Boom-Boom's mare will drop.
Rating:
Summary: Maybe my last Mrs. Murphy book.
Review: I have read all of the Mrs. Murphy mystery series, but this may be my last one. Rita Mae Brown has been getting a little too preachy about her own personal philosophies and this book strongly and needlessly sermonized some of her own beliefs, which I don't agree with. I almost closed the book once or twice. I hope this trend doesn't continue, as I enjoyed her past books.
Rating:
Summary: Looks like change is gonna come
Review: I have to admit that as much as I used to the love the Mrs. Murphy myseries I was starting to lose interest. Perhaps Rita Mae Brown was too because the mystery part of the story seemed phoned in for this book and the last two that preceded it.
And then Brown did something a little different with Whisker of Evil that might restore the freshness to the series. She takes away some of the idealism from Crozet. To tell the truth the dear little town isn't that nice a place. It makes St. Mary Mead look like Disneyland. You're more likely to get killed there than any place else in fictional Virginia and being acquainted with Harry is like wearing a red shirt on a classic Star Trek episiode(you know the old joke: Kirk, Spock and Crewman Jones beam down to a newly discovered planet. Guess who gets killed in the first five minutes?).
She also takes Harry and gives her a bit of a rest. The people who really solve this case are the ones you'd least likely expect including one person whom you aren't supposed to like.
The best thing in the book is how she finally shakes Harry up and gets her out of the post office and hopefully into what may turn out to be a maure relationship with her ex. Even Miss Marple who was ancient compared to Harry got way out of town once in a while.
Brown also gives Fair something to do except stand around waiting for Harry to forgive him. Four years of martyrdom was getting to be unbearable.
There are some familiar flaws in the book. I figured who the killer was way too early. Brown doesn't even try to give you a red herring. I would have preferred to see some personal growth in the characters. None of these people ever change. Must Boom Boom always be the high class tramp? When is Harry ever going to grow up? Is there one person in this town with strong convictions about faith or love?
As for the book's strong points they're obvious. It's all about the animals. Mrs. Murphy, Tucker, Pewter and their friends are wise and charming. The beauty of Crozet's countryside and its past are almost characters in themselves. Still it's obvious that this series has gotten a little stale. Hopefully the seeds of change were sown int this book. I'll give the next one a shot.
Rating: 
Summary: Too much of a bore to be taken seriously.
Review: I won't summarize the plot since that's been done already. Anyone familiar with the series can expect the things that make it stand out: distinct setting and characters, plenty of colorful details about country life and of course all those (silently) outspoken animals offering their perspective.
It's fun and an easy, comfortable read. It's a solid entry in the series but not a stand out. I LIKED it but didn't LOVE it for several reasons:
I. The plotting was loose and too often swamped by extraneous details. Often they're rather *interesting* details but enough already. (It's the Diana Gabaldon Syndrome. Colorful details are nice--within limits.) I also guessed the criminal halfway through the book. It really was pretty obvious.
II. This may be a bit unfair, as an overflow from RMB's "foxhunting " series, but her insularity is beginning to interfere with my enjoyment of her books. Her quasi-religious fervor about the absolute superiority of 1. rural life, 2. rural life in VIRGINIA, and 3. those born, reared and preferably with deep family roots in Virginia is wearing thin. It's great to love and be proud of one's home but condescension toward the rest of the world becomes jarring after a while, especially when it's done without the slightest satirical flicker.
Not huge minuses, but there wasn't anything socko enough about the rest of the book to counteract them. All in all, pretty good. You'll like it if you're a series fan.
Rating: 
Summary: The title's the best part!
Review: I, too, read all of the Mrs. Murphy mysteries. I found this one difficult to get involved in and was probably a hundred pages into it before I did. The story was interesting, as were the facts about rabies; I also liked that there are some changes for Harry in this installment.But distractions abound. First, the novel is not well written. Brown wants her characters to speak naturally, but she also wants to provide her readers with necessary information. Consequently, she has natural dialogue, but then adds information in the form of "she mentioned," etc., interrupting the flow of that natural dialogue. Brown also tends to be somewhat repetitive with information (for instance, about Cazenovia and Elocution). I don't recall if the narrator was omniscient in her other books; in this book, the omniscience takes the form of statements like, "Tazio liked Paul"-often information unrelated to the dialogue and so general and bland as to not add to the story. "Whisker of Evil" also had more of a religious slant than the previous books. It starts with Harry finding a dying man and talking to G-d. Various characters-not just Miranda-quote scripture. And the animals, too, discuss religion. (It's pointed out that each animal believes that his or her own species is G-d.) Bottom line: read it for the plot developments on Harry, so you won't be lost when the next book comes out!
Rating:
Summary: The title's the best part!
Review: I, too, read all of the Mrs. Murphy mysteries. I found this one difficult to get involved in and was probably a hundred pages into it before I did. The story was interesting, as were the facts about rabies; I also liked that there are some changes for Harry in this installment. But distractions abound. First, the novel is not well written. Brown wants her characters to speak naturally, but she also wants to provide her readers with necessary information. Consequently, she has natural dialogue, but then adds information in the form of "she mentioned," etc., interrupting the flow of that natural dialogue. Brown also tends to be somewhat repetitive with information (for instance, about Cazenovia and Elocution). I don't recall if the narrator was omniscient in her other books; in this book, the omniscience takes the form of statements like, "Tazio liked Paul"-often information unrelated to the dialogue and so general and bland as to not add to the story. "Whisker of Evil" also had more of a religious slant than the previous books. It starts with Harry finding a dying man and talking to G-d. Various characters-not just Miranda-quote scripture. And the animals, too, discuss religion. (It's pointed out that each animal believes that his or her own species is G-d.) Bottom line: read it for the plot developments on Harry, so you won't be lost when the next book comes out!
Rating:
Summary: Dull and boring
Review: It's sad that someone who could write Ruby Fruit Jungle can also write like this. This is the second of her mysteries I've tried to read. What's with chapter three? Eight pages of boring dialogue with the "Rev".... Oh, well maybe she's giving us clues about the murders but this early in the book she lost me - again. I tried to push on and read another two chapters but life is too short and there are too many really good books to read.
Rating:
Summary: As Lightweight and Amusing as Ever
Review: No one in their right mind would suggest that Rita Mae Brown's "Mrs. Murphy" mystery series is in the same league with such earlier works as RUBYFRUIT JUNGLE, but doubtlessly Brown laughs all the way to the bank: the series has proven very popular, and in truth when it comes to ultra-light amusements one could do far worse than waste an afternoon in Brown's fictional Crozet, Virginia. Like all books in the series, WHISKER OF EVIL returns us to the host of small-town characters of which we've grown so fond. Postmistress Mary "Harry" Harristein reigns supreme over the tiny town's equally tiny post office, surrounded by an amusing assortment of friends and acquaintances--not the least of which are her two cats, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and her dog, Tucker. And when Harry stumbles over a dying man while walking along Potlicker Creek, her animals are as curious about the situation as she. Brown has never really bothered to construct a tightly designed plot for any of the Mrs. Murphy novels, and while the motive and means for murder prove particularly ingenious in this novel the story itself is loose even in comparison to previous titles in the series. Still, it's all in good fun, and longtime fans of the series will be greatly interested to note that with WHISKER OF EVIL Brown begins to alter the course of her characters' lives with a host of changes that come for both good and ill. Recommended for a rainy day! GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Rating:
Summary: As Lightweight and Amusing as Ever
Review: No one in their right mind would suggest that Rita Mae Brown's "Mrs. Murphy" mystery series is in the same league with such earlier works as RUBYFRUIT JUNGLE, but doubtlessly Brown laughs all the way to the bank: the series has proven very popular, and in truth when it comes to ultra-light amusements one could do far worse than waste an afternoon in Brown's fictional Crozet, Virginia. Like all books in the series, WHISKER OF EVIL returns us to the host of small-town characters of which we've grown so fond. Postmistress Mary "Harry" Harristein reigns supreme over the tiny town's equally tiny post office, surrounded by an amusing assortment of friends and acquaintances--not the least of which are her two cats, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and her dog, Tucker. And when Harry stumbles over a dying man while walking along Potlicker Creek, her animals are as curious about the situation as she. Brown has never really bothered to construct a tightly designed plot for any of the Mrs. Murphy novels, and while the motive and means for murder prove particularly ingenious in this novel the story itself is loose even in comparison to previous titles in the series. Still, it's all in good fun, and longtime fans of the series will be greatly interested to note that with WHISKER OF EVIL Brown begins to alter the course of her characters' lives with a host of changes that come for both good and ill. Recommended for a rainy day! GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Rating:
Summary: Animal Lovers Unite!
Review: Oh well...so Ms. Brown's books are as some would call 'light-weight'. And others would say she is anthromorphizing the creatures in these books (giving the man-like abilities they don't have...like reasoning...man doesn't do such a hot job with that ability anyway!) These books are fun reads, and no, I am not suggesting murder is 'fun'. For years, I've tried to figure out why so many people enjoy reading murder mysteries. It's kind of like why everyone seems to enjoy CSI and forensics. It's the problem-solving part of the mysteries, as well as the characterization that people enjoy. In Ms. Brown's books, those of us who have and love animals recognize that they often seem to have more abilities then we give them credit for. They certainly love to play as anyone with cats and dogs can attest to.
The plotting in this particular book was a little off this time. And the solution, even though I figured out is was the particular person involved, I certainly would not yell out that fact at a public place, with no regard as to my own or others safety. 'Harry' is a bit impulsive sometimes...a bit too impulsive. I am glad to see her making some changes in her life that have been long in coming (for the readers of these books).
Karen Sadler
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