Cat Out Of Hell by Lynne Truss REVIEW

BOOK REVIEW Nine times the terror

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Cat Out Of Hell by Lynne Truss book review .

Dogs may be man’s best friend, but everyone knows that cats are evil, right? The eyes, the yowling, the obvious belief that humans are their servants? Well, maybe.

Alec Charlesworth, a grieving widower, is sent a collection of files which slowly reveal the existence of Roger, a talking, decades-old cat, and his mentor the Captain, a large black cat that’s been stalking him across the years, with any human that Roger gets close to suffering an untimely – and often quite horrible – death. As fantastic as the story sounds, Alec is taken with the well-read, well-travelled Roger (who speaks with a voice like Vincent Price), and Roger too is soon attracted to the retired librarian who thinks of Jane Eyre in times of crisis.

It’s a quite ridiculous premise, and yet it works perfectly – the novel is extremely entertaining as well as lots of fun to read, and Lynne Truss (author of Eats Shoots & Leaves ) avoids letting the story ever descend into silliness. From Roger’s creation through eight horrific deaths, to the Great Cat Master and his personal involvement with Alec, everything has a sense of joyous abandon. Truss may be best known for her rants against comma crimes, but she’s also an experienced comic fiction writer, and this is an inventive tale that’s sure to make you smile. Even if you’re a dog person.

Rhian Drinkwater twitter.com/rhian82

Read more of our book reviews .

SFX Magazine is the world's number one sci-fi, fantasy, and horror magazine published by Future PLC. Established in 1995, SFX Magazine prides itself on writing for its fans, welcoming geeks, collectors, and aficionados into its readership for over 25 years. Covering films, TV shows, books, comics, games, merch, and more, SFX Magazine is published every month. If you love it, chances are we do too and you'll find it in SFX.

Latest in Entertainment
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Fantastic Four: 1234 #2 cover excerpt
Sue Storm and Namor are officially both in Avengers: Doomsday, and fans are wondering if Reed Richards has something to worry about
fool me once
Harlan Coben’s new novel is set to be "more of a sequel" to the hit Netflix series Fool Me Once: "I don’t know any time that’s ever happened"
Tony Dalton as Jack Duquesne
Daredevil: Born Again fans are loving the MCU cameos in this week's episodes – especially the Hawkeye reunion
Robert Downey Jr. sitting in a chair at the end of a long line of chairs
Everything announced during Marvel's Avengers: Doomsday cast reveal live stream
Halloween director John Carpenter
15 years on from his last horror movie, Halloween's John Carpenter says he'd "love to direct again" – but he has one condition
Latest in Reviews
Image of the Corsair Virtuoso Max wireless headset sitting on top of a gaming PC case taken by writer Rosalie Newcombe.
Corsair Virtuoso Max Wireless review - a PC headset tour de force
Zombicide box featuring stylized art of survivors fighting zombies
Zombicide 2nd Edition review: "Like a zombie flick brought to tabletop"
Razer Handheld Dock with Steam Deck sitting on cradle, pink and yellow RGB lighting on, and Alienware monitor in background with Tomb Raider Trilogy gameplay on screen.
Razer Handheld Dock review: “Your Steam Deck will ride shiny and Chroma"
Photographs of the Agricola board game in play
Agricola review: "Accurate representation of the highly competitive and often unstable world of agriculture"
Photos taken by writer Rosalie Newcombe of the Shure MV7i microphone, within a pink and white themed room.
Shure MV7i review - convenience and excellence rolled into one superb sounding package
Key art for Atomfall showing a character in the English countryside looking at a nuclear plant some distance away
Atomfall review: "This isn't British Fallout – it's something much better than that"