A cat familiar discovers her terrible past, finds her witch, and tries not to destroy the world in screenwriter Amanda Mortlock's genre-blending debut contemporary fantasy novel, Strange Bedfellows. Cleo is a human college student and a ginger cat. As Cat, she sleeps curled up with her favorite human and tenant, Wes, a musician who inevitably discovers the truth about her. They enter a passionate, messy relationship that is further complicated when witch Bailey and her dog familiar, Ollie, show up and ask to form a coven. But Wes doesn't know he's a witch, and Cleo hardly understands the runes Cat somehow knows how to use or the animals that follow her around, whispering about her worst insecurities.
Mortlock adds chapters from Ollie's perspective once the group starts trying spells together to unlock the mysteries of their shared past. This shift gives readers the chance to view Cleo's increasingly erratic behavior and her unhealthy relationship with Wes from the outside. As Cleo's secrets catch up to her and danger mounts, loyal hound Ollie is forced to decide if Cleo and their fledgling coven are worth risking the safety of the witch he loves unrequitedly.
Strange Bedfellows is an erotic take on destructive love, generational trauma, and fighting literal and figurative demons. With a satisfying but untidy ending, Mortlock leaves the door wide open for sequels. This novel is perfect for fans of the toxic romance in Layne Fargo's The Favorites, the goth vibes of Wednesday, and the supernatural camp of later seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. --Suzanne Krohn, librarian