Review by Frank Plowright

Anyone who’s experienced the whimsy and charm of Jean-Luc Fromental and Joëlle Jolivet’s previous two books about detective Miss Cat will need no encouragement to pick up The Mystery of the Melting Snow. It checks every box that made The Gnome’s Nightmare so beguiling. If any convincing is needed, surely the idea of Miss Cat bringing her favourite octopus bartender on a skiing holiday will be allure enough. How will that work out? Well, let’s just say Olaf is a whiz with the cheese fondue.

While titled The Mystery of the Melting Snow, that isn’t the real story, just a passing nightmare when Miss Cat dreams the snow on the slopes has been replaced by runny cheese. The real story concerns a woman loved by two powerful men and Miss Cat’s attempt to locate her.

Silliness is a stock in trade for Miss Cat, whether that’s the visual delight of the wheelchair-bound Griselda swooping down the slopes in a chair on skis or the plot of having to reconcile two different personas to keep two powerful individuals happy. Jolivet’s simple illustrations are joyful in perpetuating the silliness, yet she’s also adept at depicting the spectacle of what’s a brief superhero battle. She’s busy with background detail when that’s necessary, always supplying something extra to look at. Meanwhile Fromental’s sly sense of humour and creativity delights in every respect. This is once again a graphic novel to have children absorbed in the visual detail, while adults reading it to them will also be captivated.