For fans of A Man Called Ove and The Travelling Cat Chronicles—a story about the editor who arrives when we need one most.

Chester Finch has a list.

Nine final experiences for a man with nothing left to live for. A taste of vintage scotch. His late wife's favorite symphony. A single, perfect peach. Once complete, the reclusive, terminally ill former librarian plans to close his final chapter with dignity—on his own terms.

Louie has other plans.

A battle-scarred gray tomcat with one torn ear and a history written in scars, Louie has been watching the thin, sad man in the third-floor apartment. His assessment: this human is isolated, ailing, and in desperate need of a competent steward.

Moving in on a rainy night—through strategic yowling and a calculated display of pathos—Louie appoints himself Chester's guardian. From his pragmatic perspective, Chester's "List of Nine" is a faulty blueprint. And Louie is an expert at revision.

Through a switched note that forces an unlikely friendship. A lost wedding ring discovered beneath a radiator. The fierce protection of a stranger's child. Louie edits Chester's ending one stubborn act at a time, adding items the old man never thought to include: connection, purpose, responsibility for another life.

Until Chester picks up his pen and writes a tenth item himself.

The List of Nine (and Louie) is a dual-narrated novel about last chances, unexpected love, and the quiet heroism of staying. It will break your heart and stitch it back together—with threads of hope, and fur.

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