Sea of the Patchwork Cats

From the back cover:"A must-read for Mellick enthusiasts who also adore the twilight zone. It is a story that has been passed down from generation to generation. The story of conjoined twin goddesses floating peacefully in the middle of the sea. Many who have seen them, usually on calm starlit nights, swear that they are the sirens of mythology, luring sailors to their doom. Others claim that the twins are not live women, but an ancient structure carved to resemble two females sitting back to back. A few believe they mark the gateway to the lost city of Atlantis, or a gateway to the spirit realm. But on all accounts there is one consistency: if you listen closely, at the right distance, you will hear them on the wraithy wind... dozens and dozens of meowing cats. Sea of the Patchwork Cats is a dream-like tale set in the quiet ashes of the human race."This is the set-up for the story, but much of this is not covered in the text of the book, so you'll have to be familiar with the legend before you begin. This is a three act book... first everyone is gone except for one man, who watches tv and drinks until the electricity quits. Then the house he is in is floating on an ocean that brings him to a mysterious place...I enjoyed this one a lot, perhaps one of my favorites by Mellick. The chapters are very brief, and this novella is barely over 100 pages, but it is a very entertaining story well worth the price. This is a very funny book with a unique narrator who is a 67 year old drunk. The characters he encounters along the way are vintage Mellick. You have to read the book to get the full effect.

Conrad is an "old guy" in his sixties, who spends his days drinking, sleeping it off, waking up, and starting the drinking all over again. That's the extent of his life. After passing out one Tuesday at the local bar, this poor sod wakes up to find that everyone in the world has killed themselves, and he is the last man on earth. He takes residence in a random house, and once a monstrosity of a storm hits one night, he finds himself in the middle of the ocean. Along the way, he discovers that the house is sinking, there are woman frozen in huge blocks of ice, and things are randomly disappearing around him...then he comes upon Nerve Works, a large structure built to look like two conjoined female twins.A snake woman who tries to swallow him, a falcon girl who is mysteriously being beaten, a dog girl who quickly becomes Conrad's pet...and lots and lots of cats. This story is one long (or short depending on how you look at it) crazy dream. Unique, interesting, perverse...all the good things a bizarro fan wants out of a good book.There are a fair amount of typos, but that shouldn't keep anyone from reading this book. The dreamlike aspect of the storyline and the constant changing elements keep the reader thoroughly engaged. Recommended to all bizarro fans, those interested in dreams, or anyone interested in the absurd.

Sea of the Patchwork Cats by Carlton Mellick III begins with Conrad, a drunk, lonely, wretch of a man failing to commit suicide, while the rest human race kills itself off. It would appear he is cursed from the very beginning, yet instead of succumbing to failure one last time, he unknowingly embarks on a watery adventure with several frozen female stow-aways who are more than just human.When from his vessel (a mansion stocked with some food and certainly not enough liquor) he sees a strange dwelling shaped like conjoined women mysteriously located in the middle of the sea, he steers the house into the strangest drunken dream-like experience ever imagined.In the sea structure called Nerve Works Conrad starts to transform from the self-loathing drunkard, despite still being able to get loaded as the house offers whatever he desires. While having to put up with three cross-species of rather tempermental women, countless cats, and a mysterious female figure with an ominous, ghostly presence, Conrad also struggles with his new self, one who is only required to enjoy life.What begins as a story about a drunk becomes a story about a man who gets a very weird second chance at life. It certainly works also as a skewed re-creation story, and definitely a must read for fans of one of the finest authors the Bizarro family can provide. Any true lover of fiction that goes beyond all genres would devour Carlton Mellick III's Sea of the Patchwork Cats.

I don't understand the negative reviews.I'm a teacher.. and if one of my students wrote this, I'd quickly tell them to start submitting it to publishers. No doubt about that. So just ignore those reviews for the readers probably just weren't in the state of mind to really enjoy it.I won't go into the whole plot but what I will say is that it is indeed like a dream. The back of the book compares it to the twilight zone and that's true though I think this has more aspects to it. There are allusions to deviant sexuality and experimentation that I'd like to see explored later on (perhaps in a sequel?) There's even a part that reminded me of japanese "tentacle" anime though maybe that's a coincidence.Being a cat lover, I also liked the inclusion of so many cats but I guess that just makes me a dork.As a warning, I'd recommend NOT making this your first CM3 book. It's good but try some other works first.All in all, if you like surreal tales that drop you into a strange world with hints of deeper realities, pick this one up.

I love Carlton's books and I've read loads of them now. I really liked this little story and I flew threw it thinking it would definitely be getting a rating of 5 stars but I have to be honest I found the end a little flat. The last two pages felt like a bit of a let down to me which was strange as the rest was so good. The story is definitely worth a read as the ending doesn't waste it. It's just missing something.

At 11:34 everyone stopped what they were doing and committed suicide, that is except for the narrator who was passed out drunk. I wont go into details but he ends up at the conjoined twin building then things get really interesting. A very easy read that will keep you coming back.