I am reading an entire series of books written by Carole Nelson Douglas. Unfortunately, she has not finished the series, and the decreased sales of books in recent years may mean that her publishing house won't allow her to finish.
I bought the books as an almost complete set, from ebay recently, after reading some of them out of order over the last couple of years. Now I am reading them in order!
They are mysteries, with a lady named Temple Barr, who is a PR agent working in Las Vegas. Temple is dating/living with a magician named the Magnificent MAX. In the first book, a murder occurs, and MAX disappears without explanation. At about the same time, a black cat makes friends with Temple, and moves in with her by his own choice. His name is Midnight Louie.
Every book after that is based on Temple and Louie, who are confronted with a string of murders, and with Louie's help and subtle guidance, Temple gets involved in solving them. The sub-plot continues to involve Max, and a neighbor who moves in upstairs, Matt Devine, an ex-priest who is now learning the ways of life that he never experienced before becoming a priest.
Not exactly intellectual... but definately fun.