In this post I am going to share another book review. This time I am reviewing Mystery and Mayhem, which I just finished today. This story consists of twelve short stories, by authors including Robin Stevens, Katherine Woodfine, Susie Day and Helen Moss. Some of them involve poison, robbery and murder, so there's something for everyone. There's even dognapping!
The first stories are locked room mysteries which seem impossible. And they certainly do. I couldn't work them out, but the detectives in the stories are more capable. I challenge you to work them out (if you get the book)!
The first story is by Susie Day, and is about a budding detective called Emily. She must solve a crime in a locked room, but it seems to have too many clues. Can she solve it fast enough so that the right person is arrested (or it might not be a person)? The second locked room mystery is by Elen Caldecott, and is about carnival. When Bernice, the best costume maker in town's costume is ruined mysteriously, Minnie, Flora and Sylvie must solve the case before Bernice is kicked out of carnival. The third and final locked room mystery is by Clementine Beauvais. It is about an unwelcome guest that arrives at a family gathering, and then gets murdered in a locked room.
The next section is mysteries about dogs. The first one is by Caroline Lawrence, and is about Darcy, who seeks a reward for finding a dog called Shane. It was one of their neighbours that let the dog out, but who? The second one is by Julia Golding. This one is a bit different, since it involves monster detectives. They are suggested by Sherlock to investigate the Hound of the Baskervilles, which was thought to have come back to life. Finally, the third one is about a dog that has mysteriously gone missing, and is by Kate Pankhurst. Sid and Fliss must find the dog before Sid's mum goes out of business, sued by the dog owner. Can they solve it in time?
The third section is poison mysteries. The first one is by Frances Hardinge, and is about an artist's apprentice. But when the artist falls out of a hot air balloon, the apprentice's best friend is blamed and arrested. But how can the apprentice prove that it wasn't her? The second story is by Helen Moss. This story is about a pineapple. Yes, I said a pineapple. When a record pineapple is sabotaged, the gardener is the one blamed. But the master's servant, Quality Fruit (named by the words on the side of a fruit crate) is not convinced. Quality Fruit must prove that it was someone else. The final story in the poison section is a murder story. It is by Harriet Whitehorn, and I really enjoyed reading this one. When a hairdresser is murdered, Angelica, his apprentice, must find out who did it, without being blamed herself. She helps Nathaniel White, who is a detective.
The last stories are closed-system. The first story is by Sally Nicholls, and is about a group of boys who must prove that the wrong man has been arrested. Personally, I did not like the way it was written (non-standard English), but I did like the plot. The second one is by Katherine Woodfine, and includes characters that I recognise, just from a different point of view. The main character is Lil, who is a chorus girl at a theatre. When some priceless pearls are stolen, she must prove who really did it, and why. Last but not least, it's Robin Stevens, with a murder story, not about Daisy and Hazel, but about a hotel. When a mysterious guest arrives, then disappears without a trace, James Khan must prove that she did exist, and that she is still in the hotel somewhere.
Overall, I recommend this book to ages 10-15, and I rate it ⭐⭐⭐⭐.
Thank you for reading this very long post, and I will see you soon on my blog! 😀
The first stories are locked room mysteries which seem impossible. And they certainly do. I couldn't work them out, but the detectives in the stories are more capable. I challenge you to work them out (if you get the book)!
The first story is by Susie Day, and is about a budding detective called Emily. She must solve a crime in a locked room, but it seems to have too many clues. Can she solve it fast enough so that the right person is arrested (or it might not be a person)? The second locked room mystery is by Elen Caldecott, and is about carnival. When Bernice, the best costume maker in town's costume is ruined mysteriously, Minnie, Flora and Sylvie must solve the case before Bernice is kicked out of carnival. The third and final locked room mystery is by Clementine Beauvais. It is about an unwelcome guest that arrives at a family gathering, and then gets murdered in a locked room.
The next section is mysteries about dogs. The first one is by Caroline Lawrence, and is about Darcy, who seeks a reward for finding a dog called Shane. It was one of their neighbours that let the dog out, but who? The second one is by Julia Golding. This one is a bit different, since it involves monster detectives. They are suggested by Sherlock to investigate the Hound of the Baskervilles, which was thought to have come back to life. Finally, the third one is about a dog that has mysteriously gone missing, and is by Kate Pankhurst. Sid and Fliss must find the dog before Sid's mum goes out of business, sued by the dog owner. Can they solve it in time?
The third section is poison mysteries. The first one is by Frances Hardinge, and is about an artist's apprentice. But when the artist falls out of a hot air balloon, the apprentice's best friend is blamed and arrested. But how can the apprentice prove that it wasn't her? The second story is by Helen Moss. This story is about a pineapple. Yes, I said a pineapple. When a record pineapple is sabotaged, the gardener is the one blamed. But the master's servant, Quality Fruit (named by the words on the side of a fruit crate) is not convinced. Quality Fruit must prove that it was someone else. The final story in the poison section is a murder story. It is by Harriet Whitehorn, and I really enjoyed reading this one. When a hairdresser is murdered, Angelica, his apprentice, must find out who did it, without being blamed herself. She helps Nathaniel White, who is a detective.
The last stories are closed-system. The first story is by Sally Nicholls, and is about a group of boys who must prove that the wrong man has been arrested. Personally, I did not like the way it was written (non-standard English), but I did like the plot. The second one is by Katherine Woodfine, and includes characters that I recognise, just from a different point of view. The main character is Lil, who is a chorus girl at a theatre. When some priceless pearls are stolen, she must prove who really did it, and why. Last but not least, it's Robin Stevens, with a murder story, not about Daisy and Hazel, but about a hotel. When a mysterious guest arrives, then disappears without a trace, James Khan must prove that she did exist, and that she is still in the hotel somewhere.
Overall, I recommend this book to ages 10-15, and I rate it ⭐⭐⭐⭐.
Thank you for reading this very long post, and I will see you soon on my blog! 😀
Mystery and Mayhem
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