This is listed for Young Readers Aged 7 – 9
The stolen jewels sounded like an interesting premise, so I picked this book up and decided to give an animal “Holmes” adaptation a try. Boy, am I glad I did!
After enduring a lack of challenging cases for a week, Sherlock Bones and Catson are itching to put their brains to work. When Inspector Bloodhound is sent to ask for their help on a Queen’s matter, Bones runs to the crime scene and begins to investigate the three clues found by the police pups. Each clue leads the case down three distinct directions involving all sorts of animals who each have secrets to hide. Are they telling the truth in their alibis on the night the jewels were taken from the Queen’s bedchamber, or is one of them lying through clenched teeth? And what exactly is the “Sewer Phantom” that chased Bones and Catson while searching for Her Majesty’s stolen property?
The characters were well-developed and the storyline moved swiftly along. Dotted throughout the mystery were interactive puzzles and/or riddles that we were both brain stimulating and unique, as no puzzle was repeated. I really enjoyed reading this adventure and liked that the original clues all ended as mystifying as before, so there was no one place where I found myself saying “That’s the robber!” According to online sources, there are four other books that continue the series, and while I’m not quite sure on the aspect of the police all being puppies in training…except for the Inspector that is…I would gladly read the next one to see if Bones faces off against Moriratty! (I was pawsitively laughing at various things in this wonderfully imaginative world.)
As for the Sherlock Holmes inspiration, I can’t vouch for how much they act alike or differ from Sir Author Conan Doyle’s creation; other than the fact that they are animals and he was a human. But they seem pretty close to what many people would consider Holmes to be like, and I would highly recommend this to anyone who has a fondness for animal stories with well-written plots and dialogue.
Where to pick up your copy? I bought mine through an indie bookshop, but you can also purchase them through any large retailer as well. If you would like to support your favorite indie bookshop, but they don't have it, just pop on over to Bookshop.org where you can buy any genre book and a portion of the sale goes to whichever bookshop you choose.
Thanks for reading my review and see ya next time!
Comments