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The Lost Eye of the Serpent
It may sound crazy, but Jonathan Delacroix is certain his sister Rose really is Sherlock Holmes...
Girls are not detectives. But in the summer of 1893, in the small western town of Hope Springs, Rose Delacroix is bound and determined to prove them wrong. When the famous Emerald Serpent Jewels are stolen from the Delacroix family hotel and the blame lands solely on her older brother Bill, Rose recruits Jonathan as her Watson-like counterpart to solve the case.
Proving your brother innocent is difficult when the evidence keeps stacking up against him...
Before Rose and Jonathan can properly start their investigation, another robbery is committed. The rusty revolver purported to have once belonged to Wild Bill Hickock has been stolen from the general store and found hidden amongst her brother's belongings. With Bill in jail, and the owner of the Serpent Jewels planning to sue the Delacroix hotel, Rose knows she has to find a lead, and soon.
Girls are not detectives. But in the summer of 1893, in the small western town of Hope Springs, Rose Delacroix is bound and determined to prove them wrong. When the famous Emerald Serpent Jewels are stolen from the Delacroix family hotel and the blame lands solely on her older brother Bill, Rose recruits Jonathan as her Watson-like counterpart to solve the case.
Proving your brother innocent is difficult when the evidence keeps stacking up against him...
Before Rose and Jonathan can properly start their investigation, another robbery is committed. The rusty revolver purported to have once belonged to Wild Bill Hickock has been stolen from the general store and found hidden amongst her brother's belongings. With Bill in jail, and the owner of the Serpent Jewels planning to sue the Delacroix hotel, Rose knows she has to find a lead, and soon.
244 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 9, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 24, 2016
This is a fun historical mystery about twins coming into adulthood and facing troubled times.
The adventure is a good read, the characters interesting and I especially liked that we learned about the limitations placed on women at that time in history and the lack of educational opportunities beyond sixth grade.
Rose is different from other girls in her area. She has bigger dreams for her future.
Life living in a hotel on a main street is much more exciting than living on a farm.
I liked the tension build up to meeting the undertaker and how different it was than Jonathan expected. I like how the "kids" approached solving the mystery as well as, or perhaps more intelligently, than the adults.
I would recommend this book to young readers age ten and above but older readers will also enjoy it.
I accepted a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
The adventure is a good read, the characters interesting and I especially liked that we learned about the limitations placed on women at that time in history and the lack of educational opportunities beyond sixth grade.
Rose is different from other girls in her area. She has bigger dreams for her future.
Life living in a hotel on a main street is much more exciting than living on a farm.
I liked the tension build up to meeting the undertaker and how different it was than Jonathan expected. I like how the "kids" approached solving the mystery as well as, or perhaps more intelligently, than the adults.
I would recommend this book to young readers age ten and above but older readers will also enjoy it.
I accepted a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
October 20, 2016
I was sent an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I really love the characters in this book for a few reasons. One being that I thought Rose was a very independent young lady that didn't want the white picket fence life for herself and instead wanted to be a great detective like Sherlock Holmes. With the help of her twin brother Jon, they were able to live that dream for a bit as the story played out. I liked Jon because he was a bit quieter but was nonetheless determined to clear his brother's name and find the real criminal. They were both such smart kids and very clever, not to mention risk taking and resourceful in their investigation for the truth.
I thought the pacing was nice and the writing was great. The town the characters live in is a very old town and a small one at that. It was the type of town where news gets around before you even finish forming a thought about it. It was interesting to get some history on the town even though I felt like there wasn't quite enough for me personally. It isn't a fast-paced mystery novel but I thought it was fast enough to keep the story moving without dragging too much or feeling a bit boring.
Overall, I just enjoyed this book and I liked where it was heading. I think it's a fun story about two kids conducting their own investigation and searching for the real criminal and piecing together why their brother was the target and who would want to hurt the family. The book reminded me a bit of Theodore Boone which is one of my favorite series so I think anyone who loves a mystery would really enjoy this book.
The reason why I didn't give this book a five-star rating is because while I really liked the story, I just felt like there wasn't enough of a surprise element and it wasn't as suspenseful as I personally like. It didn't have me on the edge of my seat and while the story was nicely written, I didn't find myself overly surprised as the ''plot thickened" as they say when new evidence was discovered to strengthen the case against Rose and Jon's brother being the criminal the town believes he is. It's a nice story, has a lot of potential and I think it's a promising start to the series.
Full review on http://thebookwormcentral.blogspot.co...
I really love the characters in this book for a few reasons. One being that I thought Rose was a very independent young lady that didn't want the white picket fence life for herself and instead wanted to be a great detective like Sherlock Holmes. With the help of her twin brother Jon, they were able to live that dream for a bit as the story played out. I liked Jon because he was a bit quieter but was nonetheless determined to clear his brother's name and find the real criminal. They were both such smart kids and very clever, not to mention risk taking and resourceful in their investigation for the truth.
I thought the pacing was nice and the writing was great. The town the characters live in is a very old town and a small one at that. It was the type of town where news gets around before you even finish forming a thought about it. It was interesting to get some history on the town even though I felt like there wasn't quite enough for me personally. It isn't a fast-paced mystery novel but I thought it was fast enough to keep the story moving without dragging too much or feeling a bit boring.
Overall, I just enjoyed this book and I liked where it was heading. I think it's a fun story about two kids conducting their own investigation and searching for the real criminal and piecing together why their brother was the target and who would want to hurt the family. The book reminded me a bit of Theodore Boone which is one of my favorite series so I think anyone who loves a mystery would really enjoy this book.
The reason why I didn't give this book a five-star rating is because while I really liked the story, I just felt like there wasn't enough of a surprise element and it wasn't as suspenseful as I personally like. It didn't have me on the edge of my seat and while the story was nicely written, I didn't find myself overly surprised as the ''plot thickened" as they say when new evidence was discovered to strengthen the case against Rose and Jon's brother being the criminal the town believes he is. It's a nice story, has a lot of potential and I think it's a promising start to the series.
Full review on http://thebookwormcentral.blogspot.co...
October 25, 2016
Prima di tutto, un enorme grazie e un applauso a Sara di Ya Bound Book Tours che si è prodigata per aiutarmi col file pdf del libro che proprio non riuscivo a leggere.
Poi, la copertina è fighissima no?
Ma c'azzecca poco con la trama, ahimè.
Qui abbiamo due gemelli, Jonathan e Rose Delacroix, quindicenni figli dei due proprietari dell'albergo Delacroix, situato a Hope Springs, che se ho capito bene è nel Far West Americano.
Sono appassionati delle storie di Sherlock Holmes, e si fanno comprare i libri non appena escono. Sì, praticamente sono fangirl.
Ma un malaugurato giorno, un preziosissimo gioiello di un loro cliente, e che l'albergo custodiva nella sua cassaforte sparisce, e ad essere incolpato del furto è il loro fratello maggiore addetto alla reception, Bill.
Da qui inizia la storia vera e propria, perchè Rose decide di investigare sulla faccenda alla maniera di Holmes.
Chiaramente, come ogni Ya che si rispetti, lei è diversa dalle altre ragazze della città, mentre invece il narratore, Jonathan, sembra messo lì solo per lavorare in hotel e per narrare le vicende. Un Watson un po' più declassato.
Rose sembra poter fare qualsiasi cosa vuole, legge tantissimo, non vuole sposarsi, non deve aiutare i genitori in albergo, ecc... e la maggior parte della narrazione è occupata dagli "interrogatori" che i due fanno ai vari sospettati.
A volte non ho affatto compreso gli atteggiamenti dei genitori, troppo permissivi su molti aspetti o troppo protettivi su altri.
Interessante l'ambientazione e il periodo storico, molti i personaggi di contorno di cui, almeno per me, solo uno si fa ricordare su tutti: il becchino.
Stereotipato come sempre, è un personaggio divertente, vero e sincero.
Mi è piaciuto moltissimo.
Il giallo in sè invece è piuttosto banale, più che YA io lo classificherei middle grade, cioè per lettori più giovani.
Poi, la copertina è fighissima no?
Ma c'azzecca poco con la trama, ahimè.
Qui abbiamo due gemelli, Jonathan e Rose Delacroix, quindicenni figli dei due proprietari dell'albergo Delacroix, situato a Hope Springs, che se ho capito bene è nel Far West Americano.
Sono appassionati delle storie di Sherlock Holmes, e si fanno comprare i libri non appena escono. Sì, praticamente sono fangirl.
Ma un malaugurato giorno, un preziosissimo gioiello di un loro cliente, e che l'albergo custodiva nella sua cassaforte sparisce, e ad essere incolpato del furto è il loro fratello maggiore addetto alla reception, Bill.
Da qui inizia la storia vera e propria, perchè Rose decide di investigare sulla faccenda alla maniera di Holmes.
Chiaramente, come ogni Ya che si rispetti, lei è diversa dalle altre ragazze della città, mentre invece il narratore, Jonathan, sembra messo lì solo per lavorare in hotel e per narrare le vicende. Un Watson un po' più declassato.
Rose sembra poter fare qualsiasi cosa vuole, legge tantissimo, non vuole sposarsi, non deve aiutare i genitori in albergo, ecc... e la maggior parte della narrazione è occupata dagli "interrogatori" che i due fanno ai vari sospettati.
A volte non ho affatto compreso gli atteggiamenti dei genitori, troppo permissivi su molti aspetti o troppo protettivi su altri.
Interessante l'ambientazione e il periodo storico, molti i personaggi di contorno di cui, almeno per me, solo uno si fa ricordare su tutti: il becchino.
Stereotipato come sempre, è un personaggio divertente, vero e sincero.
Mi è piaciuto moltissimo.
Il giallo in sè invece è piuttosto banale, più che YA io lo classificherei middle grade, cioè per lettori più giovani.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews