The Mystery at Comanche Canyon
The Misadventures of Inspector Moustachio
Wayne Madsen
Community Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-9797572-8-2 (0979757282)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9797572-8-0 (9780979757280)
Publication Date: March 2008
List Price: $23.99
Synopsis(from the publisher): Jake, Alexa, and Rex jump through their Grandpa Moustachio's magnifying glass and are transported into a wild western world of deception and intrigue. Big Daddy, the biggest cow rancher there ever was and will ever be, calls upon Jake to find his beloved, kidnapped cows, one of which has an ancient map hidden on its hide: a map that leads to an important Indian burial ground and its treasure. Lurking behind every twist and turn is the evil Baron Von Snodgrass who will stop at nothing to steal the magnifying glass and seek his revenge on Jake Moustachio.
Review: The second misadventure of Inspector Moustachio, The Mystery at Comanche Canyon
by Wayne Madsen, has Jake, his sister Alexa (aka Inspector Girl), and
their cat Rex (the critter detective) jumping back in time to the Old
West to find a missing treasure. The book is recommended for readers
aged 9 to 12.
The story begins, innocently enough, with a recipe for barbeque sauce
written generations ago. Jake discovers a tiny sketch on the back of
the paper that he believes is a map that may lead to a long lost
treasure that their great-great-great-grandfather was told about by a
stranger but never found. With the time traveling magnifying glass in
hand, the trio step back in time to solve this mystery.
The Mystery at Comanche Canyon
is for the most part a delightful fantasy filled with colorful
(literally and figuratively) characters. The story is surprisingly
complex, combining puzzles with history and, of course, the paradox of
time travel itself. At one point Jake muses, "Are events of time from
both worlds the same or different? Could it be that history on one side
of the magnifying glass is different from the other? And could people
in one world alter time and events in the other?" Rhetorical questions
to be sure in a children's book, but it is interesting that they are
considered at all.
The book is clearly written at a level for pre-teenagers yet some of
the situations in which the characters find themselves are particularly
juvenile. Granted, Alexa is only 8 years old and animals speak on the
other side of the magnifying glass, neither or which lend themselves to
serious dialog. Still, the target audience of readers might find some
of the silliness tedious. And the frequent use of capital letters,
bold-faced type, and italics (sometimes all at the same time) will
likely annoy most readers, regardless of age.
The Mystery at Comanche Canyon
concludes by returning the children (and Rex) to their home and tying
up all loose ends, including the mystery of the barbeque recipe. It's a
strong addition to the series, the first book of which, The Case of Stolen Time, was honored as a Reading is Fundamental 2007 book pick.
Special thanks to Wayne Madsen for providing an ARC of The Mystery at Comanche Canyon for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
The Case of Stolen Time
Community Press (Hardcover), August 2007
ISBN-10: 0-9790878-3-X (097908783X)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9790878-3-7 (9780979087837)
The Mystery at Comanche Canyon
Community Press (Hardcover), March 2008
ISBN-10: 0-9797572-8-2 (0979757282)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9797572-8-0 (9780979757280)
Omnimystery keywords for The Mystery at Comanche Canyon ...
Location(s) referenced: None.