Review: The Ghost and Max Monroe, Case #3 The Dirty Trick by L.M. Falcone

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Max is thrilled when his favorite writer, Rhonda Remington, calls up the detective agency. But Rhonda is less than thrilled: someone has warned her to beware on the night of a big storytelling competition. Max is on the case, but his unusual partner -- the ghost of his great-uncle Larry -- is his usual bumbling self. Will they solve the mystery or lose the plot? It's the spookiest case yet in the Ghost and Max Monroe series!

MY TAKE:
I remember reading and liking Case #1 of this series, and this one was enjoyable for me too.

In The Ghost and Max Monroe, Case #3 The Dirty Trick, Max and his great-uncle are approached by a famous mystery writer after she receives a warning. Now Max and Uncle Larry must race against time to find out who exactly is trying to pull a nasty trick on Miss Remington.

The pacing of this book is quite quick and as with the first book, the suspects are all identified by Max upfront but all of them seem like plausible suspects so it's a little hard to say for sure who actually did it, especially since there are plenty of elements at play here.

One thing I did notice was that the ending was quite happy and positive, which is good since this is a middle grade book, but I did wonder if it's something that actually could play out that way in real life since it sounds like a serious stunt to pull.

As for the characters, I liked Max a lot. He's a sweet kid. I also liked his client Rhonda Remington. She seems like a nice lady, and it's easy to empathize with her dilemma. I particularly felt bad for her and angry at the trickster when the prank played out. The only character that I didn't really like that much was Uncle Larry. He's a bumbling detective-type, which is great for laughs, but there were times when it irritated and frustrated me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for the e-ARC.

THE GOOD:

1. It's a fun mystery to try and solve.
2. The characters are mostly likable.
3. The illustrations make the story come alive even more.

THE BAD:

1. The punishment for the trickster is a little tamer than what I expected. 

READ IT IF:

1. Your child likes mysteries.
2. You like stories with bumbling detectives.
3. Your child wants to be a detective someday. 

RATING:


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