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jdiedrichs628's review
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
panda_incognito's review
4.0
This middle grade novel is a delightful imaginative take on Agatha Christie's girlhood. Drawing on details from her autobiography and combining this with fiction, the author paints the portrait of a very shy, inquisitive future writer who takes it upon herself to solve a mystery with the recently arrived Belgian refugee, Hector Perot. This was all very cleverly done, and I will look forward to future books in the series.
maria_reads's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
the_fabric_of_words's review
5.0
Even the title of this book is delicious! It works on so many levels. I loved the cover, looking down the body between the two feet. It's an impossible angle, unless, of course, someone's dead.
The vast majority of middle grade "mysteries" don't feature dead bodies, at all. The main characters investigate all sorts of mysteries, but generally not murders, per se, so this was a wonderful departure!
And we loved the main character, Aggie, who finds the body under the piano and is totally nonplussed by it -- in fact, she takes time to note the foam at the edges of the victim's mouth and wonder about the scrap of paper still clutched in the victim's hand.
When Aggie can escape her nursemaid, Charlotte, who's flirting with the Constable, she works with a Belgium boy, Hector Perot, to follow the clues.
While waiting for a morning dance lesson, and after realizing she left her poem from the night before's public reading on the piano, Aggie slips into the room and discovers the very suddenly dead (although long-standingly unpleasant) Mrs. Eversham.
At this point, the reader's already gotten most of the clues needed to crack the case, even when it looks like everyone in the village of Torquay (of turn of the century, 1902) disliked the victim, strongly. It's just a matter of Aggy and Hector putting together the clues in the right sequence to reveal the murderer.
There are a couple of red herrings, of course, and the murderer is not who you'd expect.
Looking forward to more murderous fun from these two characters. Great for upper middle grade readers!
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
The vast majority of middle grade "mysteries" don't feature dead bodies, at all. The main characters investigate all sorts of mysteries, but generally not murders, per se, so this was a wonderful departure!
And we loved the main character, Aggie, who finds the body under the piano and is totally nonplussed by it -- in fact, she takes time to note the foam at the edges of the victim's mouth and wonder about the scrap of paper still clutched in the victim's hand.
When Aggie can escape her nursemaid, Charlotte, who's flirting with the Constable, she works with a Belgium boy, Hector Perot, to follow the clues.
While waiting for a morning dance lesson, and after realizing she left her poem from the night before's public reading on the piano, Aggie slips into the room and discovers the very suddenly dead (although long-standingly unpleasant) Mrs. Eversham.
At this point, the reader's already gotten most of the clues needed to crack the case, even when it looks like everyone in the village of Torquay (of turn of the century, 1902) disliked the victim, strongly. It's just a matter of Aggy and Hector putting together the clues in the right sequence to reveal the murderer.
There are a couple of red herrings, of course, and the murderer is not who you'd expect.
Looking forward to more murderous fun from these two characters. Great for upper middle grade readers!
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
gainsandbrains's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
gillbillian's review
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I really liked this. It’s such a great premise that it is based on Agatha Christie and her famous Poirot as children solving a murder. I enjoyed this so much and think that my nephews will really enjoy this
jenna0010's review
1.0
Welp, every year I try and read at least a couple of MYRCA books and boy was this one hard to get through. I'm not a huge fan of mysteries to begin with, or Victorian era settings, so it's not that surprising that this one just wasn't for me. I also just question how much middle grade readers would enjoy this?
jbrooxd's review
4.0
[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Fun, twisty mystery for older middle grade readers (10+). I loved the author's note at the end that showed how she tied the character of Aggie to Agatha Christie. Kid's mysteries tend to focus on crimes - theft, kidnapping, etc. - but don't often go as far as murder. This one does, although I didn't find it to be graphic in any way other than the fact that a character is killed (poison) and another is assaulted.
The setting of the story - early 1900s, England - led to some interesting moments regarding women's rights and immigrants that I thought added some nice nuances to the story and the characters. I loved the characters in this and I can't wait to read what Aggie and Hector get into next!
Fun, twisty mystery for older middle grade readers (10+). I loved the author's note at the end that showed how she tied the character of Aggie to Agatha Christie. Kid's mysteries tend to focus on crimes - theft, kidnapping, etc. - but don't often go as far as murder. This one does, although I didn't find it to be graphic in any way other than the fact that a character is killed (poison) and another is assaulted.
The setting of the story - early 1900s, England - led to some interesting moments regarding women's rights and immigrants that I thought added some nice nuances to the story and the characters. I loved the characters in this and I can't wait to read what Aggie and Hector get into next!