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A review by bookishrealm
Goldie Vance: The Hocus-Pocus Hoax by Lilliam Rivera
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
What a fun middle grade mystery! I'm familiar with the Goldie Vance comics so I was so happy to work with Little Brown Young Readers and Pride Book Tours in reading and reviewing this book. All thoughts are my own.
It's been a while since I've picked up a Goldie Vance comic, but I was excited when I found out that it was becoming novelized into a middle grade mystery series. While I haven't read the first book, I was more than happy to pick up Goldie Vance: The Hocus-Pocus Hoax. These books can be read as standalone, individual mysteries; however, I would recommend reading them in order so you have a better understanding of the character relationships. They are amazing relationships that are focused on friendship. There is a sapphic relationship that has made an appearance in the last book; however, we get the opportunity to see these two characters go out on their first date and it was so cute and charming.
One of the greatest things about this book is that it is fast paced. It is a classic "who dun it" plot that grabs the attention of the reader. When a magician conference is held at the hotel Goldie Vance and some of her other friends get excited to meet magicians and learn some things from their classes. Unfortunately, during the conference objects belonging to magicians begin to go missing. Goldie takes on the case and is followed (much to her dismay) by Derek, the son of a famous magician. I enjoyed following their thought patterns of who could be responsible for taking the objects. Goldie and Derek have a very strained relationship. Goldie finds him annoying and overbearing, but it is in this annoyance that she finds great character development. She has to take Derek's life and his experiences into consideration when evaluating his behavior and it honestly makes her into a much more empathetic person. While following the mystery, I didn't have a clue who could be responsible and I was genuinely surprised when the big reveal came.
This book has such a wide cast of characters in terms of diversity. It was great picking up a middle grade novel where the main cast was filled with BIPOC characters who weren't having to deal with racism or oppression. It literally was about having fun and enjoying the mystery. There is even a mini-comic at the end up the book that follows up the story. I will say that I think that the way in which this is written makes it a little hard to gauge the target audience. I had to do a little research to find out that the publisher markets it as middle grade, but it read a little more like younger YA and I believe that Goldie is supposed to be around 15/16 in the books. I'm hoping we get a little more clarity in future books, but so far I'm enjoying them!
It's been a while since I've picked up a Goldie Vance comic, but I was excited when I found out that it was becoming novelized into a middle grade mystery series. While I haven't read the first book, I was more than happy to pick up Goldie Vance: The Hocus-Pocus Hoax. These books can be read as standalone, individual mysteries; however, I would recommend reading them in order so you have a better understanding of the character relationships. They are amazing relationships that are focused on friendship. There is a sapphic relationship that has made an appearance in the last book; however, we get the opportunity to see these two characters go out on their first date and it was so cute and charming.
One of the greatest things about this book is that it is fast paced. It is a classic "who dun it" plot that grabs the attention of the reader. When a magician conference is held at the hotel Goldie Vance and some of her other friends get excited to meet magicians and learn some things from their classes. Unfortunately, during the conference objects belonging to magicians begin to go missing. Goldie takes on the case and is followed (much to her dismay) by Derek, the son of a famous magician. I enjoyed following their thought patterns of who could be responsible for taking the objects. Goldie and Derek have a very strained relationship. Goldie finds him annoying and overbearing, but it is in this annoyance that she finds great character development. She has to take Derek's life and his experiences into consideration when evaluating his behavior and it honestly makes her into a much more empathetic person. While following the mystery, I didn't have a clue who could be responsible and I was genuinely surprised when the big reveal came.
This book has such a wide cast of characters in terms of diversity. It was great picking up a middle grade novel where the main cast was filled with BIPOC characters who weren't having to deal with racism or oppression. It literally was about having fun and enjoying the mystery. There is even a mini-comic at the end up the book that follows up the story. I will say that I think that the way in which this is written makes it a little hard to gauge the target audience. I had to do a little research to find out that the publisher markets it as middle grade, but it read a little more like younger YA and I believe that Goldie is supposed to be around 15/16 in the books. I'm hoping we get a little more clarity in future books, but so far I'm enjoying them!