Hardly surprising, then, that I downloaded "The Mystery of Smugglers Cove" by Paul Moxham when I found it as a free ebook at Amazon's kindle shop. Every now and then, I enjoy reading books meant for children or young people, and I did enjoy this one.
Although set in Britain in the 1950s, the books were all written and published relatively recently. "Smugglers Cove" is the first book in the "Mystery" series, and it was published in 2014.
The series has siblings Joe, Sarah and Amy at their core. Together, they get into all sorts of trouble, but of course always come out victorious - the Bad Guys are caught, the Good Guys win. Isn't that how we all would want the world to be like?
In "Smugglers Cove", the three children arrive at the village of Smugglers Cove to spend the summer holidays there. As the story is set in the 1950s, there are no computers or mobile phones, and the term "helicopter parents" does not yet exist - the kids are pretty much free to do whatever they want all day, provided they are home in time for their tea.
But instead of picnics on the beach and bike rides in the countryside, the siblings get involved in an adventure that finds them exploring an abandoned manor house, tunnels and coves used by smugglers in the past, chased and captured, locked up on a boat and riding out a storm at sea while solving the case of a counterfeiting gang step by step.
As is typical for such stories, adults do play a role, but it really is the children who do all the hard work and solve all the clues. It was fun to read, fast-paced, with very few typos - not enough to spoil the fun.
Paul Moxham is Australian, hailing from Melbourne. His website is here.
I sometimes enjoy books meant for children, too. This sounds good, and vaguely familiar. Maybe I've seen it at the bookstore.
ReplyDeleteGood to know I am not the only one who reads outside their own age group :-)
DeleteI also enjoy reading books meant for children. In fact, I have been on a discussion list which talks about the wonderful books of Maud Hart Lovelace which were based on her life (she was born in 1892). This mystery is free on amazon.com and it's now on my kindle. I better get reading.
ReplyDeleteIt was free on amazon when I found it, too. That's two downloads in as many days based on my reviews, Kristi - I am honoured but also a little worried that maybe you like these books less than I did.
DeleteYes, I do remember reading mystery books like this. If I were not so worn out, I might even be able to remember the titles! Wow, I really did read a lot as a kid!
ReplyDeleteSo did I, Kay! And something that always impressed me in such books and TV series was how the investigating children always seemed to have functioning torches/flash lights with them! I never was that organized as a kid :-D
DeleteI have such happy memories of reading Famous Five novels as a child, one after the over. I devoured them, and it's been lovely to see my children enjoy those same books now. I think both they and I would enjoy Smuggler's Cove. x
ReplyDeleteI think you would, too, Gillian!
DeleteAs the author of this children's book, I want to thank Meike for reading and reviewing my book on this blog and on Amazon. Smugglers Cove, as well as a short story, has been free for more than a year now to entice people to read the book (and maybe continue the series), which seems to have worked in this case, so thanks!
ReplyDeleteHello Paul, thank you for having taken the time to read my review and leave a comment! It is a special honour, I feel, when an author adds something to what I have written about his or her work.
DeleteSounds very similar to the famous Five! I too was entranced by them and many of my games revolved around something similar. It can be nice to read "tribute books" like Paul Moxham's, although Enid Blyton had something very special, I think. So many of her attitudes didn't appeal to me, but it is remarkable how even today children are drawn to her books ... even old copies which haven't had the outdated assumptions and old fashioned language removed. It might sound odd to say this, but I kind of think they are true art, in the sense that they are a real expression of herself. She used to say that writing them was just like watching a movie in her head and she simply wrote down what she saw!
ReplyDeleteIt does not sound all that odd to me that you find Enid Blyton's books true art. If we want to, we can catch many glimpses of the times they were written in through those books. I don't think they should be altered, by the way; if we want politically correct books for the children of today, there are plenty of those about.
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