Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Gretel and the Case of the Missing Frog Prints by P.J. Brackston

This one was another library rental. I grabbed it up because it's a mystery related to the Brothers Grimm stories. This one is the first one in a series by the author P.J. Brackston.

In the book Gretel is grown up and she is a private detective who lives with her brother Hans. The characters themselves are quite interesting and different then I would have imagined. I think that's part of the fun. We all have ideas about the old fairy tales. Along the way they meet another character or two from the old stories which I thought was pretty neat too. 

The story took a couple totally different turns that I wasn't expecting but I did enjoy them. Gretel was one of those characters that you may not love, but you become invested in what happens to her and it makes you keep reading. I really loved a lot of the different elements of the story and I was hooked to reading it till I finished it. I do think I will keep my eyes out for any more by this author. 

As far as mysteries go, it wasn't one of the greatest I've read, but the overall story and the characters made it a good read. 

Recommendation: For those who enjoy a good story, especially fans of the Brother Grimm stories. 

Monday, December 7, 2015

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie by Rita Mae Brown

I came across this one at the library and I snatched it up because I was familiar with the author. Years ago, when I first got into mysteries, I came across Rita Mae Brown's Sneaky Pie Brown series which involved cats. I loved them, and quickly read as many as I could get my hands on. I had no idea that she had other series, so when I saw this one, I had to read it.

This book is the ninth book in her Sister Jane series. These books are all about fox hunting and feature different animals like foxes, horses, and hunting dogs. The awesome part of the books by Rita Mae Brown is that she not only writes in the point of view of people, but from the point of view of the animals in the story. I love it. I think she does a great job and it all works together seamlessly.

I will say that the detail and background of fox hunting is very interesting but you should be open and ready to learn things. You will come away with more knowledge about fox hunting when you finish it  but do not worry though, they do not actually hunt foxes to kill them, its more about the thrill of the hunt and the sport of the thing. 

Rita Mae Brown writes a heavily detailed story, but I did not find it hard to read. She does provide a cast of characters and a list of terms at the begining to make sure you don't have any troubles while reading. I didn't find it dry with all the information, the details were nestled right into the story so it didn't feel like a text book.

Recommendation: This is definitely one for the mystery lovers out there. Be prepared to read about fox hunting and you will enjoy this one as much as I did.