mystery – Page 2 – BookBunnies

Caramel reviews Ingo by Helen Dunmore

As his last review before the book bunnies take off for the summer, Caramel chose Ingo by Helen Dunmore, originally published in 2005. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, as we are getting ready to take off for the summer, you chose to talk about a book about the ocean.

Caramel: Yes. Ingo is about the ocean, that is true. But it is also about a lot more.

S: Tell me.

C: It is about a girl named Sapphire. Her father “mysteriously vanishes into the waves off the Cornwall coast where her family has always lived.” At least that is what the back of the book says.

S: Hmm, I thought you read the book.

C: I did. I thought it would be quicker to use the book’s own summary.

S: I guess that makes sense. But so her father disappears into the waves, does that mean he goes off swimming and does not come back?

C: Yes, almost. He goes sailing and does not come back. But before he disappears, he tells Sapphire about these people of the sea called the mer.

S: Like mermaids?

C: Yes, but they are called the mer, and they hate being called mermaids. They think the humans’ way of thinking about mermaids is silly.

S: That is interesting. I think there were some wild merpeople in one of the Harry Potter books.

C: Yeah I think you are right. In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, there were merpeople too. But those were kind of vicious and almost evil. These mer are a lot less vicious and evil.

S: There were also some mer people in another book, one that you read, I think?

C: Oh yes. There were some mer people and even some selkies in The Menagerie: Krakens and Lies! Those books were cool!

Caramel is reading Ingo by Helen Dunmore. — Caramel is reading *Ingo* by Helen Dunmore.

S: So does Sapphire meet the mer?

C: Yes. She goes looking for her dad and meets some mer. Before that, her brother Conor disappears for hours and does not remember what happened, or so he claims. It turns out that he was meeting with the mer. Conor and Sapphire make friends with two mer children, Faro and Elvira, who help them when some people get into trouble.

S: So the book is about Sapphire discovering the world of the mer and maybe finding her dad?

C: Well, she does not find her dad in this book. Apparently there are four other books after this one, and maybe she will find him, but in this book, she does learn about the mer and their world. It is called Ingo.

S: Oh, that is why the book is titled Ingo!

C: Yup. Ingo is the name of the underwater world that the mer live in.

S: That is interesting Caramel. So did you enjoy this book?

C: Yes. I even want to read the next four books.

S: I see. That is a good sign.

C: Yep, I’d say so!

S: Okay, so would you recommend this book to other young bunnies?

C: Yes! It is fun to imagine other worlds under the sea!

S: Cool! Okay, maybe this is a good time to wrap up this review, which is your last one before our summer break. What would you like to tell our readers Caramel?

C: Have a great summer and stay tuned for more book bunny reviews! We will be back in August with new books!

Caramel enjoyed reading Ingo by Helen Dunmore and recommends it to all little bunnies looking for an intriguing summer read. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Ingo* by Helen Dunmore and recommends it to all little bunnies looking for an intriguing summer read.

Marshmallow reviews All Ears by Stuart Gibbs

It must be obvious to the book bunnies blog readers that the book bunnies are huge fans of Stuart Gibbs and his books. While Caramel has read and reviewed all his Spy School books, Marshmallow has mostly read and reviewed his FunJungle books. Gibbs is a prolific author, and the most recent FunJungle book, All Ears, just came out a couple weeks ago on May 13. This week, Marshmallow was finally able to read this ninth book in the series and is ready to share her thoughts with our readers today.

Before starting reading this review, you might like to check out Marshmallow’s reviews of the first eight books of FunJungle: Belly Up, Poached, Big Game, Panda-monium, Lion Down, Tyrannosaurus Wrecks, Bear Bottom, and Whale Done.

Marshmallow reviews All Ears by Stuart Gibbs. — Marshmallow reviews *All Ears* by Stuart Gibbs.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked the previous FunJungle books, like animals, reading about mysteries, or want to read a really entertaining novel, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Teddy Fitzroy has proven himself as a remarkable detective. His parents both work at FunJungle, the largest zoo in America (if not the world). During his time living next to it, he has solved several high-profile and low-profile cases regarding the zoo or related to the surrounding Texan area. Since the first book in the series, Teddy has been good friends with Summer McCracken—the daughter of billionaire J.J. McCracken who owns FunJungle—and the two recently started dating . Teddy is also good friends with Xavier Gonzalez, a fellow animal-lover and student at his high school.

Sadly, Xavier gets arrested! He normally likes to look around for reptiles he can capture and examine (ethically and caringly, of course) but is found at a crime scene under suspicious circumstances. Being an ardent advocate for the environment, him being in an area that seemingly was vandalized by “eco-warriors” makes him look pretty guilty. So Xavier’s best course of action is to call in Teddy to prove him innocent.

Unfortunately, the call comes at a very inconvenient time. Teddy has been hired to solve another crime regarding a lost elephant. In Texas (and many other places), some ranch owners have taken to raising exotic animals either with the purpose of sheltering them or creating an area in which hunters can kill unusual creatures for an extravagant price. The Sinclairs have created a sanctuary for elephants that they aptly named The Sanctuary. But during a massive power outage in Texas, their herd escapes or is led out of their ranch. This causes some mayhem on a football field later, but eventually Tanzy, the sole African elephant (the rest are Asian), is discovered to be missing. Aside from the fact that rural Texas is not the native habitat of an African elephant, Tanzy could also be under threat from whomever took her.

Teddy now faces two mysteries to solve: where is Tanzy and who took her, and who really committed the crime Xavier’s accused of? Can he find the answer before time runs out … for Tanzy and Xavier?

Marshmallow is reading All Ears by Stuart Gibbs. — Marshmallow is reading *All Ears* by Stuart Gibbs.

Marshmallow’s Review: All Ears is a really good book! I’ve been waiting for the new FunJungle book to come out and for Stuart Gibbs to continue this series! I really, really, really love this series! All of the books have fascinating, interesting, and most importantly confounding mysteries that are perfect for readers of all ages. The characters are lively, intelligent, funny, and lovable—and the lack of cursing (except possibly in Tyrannosaurus Wrecks) makes them appropriate for everyone. And this book is no exception!

I really like how the FunJungle books tackle environmental issues and address the nuance of every topic. Even though he clearly finds these issues very important and harshly critiques greedy corporations, Gibbs never portrays them as completely evil. In particular, we often learn about a CEO’s perspective through a more human lens via J.J.’s character. Gibbs also doesn’t make the activists seem like saints. He explains how many hunters are good people too and really humanizes everyone. However, he does show the facts, many of which are truly disturbing. Gibbs doesn’t omit nuance; rather, he conveys a wide range of conflicting perspectives in a way that is palatable, comprehensive, and comprehensible to a wide audience, while still sending the message that action must be taken to protect the environment. All this makes All Ears worth reading: its message and its explanation and dialogue about the environment and the battle about how we should treat it.

But you should also read this book for fun! It is really funny and entertaining; there are so many twists and turns! Once I picked up this book, I could not put it down—literally. The emotional tension is also really well done throughout, and one can really feel the realness in Teddy’s situation, in which he is caught between a rock and a hard place as he tries to solve two mysteries at the same time.

I love the FunJungle series, the characters and the plot and the writing and everything about these books! They are really special to me! But I think they can be great for many new readers too! I would recommend reading the first couple of books in the series first, but honestly, one could just start here with All Ears, too. Whatever your age or background knowledge though, this book is definitely an amazing one to read for its message, style, and content! I can’t recommend it enough!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 101%.

Marshmallow rates All Ears by Stuart Gibbs 101%. — Marshmallow rates *All Ears* by Stuart Gibbs 101%.

Caramel reviews The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum by Lisa Yee

Today Caramel reviews The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum, written by Lisa Yee. First published in 2024, The Misfits is illustrated by Dan Santat. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Caramel reviews The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum, written by Lisa Yee and illustrated by Dan Santat. — Caramel reviews *The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum*, written by Lisa Yee and illustrated by Dan Santat.

Sprinkles: Caramel, today we are talking about The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum. So tell me a bit about it.

Caramel: This book is about a group of kids that are slightly weird, but not that weird, they’re somewhere in the middle.

S: What do you mean?

C: They are scarily smart, but kind of not the smartest when it comes to social things.

S: I see. Okay, and given the title, I am thinking they feel like they do not fit in with the regular kids.

C: Yeah, they are a little different.

S: Okay, so they are a group of kids who are different. And are they now in a new school for different kids like themselves? Kind of like Harry Potter going to Hogwarts?

C: A little, Yes, so they are in this new school for other kids like themselves. And then they get into some unintentional trouble with an enemy that steals some very important gem. Then they are gathered together by some special teachers who train them as an anti-espionage and spy squad so that they can find the one who stole the gem.

S: Wow! When you first started telling me about them, I thought maybe this book was kind of like The Unteachables by Gordon Korman, which Marshmallow reviewed a while back. But then you are telling me makes me think more about another book you reviewed yourself: N.E.R.D.S. by Michale Buckley.

C: Yep. And also all the Spy School books! And you know how much I love the Spy School books!

S: Yes, yes, I do.

Caramel is reading The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum, written by Lisa Yee and illustrated by Dan Santat. — Caramel is reading *The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum*, written by Lisa Yee and illustrated by Dan Santat.

S: So all of that bodes well for this book, I am guessing.

C: Yep! If I was Marshmallow, I would rate it 99% or 100%.

S: Okay, I am so glad you enjoyed this book. But tell me, what did you think of the illustrations?

C: I liked them! They were very sketchbook-y, which I love!

S: They are drawn by Dan Santat! And you have already read and reviewed so many books by him! The Cookie Fiasco and Harold and Hog Pretend for Real! and The Aquanaut. You also reviewed Drawn Together, which was written by Minh Le and drawn by Dan Santat. That was a picture book but it was also a joint project, a collaboration between two people, like this book you are reviewing now.

C: Well, for some reason I had not noticed that! But it sure explains why I loved these drawings so much!

S: I think it does, too. Santat does have a particular style. His drawings look simple but they are very expressive.

C: Yep.

S: So maybe this is a good place to wrap up this review. Would you recommend this book to other young bunnies?

C: Yes, I definitely would. It is a lot of fun to read. But also, everyone feels like they don’t belong sometimes, and then you read this book and feel that you are not alone. A lot of other people feel alone, too. And maybe one day you,too, will find your squad.

S: True words Caramel! Okay, let us end here then. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel loved reading The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum, written by Lisa Yee and illustrated by Dan Santat and recommends it to all young bunnies, especially those who sometimes feel like they just do not fit. — Caramel loved reading *The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum*, written by Lisa Yee and illustrated by Dan Santat and recommends it to all young bunnies, especially those who sometimes feel like they just do not fit.

Marshmallow reviews Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets by Nancy Springer

Today Marshmallow reviews the third book in Nancy Springer’s Enola Holmes series: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets, first published in 2008. (You might also like to see Marshmallow’s reviews of the first two books: The Case of the Missing Marquess and The Case of the Left-Handed Lady.)

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you’re a Sherlock Holmes fan or if you like mysteries with female protagonist detectives, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Enola Holmes has been living on her own in nineteenth century London for a couple months now. Given the fact that she is fourteen years old, one might ask why. The reason for her self-inflicted solitude is the fact that, during this period, women have no autonomy in the social status quo. Enola’s mother ran away from this set-up in a previous book and left Enola the means to do the same. Enola (whose name spells “alone” backwards) examined her surroundings and the expectations she was going to be forced to fulfill (finishing school, marriage, childbirth, etc.) and followed her mother’s suit. In doing so, Enola escaped the control of her older brothers: Mycroft and Sherlock Holmes (the famous detective). But even the famous detective Sherlock Holmes cannot locate her and she (while lying low) becomes adept at disguising herself by altering her appearance through various methods. Drawn to mysteries and puzzles, she solves several cases on her own (see for example The Case of the Missing Marquess and The Case of the Left-Handed Lady) and decides to found her own business as the world’s first and only professional “perditorian” (see The Case of the Missing Marquess: “From the Latin perditus, meaning “lost.” Perditorian: one who divines that which is lost”.)

Unfortunately, because women have no autonomy, she creates the business under the name of a male doctor while she disguises herself as his “assistant” Ivy Meshle. However, if her brothers find her, she will be forced to return to them and begin training to be a perfect “ornament to genteel society.” After several close brushes of being discovered by Sherlock and / or Mycroft, Enola once again finds herself drawn to the case of a certain Dr. John Watson. The reticent Arthur Conan Doyle reader may notice that this is the same Dr. Watson who is Sherlock’s loyal companion on his cases. For the few times she met him, Enola felt a fatherly affection towards Dr. Watson, so she (after some introspection and inspection of the situation) decides to search for Dr. Watson, too.

Normal mysteries are dangerous on their own. But her brother’s close proximity to this case makes it also a gamble with the freedom and autonomy she has had so far. Will Enola be able to find the doctor before her brother finds her?

Marshmallow is reading Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets by Nancy Springer. — Marshmallow is reading *Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets* by Nancy Springer.

Marshmallow’s Review: I would really recommend reading the first couple books in this series before this one to get context. But on its own, the world-building is enough to immerse the reader entirely in this Victorian-era mystery. The author consistently writes fascinating mysteries that never fail to disappoint in intrigue and complexity; yet the reader is never left confused at the end.

These Enola Holmes books stand out among all other mysteries I’ve read so far because the setting is so wonderfully set up. People often say reading is like a passport to other worlds and times. I was pretty sure they were lying, until now. Once I started reading this book, I couldn’t put it down because I didn’t want to stop learning about the mystery and the fascinating world it is in. The descriptions of London (I am pretty sure) are all factually correct for that time and all the details create an immersive experience that I would fully recommend.

This book series is also unique because it depicts a girl who is fully independent. Enola is perhaps the only female protagonist I have ever read about who isn’t in love, interested in, dating, or married to a guy. She is truly alone (in that sense) and is perfectly fine with it. It is good for girls to see that they have the choice to be so and that it is fine to be fine with that. This book also has strong themes of feminism; Enola’s strength, competence, and wit are rebelliously scandalous for the time. She stands up to the patriarchical system and doesn’t care what it thinks of her. She games the system to use it to her advantage when she disguises herself. But she never forgets to help the less fortunate with her fortunes.

But Enola is also more distinctive among other female protagonists because, as the author explicitly makes sure to state, Enola is not traditionally beautiful. She has a large nose, no delicate, feminine features of particular value, and a body like a “beanpole.” It is Enola’s virtue, brains, and bravery that makes her such a compelling character and I, for one, am expectantly looking forward to reading the next book!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets by Nancy Springer 100%. — Marshmallow rates *Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets* by Nancy Springer 100%.