Customer Reviews

The Case of the Autumn Rose (The Davis Detective Mysteries, Book 1)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I took that quote from a review on the back of the book, but I have to agree that this book is as engaging and well-written as the Harry Potter books. It has vivid imagery and an excellent moral lesson on the importance of family values and the dangers of loving material possessions. This book also won the gold medallion award from Kregel Publishing, which is a tribute to this newly published author. Mr. Acker has a knack for mystery-writing and his style is refreshingly unpredictable. The book is set in part on a horse farm, and there are some fast-paced suspenseful chase scenes set in Door County, Wisconsin. The brother/sister detective team of Arthur and Kirstin allow the book to be gender neutral. I had a hard time putting this book down, and the last time I felt that way was while reading the Harry Potter series. I give this book an A+. (P.S. I heard that there is a sequel in the works, and that one is just as good.)

I got this for my next door neighbor's son (12), but decided to read it myself first. I really, really enjoyed it. In fact I got so "into" it that I failed to get several things done that I was supposed to work on that day. It is well written, full of action, and really keeps you guessing.

Like the previous reviewer, I LOVED Harry Potter, and I liked this book as well. It was a quick, entertaining story that kept me guessing until the end. While this book is geared toward young adults, I think adults could enjoy it too.

It's great and it make want to pick up the book and read all the time. I don't love all books but this is awesome!

I had heard that this book showed good morals so I bought it for my kids, mostly the ones in 4-6th grades. It came with a 'guarantee that you will like it' sticker and was highly recommended elsewhere. I was curious so I read it myself. I have read very few mysteries as I don't really like them but this one turned out to be great. I would recommend it to anyone.

Brother and sister Arthur and Kristin Davis are partners in their private enterprise called the Davis Detective Agency. In The Case of the Autumn Rose, the third in the series written by Rick Acker, the two once again use their skills of observation, deduction and research to solve a mystery.

This one involves a wealthy, rather over-bearing woman named Madame Dragonfly, a Frenchman named Pierre LeGrand and a pearl called the Autumn Rose. Madame Dragonfly hires Arthur and Kristin to figure out where the pearl is and how to get to it without being killed in the process.

That is no easy task considering a number of unscrupulous thugs are out to find the Autumn Rose before the kids do and the thugs will do whatever is necessary to meet their objective, including murder.

What I Like: I liked the story. For the most part it was very well-written.

What I Dislike: However, the last part of the story wasn't of the same literary quality as the rest of it was. For one thing, there is a major water chase and shoot-out near the end of the book. Three boats are destroyed in the process. With all the smoke, flames, and bullets, the only injury reported is a broken foot. That stretches the limits of credibility somewhat.

And, the next-top-the-last chapter sums up what happened after all the boats blew up and the crisis is over. I found this chapter rather dull as it had no dialogue or personal interaction. It was more like a laundry-list of events. Thankfully, the last chapter was more interesting.

Overall Rating: Good.

Christine M. Irvin - Christian Children's Book Review