7 Jul 2015

KITTY HAWK FLYING DETECTIVE AGENCY SERIES #5: KITTY HAWK AND THE MYSTERY OF THE MASTERPIECES.


KITTY HAWK AND THE MYSTERY OF THE MASTERPIECES by IAIN READING.

BACK COVER BLURB: After meeting up with an old friend in the eternal city of Rome, Kitty Hawk unexpectedly stumbles (almost literally) into a bizarre mystery involving creepy disembodied voices, secret hidden rooms, unbreakable mathematical codes, ominous chain-smoking strangers and an array of plundered artworks by such famous masters as Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro and Vincent van Gogh - all of it wrapped up and entwined in an enigmatic riddle hanging in plain sight right in front of everyone's noses.

With the help of friends both old and new, Kitty Hawk follows a trail of cryptic clues that lead her on a breathless tour across a quintessentially European landscape - from ancient Roman Italy to the darkest corners of Germany, Austria and beyond.

FIRST SENTENCE {Prologue: There Has To Be A Rationale Explanation}: It was the creepiest thing I've ever heard in my entire life.

MEMORABLE MOMENT {Page 38}: Charlie breathed a sigh of relief. The room was so small that we could easily see that there was no one else lurking inside, waiting to spring out at us. But it was also immediately apparent that something in that room was the source of the strange hissing sound that we'd heard earlier. As the door swung open, the previously muffled sound suddenly became clear as day and for the first time I was able to recognise what it was.

SOURCE: Received with thanks from Kelsey McBride, Book Publicity Services.

MY THOUGHTS: First off, not that we should judge a book by its cover but ... what a great cover it is. Wonderfully mysterious, its my favourite yet.

Just as I thought that I'd got the mark of author Iain Reading he gives us this, book five in the series. A series in which the books though they work well as standalone reads I recommend be read in order and not just because they are a great read.

Slightly different from the previous books in that (and I hope I'm giving too much away here) Kitty is not flying solo (so to speak) but is aided not just by the local friends she meets but also by a 'blast from her past'.

A tad slower as far as action scenes go - not that that The Mystery Of The Masterpieces is short on these, its more that with all of its mathematical codes I thought this a slightly more cerebral read. And then of course there is the cultural/historical aspect to the story. As I've come to expect from this author these were extremely well done, the visits to the home of the Nuremberg Rallies and Dachau poignant.

Yet another thrilling instalment with a heroine I've loved seeing evolve. I can barely contain myself waiting for book six.



13 comments:

brandileigh2003 said...

Great to hear about a character that grew and was fun to read about

Alexia561 said...

Glad to hear that you're enjoying this series!

Kelly said...

Glad to hear you really liked this one. Even before I got to your part of the review, I was thinking it sounded like the best one yet. I like the cover, too!

Literary Feline said...

It's always nice to find a series continues to hold up well after so many books. :-)

Shooting Stars Mag said...

That's great you're still loving these books and Kitty as a character! Sounds great.

Aunt Mary said...

That sounds great,a perfect review Tracy,thank you so much :)

Brian Joseph said...

This series sounds like a lot of fun.

I would imagine that by book number five the fact that the author altered some of the plot elements might be a nice change of pace.

Melliane said...

It's great to see t's still that good, and you're right lol always difficult not to judge by a cover.

Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer said...

It's nice see that the series is still engaging. I agree the cover is lovely. Thanks for letting us know it is preferable to read in order.

Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer said...

It's nice see that the series is still engaging. I agree the cover is lovely. Thanks for letting us know it is preferable to read in order.

Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer said...

It's nice see that the series is still engaging. I agree the cover is lovely. Thanks for letting us know it is preferable to read in order.

Gina said...

Agreed on the cover and definitely glad this addition lived up to the others thus far. Sounds like a wonderful series.

The Bookworm said...

This sounds like a fun series for teens especially. Refreshing to see.