Book Review: The Crypto-Capers in “The Case of the Missing Sock”

Mystery books are some of my favorites to read – I enjoy trying to figure out ‘whodunit’ and seeing if I’m right, and then going back afterward to re-read and find any clues that I may have missed the first time around. But whether or not I successfully guess the identity of the culprit, I love the process the characters in the books go through to determine who the ‘bad guy’ is. There are all kinds of mystery books, and when it comes to ones aimed at kids or young adults, it’s refreshing to find ones that don’t involve murder, blood or gore of any sort. Just a puzzle or a case to solve, as is the case in the Crypto-Capers series of young adult mystery books by Renee Hand.

What they are:

The Crypto-Capers are a crime-solving team that includes siblings Max and Mia Holmes, their Granny Holmes, and their good friend Morris. In the first book, “The Case of the Missing Sock”, the group is called upon to solve the theft of an antique sock and pair of Prada sunglasses which have disappeared from the home of a wealthy breakfast cereal maker. During the process of solving the crime, they need to figure out several cryptograms left by the culprit and this is where the reader really gets drawn into the book. In order to follow along, readers are required to solve the same cryptograms, with the help of a key given within the book (an answer key is also provided at the back of the book). Here’s a synopsis:

In this story siblings Max and Mia Holmes, along with their good friend Morris and their flamboyant Granny Holmes, are known as The Crypto-Capers. They are a group of detectives who unravel crimes by solving cryptograms that criminals leave behind. Mia is an expert puzzle solver. Max is great at deduction and reasoning. Morris is a computer genius, and Granny . . . well, Granny is the muscle of the group. Don’t let her size or age fool you she is quite handy. The Stolen Items: An antique sock (just one) and Prada sunglasses. The Assignment: The Case of the Missing Sock leads the Crypto-Capers to Florida, where they are hired by a Mr. Delacomb. The mystery leads the team to different locations. Clues flourish throughout the mystery. Suspects by the handful seem to pop up at every turn, but who committed the crime? Help the detectives solve the case by solving the cryptograms and puzzles. Good luck!

The Crypto-Capers: The Case of the Missing Sock was published by North Star Press of St. Cloud, Inc. in October of 2008 and is aimed at kids from ages 9 to 12. The book is 128 pages long. Courtesy of Renee Hand and Pump Up Your Book Promotion, I received a copy of this book to read and review.

Here’s my take on it:

I do really enjoy reading kids books and young adult fiction. And this book was just plain fun to read. I love how there’s a subtle Sherlock Holmes kind of theme running throughout – especially with the last name of the Crypto-Capers family being Holmes, they live on Baker Street in London, etc. It’s also refreshing to see a positive sibling relationship portrayed – the team members work very well together, with each contributing to the whole depending on his or her particular skills and strengths. And the cryptograms are just plain fun and a terrific way to get the reader involved in helping to solve the crime as well.

I would definitely put this book at a 3rd grade plus level – I don’t think my 8-year-old’s quite ready for it yet, although she’s close. I know she’s going to love the puzzles to solve and can’t wait to share this book with her. It’s certainly a book that’s appropriate for her and I have no concerns about her reading anything within the book. About the only complaint I can think of is having to keep flipping back and forth to solve the cryptograms since the key to solving it only appears on one page. I’m not sure what the solution would be though, other than reprinting the key every time a new cryptogram appears and that seems kind of like a waste. The only other issue I had with this book is that although I could follow the reasoning throughout most of the book, at the very end everything seems to come together quite quickly and leaves the reader behind a bit. But I did truly enjoy the mystery and the quirkiness of the characters and storyline. And I’m definitely looking forward to reading the second book, which was just published in March – The Crypto-Capers: The Case of Red Rock Canyon.

The  bottom line:

The Crypto-Capers: The Case of the Missing Sock is a fun and engaging book for older kids and tweens. With characters of both genders, it can be enjoyed equally by both boys and girls – and could be a helpful tool in getting kids who love puzzles but aren’t much interested in reading more involved with and enjoying books. It’s a book that adults can read and have fun with right along with their kids as well.

Where can you find it?:

You can purchase The Crypto-Capers: The Case of the Missing Sock through most retailers where books are generally sold. It’s also available directly from the author’s website at http://www.reneeahand.com, and at Amazon. The list price is $12.95.

Renee Hand also has a blog at http://thecryptocapersseries.blogspot.com.

This post courtesy of: Renee Hand and Pump Up Your Book Promotion. No payment or compensation, other than product samples as described above, was received for this post.