A to Z Mysteries The Deadly Dungeon

A to Z Mysteries The Deadly Dungeon

By Ron Roy

 



      I picked this book for my first ever book report in the 4th grade.  It had to be a mystery.  Since I have already read a few books in this series (in 3rd grade) I figured an easy read would be the way to go. 

  
   The book is about your typical A to Z Mystery characters with a few new folks.  There's Dink, a 9 year old boy who loves to read and write.  Then you have Josh, a 9 year old hillbilly redhead who loves him some food.  Next you have Ruth Rose, another 9 year old and your typical girlie girl with a brave and creative mind.  These are the sleuths of the story.  Another main character is Wallis Wallace, a famous mystery author and the owner of an old creepy castle.  She does not help solve the mystery but she has evidence that helps them.  Then you have the minor characters. Walker and Rip, who are both lobster catchers.

     

      They story takes place at an old castle on the beach of Maine near a light house. The three kids go to visit Wallis.  When they get there Wallis shows them her creepy castle or also called Moose Manor.  She tells them about a movie star named Emory Scott, who died in the castle along time ago and tells them maybe they will meet his ghost.  The kids laugh and ignore her but when they ask her if she was kidding she says no.  This is where the book starts getting mysterious. 

 

      Dink, Ruth Rose, and Josh are excited to explore the castle.  On a picnic with Wallis she tells them of a playhouse she found.  A few moments after that Josh spotted a cave on the coast of the beach which is a clue to later in the story.  Wallis takes them to the playhouse and tells the kids about a locked room that leads to the secret cave.  They start to hear strange high pitch noises coming from the cave.  This is the arc when the kids turn from having fun to being serious sleuths. 

 

       Now the kids are trying to find out what the noises are.  They set out and explore the cave.  They discover the noises are coming from rare and endangered parrots.  They figured out these birds are being held captive by poachers.  The next night they go on a stakeout to try and find who the poacher is.  The clues they find on the stakeout lead them to believe that the poacher is either Walker or Rip.  They are determined to find the suspects and free the birds. 

 

       The book made me curious when they heard the high pitch noises.  Before I found out it was parrots I could imagine the noise being a seagull squawking.  I never thought it was a ghost.   The way the author described the castle made me imagine, or visualize, the Franklin Institute in PA at night.  The one part of the story I found scary is this passage "Dink gulped and felt goose bumps climbing his leg.  Could it be the ghost of Emory Scott?"  This is when Dink was up late and found a big white light out his window.  When I stay up late I DON"T look out my window and that is why it scared me.

 

     RATING:  I would give this book 2 Stars (see ratings) as a fourth grader.  I think if I was still a third grader I would have liked it better.  It was very short and easy to know what would happen next.  It taught me a lesson in choosing books.  Just because it is easy isn't always the best way to go.  Next book report I promise to chose a higher level book.