Review by Bhaskins -- Serendipity Mystery: Diary of a Sn...

[Bhaskins]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Serendipity Mystery: Diary of a Snoopy Cat" by R.F. Kristi.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Serendipity Mystery: Diary of a Snoopy Cat by R.F. Kristi is the 7th book in the Inca Cat Detective series. The book starts with a cute picture of all the main characters in the series laid out in a family tree. Inca, the leader of Inca & Company is the head of a detective agency she runs along with a host of other animals. This book is set in Sri Lanka on the beach where Inca, her mom, and siblings are visiting on holiday. While there a sword goes missing from a local museum. The local authorities call in Solo, a well-known international detective, and Terrance his trusty dog helper. Solo and Terrance live next to Inca at home and they welcome the thought of them joining the holiday. The book winds through clues, days at the beach, and help from local animal friends to find the thief and return the missing sword.

What I liked the most about this book is the adorable cast of characters. Inca is the leader and head detective of Inca & Company. Fromage is Inca’s brother and Cara is her sister. They hang out with a hamster named Charlotte and a dog named Terrance. There is a good amount of adventure, mystery, and problem-solving. It’s also very sweet and has some nice messages for kids around working together and the importance of family. I appreciated that there was enough context given in the images at the beginning of the book to know who the characters are and some of the background from previous books in the series. This was book 7 and I was able to pick it up and read it as an independent book.

What I disliked most was the repetitiveness of the descriptions. This book was set on the island of Sri Lanka and the author only used “golden sand” to describe the beach. I was looking for more details or some other language to get a sense of the beach. The words golden sand were used more than five times to depict the same setting.

This book would be perfect for kids who like a little mystery but aren’t yet ready for major thrills. The content was not graphic and pretty light. The characters were cute and likable. I would put this book at maybe a 2nd to 3rd-grade reading level and it felt very age appropriate and I didn’t notice any words that an average child might find too difficult.

Overall I give this book 3 out of 4 stars. It was well written and well-edited. I did not notice any errors, but I do feel like the formatting was a bit off in spots. It seemed like there was a lot of space between paragraphs and some of the pages breaks were not logical. I also couldn’t give it a full 4 stars because there was a lack of depth that could have improved the quality of this book. If the author had more vivid details I think this could make it a 4. Overall it’s a good story and one I could see kids liking. I believe it’s a good series to get kids started into mysteries.

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Serendipity Mystery: Diary of a Snoopy Cat
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[Manali_DC]

Nice review!! Having read and reviewed a few of Inca's adventures, I can say that I am a fan! I loved this story set in Sri Lanka because they meet an Elephant, a turtle- creatures they have not met before- and become friendly with them. The story brings out that respect and co-operation with each other can help overcome all odds!

[Bhaskins]

Nice review!! Having read and reviewed a few of Inca's adventures, I can say that I am a fan! I loved this story set in Sri Lanka because they meet an Elephant, a turtle- creatures they have not met before- and become friendly with them. The story brings out that respect and co-operation with each other can help overcome all odds!

The story was so cute and I loved the themes and messages for kids!

[AvidBibliophile]

I read and reviewed this cat tale too! That initial family tree was a super helpful touch indeed, and the early morning ice cream delights would sure make for a sweet beach vacation. Glad you liked the book as well.

[Adina Lutinger]

Seems like such an adorable children book. Thanks for the great review!

[InStoree]

Wonderful review! It seems like a cute and educative series for children. I appreciate authors who insert elements of education among the fun, exciting storyline.

[bookreviewmi1111]

In my opinion, this is a good book. But I see why you did not rate it 4/4. Thanks for the honest review!