A hilarious book that we added to our easy reader collection. It's been a hit with readers who enjoy Captain Underpants and The Bad Guys. I recommend it to children (and the young at heart) who love silly reads.

Fabio is a hilarious mystery solved by the zaniest animals ever. Who knows what is happening with this group, but the mystery must be solved and thank goodness Fabio is there. How exactly does a hippo go missing? The lights go out of course, but why? Kids will love this quick tale and stay engaged by solving the mystery.

Mysteries for young readers can be tricky. You want stakes that the reader will care about, clues that make sense without being too obvious, red herrings that add complexity but not unnecessary confusion. This particular book is charming. The clues are more obscured than is typical for an elementary level mystery. This might make it frustrating for a young detective. I'll be interested to see what James does with further volumes in this series.

I had a lot of fun reading The Case of the Missing Hippo. The characters were quite likable, and it was enjoyable to watch this mystery move forward. There were plenty of suspects, but that didn’t mean it was easy to find the culprit. When it was revealed who was behind it all, it was rather surprising. I can see most readers having a blast reading this book.

Oh, how I wish that the illustrations had been included in the ARC I got from NetGalley. The story was fine but I think the pictures might have upped my rating.
Violet, the niece of a local hotel owner, is trying to get the hotel some more business by holding a talent show. One of the judges catches a bad cold so Fabio is asked to step in. During the tryouts, the lights go out and a hippo singer disappears. Fabio is immediately on the case. It takes a race at the nearby athletic event to put him on the right track.
This book will probably amuse parents with the arch jokes and wink, winks but I'm not sure how it will appeal to children.

Three stars
This book comes out August 6th
ARC kindly provided by Bloomsbury Children's Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Fabio is a fabulous pink flamingo detective with a giraffe assistant named Gilbert. Together they solve mysteries in their small town on the banks of Lake Laloozee. But sometimes they just want to relax and get some pink lemonade at the Hotel Royale. That's what they're doing when Fabio is asked to become a judge for the hotel's first talent show. But when a singing hippo goes missing, Fabio and Gilbert go into sleuth mode to solve the case.

This story has more twists and turns than a super size snake. Kids will enjoy the zany humor, fast pace and many plot twists. Adult mystery fans will enjoy the noir atmosphere and the nods to the Golden Age. This is an engaging read for newly independent readers and a fun book for adult and child to read together.