The Case of the Golden Boy (Tom Austen Mysteries #16)

The Case of the Golden Boy is #3 in the book series by Eric Wilson. Since this book and its series are geared towards a young audience of about 9-12 years old, there isn't a lot of development and everything is kept simple and/or vague.

Tom's classmate, Dianne Dorchester, is kidnapped right in front of him and he investigates to locate her and capture the kidnappers. At the same time, he stumbles upon mysterious men who meet in an abandoned and supposedly haunted house. Tom eavesdrops on the men and waits at their rendezvous point: The Golden Boy café. Tom tries to capture one of the kidnappers, but only manages to foil the ransom drop. As Tom investigates, he gets in over his head to the point where he is also kidnapped.

This story does have a lot of chases and excitement, which keeps the reader engaged. We can see how passionate Tom is about solving mysteries and he is overzealous in using his detective tricks, such as when he wears an adult disguise to a restaurant that a waitress sees right through. Little comedic scenes like this are sprinkled throughout the story.

However, there are many scenes that were unrealistic to me. Details, such as whether or not Tom recognizes a kidnapper's voice while eavesdropping a few feet away, left me with questions because details were left out.

The title also felt irrelevant to me because it doesn't reference the café and the story's main issue is Dianne's kidnapping. If anything, it should be called "... Golden Girl" since Dianne is from a wealthy family. I know the titles need to match the theme of the series, but this title just doesn't work.

There were clues for the reader to pick up on that pointed to two of the kidnappers' identities, but a few were badly placed, giving me the impression that the author didn't know where else to put them.

The Case of the Golden Boy is a decent mystery and a fast read, but it has issues.

For a more in-depth review with spoilers, check out my blog: https://redwolfsroom.blogspot.com/