This is my stop during the blog tour for Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy by Paula Berinstein. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 30 November till 13 December, you can view the complete tour schedule on the website of Lola’s Blog Tours.
So far this series contains 3 books: Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy (Amanda Lester, Detective #1), Amanda Lester and the Orange Crystal Crisis (Amanda Lester, Detective #2) and Amanda Lester and the Purple Rainbow Puzzle (Amanda Lester, Detective #3).
Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy (Amanda Lester, Detective #1)by Paula Berinstein
Genre: Mystery/ detective
Age category: Middle Grade
Release Date: May, 2015
My Rating=4 Stars
Source: Received a copy for an honest review
Blurb:
A reluctant detective, a criminal mastermind, and . . . sugar?
Amanda Lester wouldn’t be caught dead going into the family business. Her ancestor, Sherlock Holmes’s colleague Inspector G. Lestrade, is a twit. Nevertheless her parents refuse to see his flaws, and she’s going to a secret English school for the descendants of famous detectives whether she likes it or not.
When Amanda arrives at the dreaded school, she considers running away—until she and her new friends discover blood and weird pink substances in odd places. At first they’re not sure whether these seeming clues mean anything, but when Amanda’s father disappears and the cook is found dead with her head in a bag of sugar, they’re certain that crimes are taking place.
Now Amanda must embrace her destiny and uncover the truth. The only snag is that arch-villain Blixus Moriarty, a descendant of Holmes’s nemesis Professor James Moriarty, might be involved, and he doesn’t like nosy little girls interfering in his business.
Amanda lives in LA and is an aspiring filmmaker. She's a bit difficult to get along with, partly because she's so passionate and doesn't have patience for people who aren't. One day, her parents announce that they are moving to England where she will attend a school for descendants of famous detectives. That doesn't go over well because Amanda sees no value in being a detective. She puts up a fight but ends up at the school. It doesn't take long for her to realize that it might not be so bad there, after all.
My daughter loves mysteries so I was excited to read this one with my children. We weren't impressed with Amanda at first and I was hoping to see some growth in her along the way (we did). She makes some friends at Legatum: Nick, Simon, Amphora, Ivy (who is blind) and her guard dog, Nigel. The classes were fun to attend and the mystery moved along at a good pace. There were some twists that we didn't see coming which changed the entire way we thought the story was headed.
This is the first book in the series so we met some characters (both students and teachers) which we will hopefully get to know better as the series progresses. I love Sherlock Holmes so it was fun to read a book that talks a lot about famous detectives. When we finished, we were ready to get started right away on the second book so we are looking forward to reading more in this series!
Later books in the series:
Amanda Lester and the Orange Crystal Crisis (Amanda Lester, Detective #2)By Paula Berinstein
Genre: Mystery/ detective
Age category: Middle Grade
Release Date: September 15, 2015
Blurb:
If only Sherlock Holmes's great-great-grandson weren't such a dork . . .
There’s a new student at the Legatum Continuatum School for the Descendants of Famous Detectives and Amanda is supposed to work with him. Scapulus Holmes is a descendant of the great Sherlock and he’s crazy about her. Unfortunately she thinks he’s a dork and would rather die than have anything to do with him.
But when the kids discover a dead body encrusted with strange living crystals, Amanda realizes she needs Holmes’s help. If the crystals fall into the wrong hands they could be used for nefarious purposes, and only he knows how to protect them.
Can the detectives keep the bad guys from learning the crystals' secrets? It would help if they could figure out who the dead body is too. Only if Amanda and Holmes can find a way to work together can they prevent a disaster, and it isn’t looking good.
Amanda Lester and the Purple Rainbow Puzzle (Amanda Lester, Detective #3)By Paula Berinstein
Genre: Mystery/detective
Age category: Middle Grade
Release Date: November 15, 2015
Blurb:
Purple rainbows, a mysterious crypt, and pots of gold . . .
Things are not going well for Amanda and the secret detective school. A priceless artifact has disappeared, a dangerous hacker is manipulating matter, and zombies are being seen all over the Lake District.
Then the real trouble starts. When her cousins go missing and her friend Clive is kidnapped, Amanda is forced to turn to someone she’d rather not deal with: her old boyfriend Scapulus Holmes. But then he vanishes too. Now’s she’s sure that arch-villain Blixus Moriarty is involved . . . or is he?
About the Author:Paula Berinstein is nothing like Amanda. For one thing, she’s crazy about Sherlock Holmes. For another, she’s never wanted to be a filmmaker. In addition, compared to Amanda she’s a big chicken! And she wouldn’t mind going to a secret school at all. In fact, she’s hoping that some day she’ll get to build one.
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy. These are the prizes you can win:
- paperback copies of Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy (Amanda Lester, Detective #1), Amanda Lester and the Orange Crystal Crisis (Amanda Lester, Detective #2) and Amanda Lester and the Purple Rainbow Puzzle (Amanda Lester, Detective #3) by Paula Berinstein (INT)
- 2 winners will each win a paperback copy of Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy (Amanda Lester, Detective #1) Paula Berinstein (INT)
For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
1 comments:
Thank you so much for being a host on my blog tour, Melanie, and thank you for the great review! I'm so glad you like Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy!
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