Book Review: "Half Moon Investigations" by Eoin Colfer

SPOIL-FREE SUMMARY

Twelve year old Fletcher Moon is a detective who ends up getting his biggest case yet. He is investigates a stolen item by a fellow student and accidentally gets involved with a crime family.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Fletcher Moon doesn't act like a regular child. He is rather serious about his chosen profession. He tells the story so we get it from his unique and often hilarious perspective.

Hazel Moon is Fletcher's rather dramatic older sister. She trusts her brother's skills and loves to write, whether it be plays or poems.

Red Sharkey is the older son of the Sharkey family. He is a redhead, like all of them and isn't easily intimidated. He isn't considered good looking, but charming, as most girls like him.

Herrod Sharkey is the youngest son of the Sharkey family. He is already stealing and getting into trouble even though he is only in elementary school.

April Devereux is the classmate who hires Fletcher to find her lost item. She is snotty and girly, looking down any everyone else.

May Devereux is April's cousin. She is the nicer one of the two and seems to like Fletcher. She has been dancing for years but she has no skill.

PACING

The pacing is decent. Even though the story isn't an action orientated one, it starts fast. Once we meet Fletcher we learn about his skills and see them in action. Right after we get an invitation to solve another one. The chapter endings are good, usually ending at a cliff hanger, or some other significant event, like a dramatic realization.

STRUCTURE-VAGUE SPOILERS

The story starts out with an introduction of Fletcher's skills as he solves a mystery (we learn about the Sharkeys as well) and is invited by another student to see him later. After a scene where we clarify that the principal of his school is nuts, we learn about the case and the main part of the story starts.

From then on, Fletcher tries to investigate himself, but eventually ends up hurt and blamed for a crime. This leads him to a Sharkey, and together they investigate. This is the bulk of the book.

Eventually this leads to the climax where the connection of all the victims are discovered and the perpetrators are revealed and confronted.

A MYSTERY-VAGUE SPOILER

Fletcher starts out investigating one crime but suddenly finds there is a whole slew of crimes. He tries to figure out what they have in common. On the surface, they don't seem related at all. Just so the reader knows this is a real crime (and not April being nuts), Fletcher gets attacked at night.

PRINCIPAL CRAZY

In one scene scene in the beginning, we meet the woman who the principal of Fletcher's school. She comes off as completely crazy. It was supposed to be funny, but it was the only joke that flopped for me. It would have been fine to portray her as strange or eccentric, but she came off as mentally ill.

THE FLETCHER FAMILY

Fletcher's family isn't in the book a lot, but they do all have pretty distinct personalities. Mom and Dad just want Fletcher to have friends (while mom is a bit silly, but a very protective too). And Hazel trusts her brother's skills while at the same time has no problems making fun of him.

THE CHARACTER THAT LIKES HIS FAMILY

I can't help but compare Fletcher to Artemis Fowl, who continuously claimed to love his family, but never actually showed it. It's obvious that although Fletcher is embarrassed by his parents and annoyed at his sister, he loves them. When he investigates and sneaks away, he keeps worrying about them and what he is putting them through. And although there is conflict between them (like when dad says he want's his son to be normal) Fletcher still loves them.

HUMOR

The use of humor comes from the fact that Fletcher narrates the story. He has a dry sense of humor and a matter of fact way that makes him hilarious. Not that he tries to be. Although there are a few times that he is sarcastic, and I found that quite funny too.

RED & FLETCHER

Fletcher suspects Red might be the one committing these crimes. When Red finds out, he shows up, and eventually the two actually end up working together. Red wants to clear his name.

The two characters are nothing alike, but they compliment each other. Because of his time with Red, Fletcher learns that his previously held beliefs were wrong. And while Red is street smart and can be rather goofy, Fletcher is good at critical thinking and rather serious.

HELP FROM THE SHARKEYS

When Fletcher investigates with Red, he also gets help from the family. Turns out that Papa Sharkey knows all of the criminals in town, and can easily spot who did what. He in turn points out the one crime that this newcomer likely committed.

I like how Fletcher didn't just need Red's help, but got actual help from Red's father. It was a nice surprise and revealed more about Red, his sister, and his little brother.

RED'S PROMISE

Red could have easily been a shallow characters, but he admits its hard to be a Sharkey, because he was born into a crime family. Everyone prejudges him, and with Roddy it is no different. He admits his little brother is already in trouble and finally confides in Fletcher about his late mother.

CLIMAX

Fletcher proves who committed one set of crimes, then goes to prove who committed the rest. He and Red sneak into the school talent show where Fletcher makes an accusation that causes him to lose a friend. In the end, the person confesses. I was rather surprised at Fletcher's reaction.

CONCLUSION

Colfer creates a likable and funny characters in Fletcher and Red (not to mention the many side characters that surround them). They both develop and show different aspects of their personalities.

The mystery is interesting and silly for the most part, and I found myself laughing more times than I can recall while I read.

The ending was surprisingly good, and even sad. I give “The Half Moon Investigations” four stars.