Staff Review by Ms. B
I am not a winter person. I don't actually hate it -- I do like snow, and I admit it is easier to bundle up against the cold than find refuge from the heat. (Besides, it would be hard for me to hate the season that has Christmas.)
What I do hate, however, are short days and long nights, overcast skies for weeks on end, and the kind of biting cold that makes going outside somewhat inadvisable (if not outright craziness). With bitter temperatures behind us -- and an upcoming winter storm lying ahead -- it seems like an opportune time to find a good book to curl up with on the sofa, preferably near a roaring fire and with a cup of tea or cocoa close at hand.
Which brings me to Mad Mouse. If you could use a book to provide you with a mental vacation from the perils of winter, try this quirky, funny, character-rich read -- which just so happens to take place during summertime at the beach.
Mad Mouse is the second book in Chris Grabenstein's John Ceepak mystery series. I picked it up on a whim, without having read the first book in the series, and was pleased to find that the author does a great job of making it easy for a new reader to jump in. The book is set in the fictional tourist-trap beach town of Sea Haven, New Jersey -- where the townspeople are gearing up for their annual Labor Day cookout (sounds lovely right about now, doesn't it?).
The book stars a Holmes-and-Watson-esque duo in its two main characters, Danny Boyle and John Ceepak. Danny is the Watson-like "Everyman," a twentysomething native of Sea Haven. He was something of a beach bum until this very summer, when his part-time job as a "summer cop" pairs him up with one John Ceepak. Ceepak is a full-time officer who used to be in the army (he's a former MP), and he still lives his life by a soldier's code of honor.
Ceepak is also the "Sherlock Holmes" of the story -- the guy who catches the little details that everybody else misses. That said, when it came to personality, Ceepak reminded me more of Constable Benton Fraser (from the television series Due South). Ceepak's unfailing discipline and staunch personality are a good match to Danny's more Jimmy Buffett sensibilities, although neither of the two characters are two-dimensional caricatures: Ceepak's got a sense of humor, and Danny takes his job quite seriously and definitely buckles down to get things done.
The book opens with Danny and his old high school buddies gathering for a beach-side celebration, only to be attacked by an onslaught of paintballs from an unseen assailant. What seemed like a stupid, but ultimately harmless, prank is eventually revealed to have more sinister intentions -- and with Danny and his friends as the targets. I always enjoy my mysteries best when personal stakes are involved, and, in this case, it did a great job at adding an extra dimension of tension and drama to the story. The plot zig-zagged and folded back on itself, and when the bad guy was finally revealed, I didn't see it coming -- which is always a bonus.
Good plot, engaging writing, lovable and relatable characters. I will definitely be reading the rest of this series. Give it a try -- and enjoy a fun mystery that supplies thoughts of sunshine, summertime, and the beach!
The John Ceepak series:
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