Carousels and Characters

Magical Mystery Book Club, #9

by

Elizabeth Pantley

The Magical Mystery Book Club sleuths investigate strange goings on at an incredible theme park.

Carousels and Characters is the ninth book in author Elizabeth Pantley’s Magical Mystery Book Club series, and readers should be prepared for another imaginative journey into a cozy mystery. As the book club members delve into their latest book choice, they visit an amazing animal-themed theme park that has quite a few secrets to uncover. 

I have thoroughly enjoyed this series, and this installment continued to entertain. The mysteries in the stories range from the traditional to the whimsical to the paranormal, and the recurring characters, the club members, have become friends and family long before now. This time, the story starts in a pensive mood as club leader Paige Erickson reflects on the changes to their membership since their last book club journey. As has happened in the past, a close, original member of Paige’s group chose to stay behind in the pages of their last book. But to top off the bittersweet morning, she receives an unexpected visit from her perpetually dissatisfied and emotionally distant mother. Her quick visit and hasty departure, however, led to the book club’s selection for their next adventure. When Paige discovers a cozy mystery set in a theme park and tells her friends that Disneyland represents the only happy memories she had of her mother from her childhood, the choice is clear. 

The new mystery seamlessly incorporates the group into its storyline, and they learn that things have been going missing – props, costumes, and habitat pieces – from the primate’s Unipod at the Wonderland Universe, which the animals themselves now run, as the original creators of the concept have all passed away. However, as all the animals are chipped to keep them within their unique Unipod, the primates are unable to find out if other areas of the park are experiencing similar losses. The answer is for the book club members to investigate on their behalf under the guise of theme park inspectors.

 This time around, the book club’s selected book had a robust paranormal element, so, for once, both Frank the Cat and Mollie the Ghost were able to participate in all their activities fully. Their investigation uncovers numerous cases of missing items and even animal disappearances, but identifies a couple of promising suspects, creating some viable red herrings. The team follows the clues and their instincts to eventually uncover the truth, learning many different things about the creatures that inhabit the Wonderland Universe. Yet, there’s still one more surprise for the group before the story comes to a close this time, which ties this book to the author’s other series. 

I recommend CAROUSELS AND CHARACTERS to cozy mystery readers, especially fans of the series. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.