“My name is Moon.”

From Eoin Colfer’s Half Moon Investigations.

Fletcher Moon is a skilled detective despite his young age and his short height (which is the cause of his nickname: Half-Moon). Fletcher is a registered detective, even though his cases are random and often unimportant by most people’s standards. When his classmate, April, asks Fletcher for help over a stolen lock of hair, he dives into solving her case, but it soon places him at dangerous odds with a kid named Red. When Fletcher is injured by a mysterious attacker, he sees Red’s name on the weapon and comes to the conclusion that Red is to blame. After witnessing an arsonist setting April’s cousin’s dress on fire and passing out due to a issue with his recent medical treatment, Fletcher wakes up framed for the fire. Fletcher finds himself in real legal trouble, but when he’s helped by Red–who swears he’s been framed–the young detective realizes that things are not as they seem. The boys begin looking into recent happenings that have taken place with local boys and it soon becomes obvious that some girls have set a dangerous plan in motion… and Fletcher and Red may be the only ones able to stop it.

Readers, both young and old, will find this mystery to be interesting, fun, and surprising. Colfer creates characters and situations that are unique, but easily connect with the reader. While not overly complicated, the mystery that unfolds throughout the book is complex enough to make Half Moon Investigations a solid mystery adventure.