Thirteen-year-old Nick and his bumbling older brother Tim, the heroes from Public Enemy Number Two (2004) and The Falcon's Malteser (2004) return for three more adventures. This time they search for a missing philanthropist who may have been steamrolled, fight off drug smugglers operating out of a French confectionary shop, and become trapped on a Scottish island with a murderer who seems determined to reenact an Agatha Christie novel. Naive, literal Tim serves as a comic foil to the clever Nick, who becomes a hero by default as he tries to keep himself and his brother alive. Horowitz's writing is fast-paced and funny, full of clever puns and deadpan comments. Descriptions of dead bodies and a particularly vivid hallucinogenic experience may make younger readers squeamish, but this is great for the sophisticated mystery lover not quite ready for adult crime novels. Kay Weisman Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved