The Secret Detectives

Interesting, authentic and exciting.

I absolutely loved reading this book, it was exciting, suspenseful and thrilling!
This book has a interesting and sometimes complicating plot. I really liked all the characters and their inventive descriptions, especially the Swede.
I think Ella Risbridger is a brilliant author!

I would say 9 + because of the complicated plot, but maybe some 8 year olds could read it too.

This book is about a ship but there was a puzzle because some children are seeming to be getting lots of notes but they don’t know who from like one of them said that they were getting watched by somebody.

I like this book because it is a mystery and the children have to solve a murder mystery before their boat stops and the murderer has the chance to escape.

This book is amazing and I loved reading it and trying to solve the murder before the detectives.

This book was really cool and I liked how it was set at the turn of the 19th century with lots of description of how it would have been for the characters at that time. My favourite character was Sam because he’s funny, brave and sensible. This book would be good for readers aged 9 and upwards and especially those who like books similar to Murder Most Unladylike

A very intriguing mystery with a plot twist end. It deffo draws you in. Starts off oldish then gets better and better. A great read for fans of Murder Most Unladylike.

I really enjoyed this book and would happily read it over and over again for a decade. And really liked the amount of twists that were put in place in the story every time you think they’d crack the case. I also really liked that they were always so close to the murder through the entire murder and only got the idea that lord trimlingham until towards the end of the the book.

I enjoyed this book a lot. I loved the way it was written and the setting. The characters were interesting, my favourite character was Letitia, and I couldn’t decide if I liked or disliked Isobel. The plot was good, if maybe a bit confusing at times. I also managed to predict the murderer. I would definitely recommend this.

Yes a fun read for yr7 or 8.
Rather too much dialogue and not enough description or detail but I enjoyed it and the mystery was well-conceived.

It was an interesting book and I think that it was a good mystery as it was hard to guess. I would have liked to know if Isobel liked living with her uncle. I also liked how their parents finally understood in the end. I would recommend it to budding detectives and people who like history

Although this is billed as a prequel to The Secret Garden, it is a completely stand- alone novel. (Inspired by, would have been a better phrase.) However, it does answer a question my reading groups have often speculated on when reading The Secret Garden - what would it be like to make that journey back from India, alone, having suffered the loss your parents …
Like Mary Lennox, Isobel Petty, is a difficult character to like and the story is as much about her development as a person as it is about solving the murder.
It will also spark some conversations about the role of Empire and how people are viewed both then and now.
A very interesting character in an interesting story.

Ut was a really good book and they has to figure out who did the murder

I enjoyed the complexity of this book and trying to unravel the mysteries within.
The ending for me was a curveball and I hadn’t predicted it.
An enjoyable read for year 5/6

Isobel Petty is an orphan. She accidentally witnesses someone being thrown overboard on the boat she is travelling on. This book shares her journey, reluctant friendships and detective skills to solve the murder. Its historical descriptions transport you to a time of divided classes, servants and how children wer thought of. A great read for those who love drama such as 'Murder Most Ladylike'.

I really enjoyed the way that you had to find the murderer and the victim, and never expected who it was!

Isobel was my favourite character. I recommend it.

this book is mind-blowing my favourite character has to be the group of detectives, I would recommend this if you love mysteries.

Isobel is an orphan and being sent to her only living relatives in England on a mail ship. She is to be supervised on the voyage by a lady who is taking her children to boarding school. Isobel meets Sam, a 12 year old boy, travelling to England with his Father when they both witness a murder in the middle of the night on deck.
But there is seemingly no victim, and the adults don’t believe them! Can they work out what happened before they reach land and the murderer can escape?

I loved this book because you never know what is going to happen l would recommend this book to anyone.

I wanted to love this book - historical middle grade fiction is a favourite genre of mine - and it was inspired by the author's love on The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (a childhood obssession of mine) and it was even better than I had hoped.

Ella Risbridger captures the character of Isobel with deft strokes, and although Sam and Letitia are challenging for her to interact with at times, we are never allowed to dehumanise them - they are fuly realised characters themselves. Neither does the author look away from the difficulties inherit in colonial British culture trying to be pushed out of sight of the gloss and shine of upper class England.

The mystery was well plotted, with just enough danger for menace without too greatly disturbing a young reader - and a saisfying ending. An absolutely brilliant read that I would recommend as a read in any KS2 classroom.