Review of Mystery on Macomber Hill
Posted: 11 Apr 2022, 14:14
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Mystery on Macomber Hill" by John F Balser Jr.]
It’s the summer of 1957 in North Jay, Maine. 13-year-old Billy and 11-year-old Jake Baker are excited to spend their summer playing, fishing, and helping their father at the dairy he manages. They’re expecting it to be a typical summer until Jake finds a jar with a piece of paper in it hidden in the wall of their cellar. Unfortunately, all that’s written on the paper is what seems to be random numbers and letters. Curious, the boys attempt to figure out what it means. They become very excited when their Uncle Dave tells them about a string of bank robberies that occurred in the area eleven years before and that even after the thieves were killed in a shootout with the police, most of the money was never found. The boys can’t help but wonder if the paper Jake found might lead them to the money. With some help from their Uncle Dave, will the boys be able to figure out the answer to the mystery?
Mystery on Macomber Hill by John F. Balser Jr. is a fast read with only 146 pages, but it packs a lot into those pages. The mystery was intriguing but fairly simple with a nice treasure hunt type of puzzle. I was able to figure out parts of it right away, but it made the parts I couldn’t figure out even more intriguing. I actually think this book is more historical fiction with a mystery element because there is a big focus on the family’s day-to-day life.
The descriptions are incredibly detailed and were my favorite thing about this book. They enabled me to get a good feel for this area of Maine, from the nature scenery to the roads and towns and where everything was. Obviously some of the places are fictional, but I actually went on Google Maps and was able to find all the roads and even the church the Baker family attends in the story, so anyone familiar with the area would likely recognize some of the places mentioned.
The characters are all realistic, which I especially appreciated with Billy and Jake. I thought their emotions and reactions to what was happening in the story fit with their ages, like Jake sometimes growing bored with trying to figure out the mystery. The two also had a good sibling relationship. They often teased each other, but Billy would also reassure Jake when Jake needed it. The adults were also nicely written. For example, Sophie worries about the boys going to Spruce Mountain on their own and becomes nostalgic when thinking about her sons growing up. I also found myself sharing the characters’ frustrations when things didn’t work out.
The thing I most disliked about this book was the multitude of editing errors, including punctuation and spelling. It only took 37 pages to find ten mistakes. I would have rated this book 2.5 stars because of the amount of errors. Since I can’t, I’m giving it 3 out of 4 stars because the excellent plot, characters, and descriptions deserve more than 2.
I recommend this book to adults and teenagers who enjoy historical fiction involving country life and clean mysteries. I think teens as young as twelve can read this book. The vocabulary is a bit too complicated for younger children and ‘damn’ is used four times in the story, but there is no other profanity and no violence.
******
Mystery on Macomber Hill
View: on Bookshelves
It’s the summer of 1957 in North Jay, Maine. 13-year-old Billy and 11-year-old Jake Baker are excited to spend their summer playing, fishing, and helping their father at the dairy he manages. They’re expecting it to be a typical summer until Jake finds a jar with a piece of paper in it hidden in the wall of their cellar. Unfortunately, all that’s written on the paper is what seems to be random numbers and letters. Curious, the boys attempt to figure out what it means. They become very excited when their Uncle Dave tells them about a string of bank robberies that occurred in the area eleven years before and that even after the thieves were killed in a shootout with the police, most of the money was never found. The boys can’t help but wonder if the paper Jake found might lead them to the money. With some help from their Uncle Dave, will the boys be able to figure out the answer to the mystery?
Mystery on Macomber Hill by John F. Balser Jr. is a fast read with only 146 pages, but it packs a lot into those pages. The mystery was intriguing but fairly simple with a nice treasure hunt type of puzzle. I was able to figure out parts of it right away, but it made the parts I couldn’t figure out even more intriguing. I actually think this book is more historical fiction with a mystery element because there is a big focus on the family’s day-to-day life.
The descriptions are incredibly detailed and were my favorite thing about this book. They enabled me to get a good feel for this area of Maine, from the nature scenery to the roads and towns and where everything was. Obviously some of the places are fictional, but I actually went on Google Maps and was able to find all the roads and even the church the Baker family attends in the story, so anyone familiar with the area would likely recognize some of the places mentioned.
The characters are all realistic, which I especially appreciated with Billy and Jake. I thought their emotions and reactions to what was happening in the story fit with their ages, like Jake sometimes growing bored with trying to figure out the mystery. The two also had a good sibling relationship. They often teased each other, but Billy would also reassure Jake when Jake needed it. The adults were also nicely written. For example, Sophie worries about the boys going to Spruce Mountain on their own and becomes nostalgic when thinking about her sons growing up. I also found myself sharing the characters’ frustrations when things didn’t work out.
The thing I most disliked about this book was the multitude of editing errors, including punctuation and spelling. It only took 37 pages to find ten mistakes. I would have rated this book 2.5 stars because of the amount of errors. Since I can’t, I’m giving it 3 out of 4 stars because the excellent plot, characters, and descriptions deserve more than 2.
I recommend this book to adults and teenagers who enjoy historical fiction involving country life and clean mysteries. I think teens as young as twelve can read this book. The vocabulary is a bit too complicated for younger children and ‘damn’ is used four times in the story, but there is no other profanity and no violence.
******
Mystery on Macomber Hill
View: on Bookshelves
Thanks for a great review!