Caractacus Jones and the Case of the Murdered Mother (Caractacus Jones' Paranormal Investigations) [Kindle Edition]

I wasn't expecting much from this, but downloaded it anyway because it was free and I have to say I am so glad that I did. I'm not normally a big fan of 'paranormal detectives' and in the past have read a couple of others but never managed to finish them. However, Kat Sherwood's humour, characters and story line really drew me in. I would definitely recommend this book.

Spotting this through an advert on Facebook, I clicked the link. For £0.99, special Kindle offer, from a local author, I had to try it out. The plot was right up my street, so what harm could it do?

Sherwood creates such likeable characters through her use of description and dialogue. When we are introduced to Hollie, we instantly feel a connection. She's down on her luck, and worst of all, stuck at the job centre (which also establishes our setting and time period). Caractacus Jones, he is made to be extremely likable, wven with his strange behavious and his love of tea (was I the only one who thought of Matt Smith, as the 11th Doctor from Doctor Who here?).

There is tangible chemistry between the two of them, and I kept expecting some slight fliration or innuendos, but if Sherwood is planning to make these a couple, I believe she'd wait until she was further embroiled in her series to do so.

The plot continues to duck and dive, taking us on a journey, where we in turn become an investigator, much like our heroine Hollie has become. We question everything as we try and solve the murder before our eyes. Sadly, I didn't solve the murder until it was too late. Shame on me!

Sherwood is comedic in her storytelling, reminescent of television shows such as Red Dwarf. A fantastic well crafted novella - this is well worth a read if you like the paranormal, murders and a lot of laughs.

Please Ms Sherwood, can we have some more?

Caractacus Jones and the Case of the Murdered Mother cross-breeds genres like they're going out of fashion, effortlessly combining the quirk of Pushing Daisies, the whimsy of Douglas Adams and the murder mystery of Agatha Christie to produce a story that is every bit as good as that sounds and is, all things considered, more original and exciting than it has any right to be!

When we first encounter Hollie Blythe, she is behind on her rent with no choice but to attend the soul-destroying hell that is her local job centre. Immediately, we're on side. We've all been there, we can all relate, and as such she becomes the audience's identification figure, the ordinary within the extraordinary, and our eyes and ears to the wonderful insanity that quickly ensues.

Said insanity begins when she meets the brilliant but bonkers Caractacus Jones, a Paranormal Investigator, looking to recruit a new secretary, who is, like all the best detectives, interesting because of his eccentricity; like Sherlock Holmes, like Dirk Gently, his mind works in mystifying, marvellous and mad ways - the only downside of which is a lack of understanding regarding social convention. But his loss is our gain, as this makes for a unique, offbeat and engaging hero with cool glasses - Morse never had cool glasses! Besides, he can be partially forgiven for his social ineptitude when you consider that his cases aren't your typical run-of-the-mill police procedurals, his clients not exactly what you'd expect... intrigued yet?

To give away further plot details would be to spoil half of the fun, so all I'll say is that this book is a warm, witty, fast-paced supernatural-who-dunnit-comedy that I'd recommend reading with a nice pot of tea close to hand. More please, and soon.

This is the story of Hollie, who is out of work and behind on her rent. She received a mysterious job offer, and is told it was suggested by her mother, who she has not seen for 12 years. . .

This was a very enjoyable short story, with likeable characters and good dialogue. It has a whimsical air to it, and could be the start of a series.

I would be happy to read more about the adventures of Hollie and Caractacus.

Firstly, the basic idea is good - it's like a mash-up between Douglas Adams' Dirk Gently and the Ghost Whisperer TV series. Nothing very original but an interesting concept.

However, like many of the self-published books on Kindle, this book desperately needs the services of a good editor. The story is very uneven - inconsequential asides get more detail and humour than the plot, where each twist and turn just kind of happens without explanation or suspense (and sometimes without any discernible logic). This is on top of numerous spelling errors and clunkily constructed sentences, that make reading and comprehension very difficult at times.

Overall there are the seeds of a fun, light book in here - it just needs more work.