I find these mysteries absolutely brilliant. Filled with excellent one liners, jokes that you need to read twice to get the full extent of the humour and characters who roll off the page.

Montgomery Bonbon has been summoned to Addlington Manor to deliver a special package to the crook who calls it home. Arriving with Banks, Bonbon finds a gang of notorious crooks hanging out, as well as a bunch of monkeys.

Fergus Croke is a notorious crook but when he is found d murdered in his monkey house, Bonbon has several suspicions to sort through. Luckily Dana has smuggled herself in along with Banks.

It’s a tough mystery to solve with explosions, arguing and secrets being kept. Is Bonbon up to the challenge or will his secret be discovered?

This series is brilliant and bonbon a formidable character! I love the relationship between Bonbon and Banks! I always look forward to these bonkers mysteries and I know how popular they are in libraries!

This is the second instalment of the series and I was really looking forward to it after Montgomery Bonbon’s previous hilarious adventures.

Montgomery Bonbon is not your ordinary detective. He is actually a 10 year-old girl called Bonnie Montgomery who wears a false moustache, a beret and a foreign accent to disguise herself. This time, the mystery is about a missing diamond and a dead man.
Once again, this story was very funny and my favourite scene was when the monkeys attacked the police officers.🐒🐒👮‍♂️👮‍♂️
I would recommend this book for people who like a good mystery but also a good laugh and funny illustrations.

Ella, 11 years old.

A brilliant big manor house mystery! I thoroughly enjoyed Montogomery BonBon's 'main character energy' and the sleuthing throughout was the perfect twist and turn. The dialogue is epically brilliant and love the character dynamics. One of the funniest, and most unique voices in children's writing I can't wait for more fore Alasdair Beckett King!

I’ve enjoyed all of the Montgomery Bonbon books so far and this book, the third in the series, is just as funny and entertaining as the others.

Bonnie and her Grandpa are tasked with delivering a valuable diamond to a country house but as soon as they get there, they realise something is not quite right and soon the owner of the estate, Fergus Croke, is found murdered in his cage of monkeys. Bonnie’s alter-ego Montgomery Bonbon proceeds to investigate with lots of hilarious encounters and accidents along the way.

It was a really well written story with lots going on and lots of really interesting characters. I didn’t guess who the murder was or how they had done it (which is unusual for a children’s murder mystery) but once the reveal happened I realised the clues I had been given (and the red herrings) along the way.

The illustrations by Claire Powell are brilliant and definitely add to the story. This series would be a great introduction to the detective genre for young readers - will definitely be recommending this to lots of people!

My daughter and I read the first two Montgomery Bonbon novels together and loved them, and she was so excited to find out the third had come out.

Luckily it didn't disappoint - while I think it's not quite as good as the first two, it's still brilliantly daft and hilarious.

These books are effectively farces for children - not only is there a primary school child masquerading as a Poirot style detective by simply putting on a beret, a dodgy accent and a fake tache, there's people getting stuck in stairs, jumping up and down on packets of onion rings, and now a group of monkeys at the scene of the murder led by a monkey in a bow tie.

Great fun, looking forward to the next one!

I loved this book so much, this was such a great and fun read. I liked how this stood as a standalone and had built on the previous book in the series. The characters were all so interesting and the crime was really interesting too. I would read more in this series as they are such a great series!

I received this book in exchange for a honest review.

honestly, this series brings me such joy. They make me laugh and I love the illustrations! When a diamond goes missing and its owner is murdered, can Bonbon catch the criminals before it’s too late? Monkey madness, a massive hoover and some sleuthing are all in here!

A witty, fun, and clever book for kids in KS2 and above. It is a quick read for older children, and will keep the younger KS2s busy and entertained. The MC and her grandpa are adorable and ridiculously funny. This has the perfect mood and writing style as well as a great plot and characters for a whodunnit for children. The illustrations encourage the reader to imagine the story further.

There are two MCs in this book; Bonnie and her alter ego, and both sides of her are adorable and relatable. The clues and the jokes are well-thought too, and we recommend this to adults as well, My child is hooked and is looking forward to more books in the series.

It’s funny how children’s aspirations change over the years. At various points growing up, I remember wanting to be a nurse, a librarian and – heavily influenced by watching Quincy as a teenager – a pathologist. Today’s youngsters are more likely to list career choices such as footballer or influencer but one job that still seems to appeal is police officer. I suspect that when this answer is given, those giving it do not mean they want to be a bobby on the beat but rather a detective, and here – in this third read in the enormously popular Montgomery Bonbon series – I can see just why.

Enormous fun, each book sees our heroine Bonnie Montgomery solve a brutal murder disguised as alter ego Montgomery Bonbon, ably assisted by her Grampa Banks, in a series of surreal crimes that are as bonkers as they are brilliant and are perfect for middle grade readers looking for something that is not entirely reliant on bodily functions or slapstick to provide the humour but is a bit more sophisticated in its laughs.

Tasked with transporting a package containing a secret item to Adderstone Manor, as instructed by a firm of solicitors, Montgomery Bonbon and Banks are curious as to what the item might be as its intended recipient, wealthy recluse Fergus Croke, has a reputation as a right wrong ‘un. Met by Croke at the manor’s grand entrance, the detectives are soon swept inside to meet its other occupants, walking past his collection of monkeys from around the world en route.

Reaching a room that Bonnie takes to be the parlour, she and Banks are introduced to the butler and four others, whom Croke refers to as his apprentices – a bank robber, a picklock, her personal assistant/fiancé and a pickpocket illusionist. With everyone gathered, Croke opens the package to reveal a polished ebony case within which is the priceless Adderstone Diamond, which Croke puts into his safe before promising those assembled that one of them will walk away with it as he is about to write his will and plans to make one of them his heir.

Invited to stay the night, Bonnie and Grampa Banks settle themselves in their rooms and over tea become aware of a strange loud buzzing noise that fades away. Hoping it is a dinner bell, the duo head downstairs and discover that the sound was in fact the buzzer on the monkey house door. With dinner about to be served, everyone except for Croke soon assembles and sensing something is wrong, Bonnie – still disguised as Bonbon – heads outside only to discover Croke’s dead body in the middle of the animals’ cage, which is clearly locked. With a murderer amongst those within the manor, and everyone present having a cast-iron alibi, can Bonnie and Grampa Banks solve the seemingly impossible crime?

A murder motivated by the acquisition of wealth, inherited or otherwise, is a classic whodunnit scenario but what sets this series apart from others is its quirkiness and brilliant wordplay. Yes, there is the occasional childish joke about farting but in the main, the characters and settings are unlike those in any other, comparable, titles on the market, making this an intelligent read for those who are seeking something that is not only packed with humour but that does not talk down to its audience. Created with huge wit, and the author’s tongue very firmly in his cheek, I must also say that this is a book written not just for children to enjoy but their adults too, with some of the jokes – such as the name of the firm of solicitors – clearly aimed at grown up readers, making this a perfect title to share.

It has always seemed ridiculous to me that the alter egos of superheroes such as Wonder Woman and Superman, whose faces are clearly visible, are never recognised by members of the general public and here, again, Bonnie joins their club with a minimal disguise of a stick-on moustache and beret that fools absolutely everyone at the crime scene, while Grampa Banks accompanies her in both her roles as himself – a dead giveaway to Bonbon’s true identity if ever there was one, that only serves to add to the fun.

If you have read either or both of the first two titles (and if not, why not?) you will be familiar with the glorious artwork of Claire Powell, an abundance of which appears within the text, which conveys much of the humour of the book in fabulous detail and which together with the book’s short length (288 pages) makes this a perfect choice for readers growing in confidence in Year 4 upwards. If you haven’t encountered Montgomery Bonbon yet, this works very well as a standalone although I’m sure that once you have read one of the adventures, you will need to read them all. With a Book 4 to come at some point in the future, you have plenty of time to catch up ahead of that.

As always, my enormous thanks go to publisher Walker Books and to Net Galley for my virtual advance read. Montgomery Bonbon: Mystery at the Manor publishes 4th July.