Knightley & Son: Cracking the Code by Rohan Gavin (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Knightley & Son: Cracking the Code by Rohan Gavin Kate Quealy-Gainer Gavin, Rohan. Knightley & Son: Cracking the Code. Bloomsbury, 2014. 272p. Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-61963-153-3 $16.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-61963-154-0 $11.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 5-7. Since his gumshoe father fell into a coma four years ago, kid-genius Darkus Knightley has been memorizing his dad’s files, learning as much about the skill of detection as possible, and it looks like those skills are about to be put to the test. A series of unexplained robberies plagues London, and a best-selling book is suddenly sending people into madness. Additionally, Darkus’ dad has just woken up, and he wants to take these cases on his own, convinced that they are linked to the Combination, a worldwide network of villains bent on world destruction. Unfortunately, an episode of narcolepsy puts Dad out of commission again, and it’s up to Darkus to finish the case. Darkus has the calculating mind, the cool attention to detail, and the abundance of tweed of a young Sherlock Holmes, and the characterizations, plot devices, and story arc combine in an amalgam of classic detective tropes boiled down for the middle-grade audience. The father-son relationship adds a bit of pathos to all the logic, with Darkus wondering if his father sees him as anything other than a useful detecting tool. The mystery is genuinely compelling, with the appropriate MacGuffins and red herrings, and the bad guys get their comeuppance (two of them quite gruesomely). A few hints at the conclusion, however, point toward a sequel, and readers can hope that Darkus’ snarky stepsister and gadget-loving teacher will play bigger parts in upcoming installments. Copyright © 2014 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois