By Carl Hiaasen -- Author interview coming soon!
Reviewed by TFK Kid Reporter Morgan Mullings

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Number of pages: 371

What's the basic story line?

Nick and Marta, average middle school students, get caught up in a mindboggling mystery after a fire starts during their field trip to Black Vine Swamp. Mrs. Starch, their greatly feared biology teacher, goes into the fire to search for another students asthma inhaler and never comes back. Nick and Marta become involved in secret plots as they try to figure out what happened to their teacher. The search leads them on an exciting adventure involving enemies, endangered species and many dangerous situations.

Were the characters believable?

Most of the characters are very believable. They are just like regular people. They have their own ideas, and if they come across others with different viewpoints, they could either be open- or closed-minded to them. Mrs. Starch is the closed-minded type. For example, if she has a plan for something and someone suggests otherwise, she ignores it and moves on. On the other hand, Nick and Marta are open-minded. Although they try to stick to their own ideas, if another plan is promising, they would consider it.

On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being best), how would you rate this book?

I would rate this book a 9. It is one of the best books I have ever read. After the first few sentences, I was completely pulled into the story. The only negative comments I have are that the book might be a little too long, and that some of the language might be inappropriate for younger kids. Otherwise, the book is amazing, and I look forward to reading Hiaasens other books.