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Wilma Tenderfoot #3
The Case of the Fatal Phantom
Wilma chases down ghosts and hidden treasure in her third endearing mystery
Mystery is afoot when Wilma and her dog, Pickle, snuffle up a mummified body holding an ancient-looking key at Blackheart Mansion, home of the wealthiest family on Cooper Island. When it is revealed that the body belongs to a long-lost ancestor, Bludsten Blackheart, the family fights over Bludsten's key and races to find the treasure it unlocks--rumored to be guarded by a fatal phantom. And just when things reach fever pitch, Wilma discovers another clue about who her parents may be.
In turns heartfelt, hilarious, and mysterious, Wilma's newest adventure is sure to please the budding detective in all of us.
Mystery is afoot when Wilma and her dog, Pickle, snuffle up a mummified body holding an ancient-looking key at Blackheart Mansion, home of the wealthiest family on Cooper Island. When it is revealed that the body belongs to a long-lost ancestor, Bludsten Blackheart, the family fights over Bludsten's key and races to find the treasure it unlocks--rumored to be guarded by a fatal phantom. And just when things reach fever pitch, Wilma discovers another clue about who her parents may be.
In turns heartfelt, hilarious, and mysterious, Wilma's newest adventure is sure to please the budding detective in all of us.
351 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2010
10 people are currently reading
140 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 20, 2011
A SUPERB read!
I really enjoy the part where the mystery is solved and when everything is explained~
The Wilma Tenderfoot series includes a case based on the title and another called the case of the missing relative that is linked into every single book of this series,and I really want to know who's the missing relative!!!
Reccomendation: Anyone!!!
I really enjoy the part where the mystery is solved and when everything is explained~
The Wilma Tenderfoot series includes a case based on the title and another called the case of the missing relative that is linked into every single book of this series,and I really want to know who's the missing relative!!!
Reccomendation: Anyone!!!
July 31, 2011
I think it is a great children's book. Sure, most of the character's are over the top and the 'world' it is in is a little...unlikely, but it makes for a fun time. Glad I stumbled upon it.
December 19, 2016
Wilma Tenderfoot is an apprentice to the great detective, Theodore P. Goodman. She knows little of her past, since she was abandoned at the Lowside Institute for Woeful Children as a baby, but she hopes to use the skills she learns from Dr. Goodman to help uncover the mystery of her own life. In the meantime, she serves as a faithful assistant to Dr. Goodman as he solves various cases around the island of Cooper. In this third book in the series, Wilma and her dog Pickle uncover a mummified body on the property of the Blackheart Mansion. The mummy is holding a key which is supposed to unlock a hidden treasure, but the treasure is guarded by a Fatal Phantom. To make matters worse, Wilma’s enemy, Barbu D’Anvers and several members of the Blackheart family all have different motives for finding the treasure themselves. Who will get there first, and how can Wilma find the evidence she needs to prove the Phantom really does exist?
This is a clever book reminiscent of A Series of Unfortunate Events, but with more characters and British English and fewer vocabulary lessons. Wilma is a plucky, determined heroine who is appealing even when she makes huge errors, and though she is basically the only child character in the book, she holds her own and keeps readers connected to all that is happening. The plot is well thought out, with a couple of twists I never saw coming, and I especially liked the moments when the story drifted into Pickle’s point of view. The ending lines of each chapter, where the narrator offers bits of commentary, are some of my favorite quotations from the book. I normally don’t like books that break the fourth wall in that way, but there is something really enjoyable about reading things like, “Abject terror? Are things about to turn positively PETRIFYING? Let’s hope not, eh?”
I have to confess that for the most part, reading this book was a struggle for me. I can’t find a thing wrong with it - it’s a well-written mystery, with lots of suspense and a couple of real surprises. I think it’s just not my type of book. There are plenty of kids who will dive right into the setting and fall in love with Wilma, but I was overwhelmed by the number of characters and put off by the cutesy word play and silly humor in some sections. I also wished desperately for Wilma to interact more with other kids - it’s hard to relate to a children’s book where most of the characters are adults.
As the book jacket suggests, this book is sure to be a hit with Lemony Snicket’s fans. I think it might also please readers who enjoy Enola Holmes, Gilda Joyce, Nancy Drew, and Ruby Redfort. The Case of the Fatal Phantom is the third book in the series. The first two titles are The Case of the Frozen Hearts and The Case of the Putrid Poison.
This is a clever book reminiscent of A Series of Unfortunate Events, but with more characters and British English and fewer vocabulary lessons. Wilma is a plucky, determined heroine who is appealing even when she makes huge errors, and though she is basically the only child character in the book, she holds her own and keeps readers connected to all that is happening. The plot is well thought out, with a couple of twists I never saw coming, and I especially liked the moments when the story drifted into Pickle’s point of view. The ending lines of each chapter, where the narrator offers bits of commentary, are some of my favorite quotations from the book. I normally don’t like books that break the fourth wall in that way, but there is something really enjoyable about reading things like, “Abject terror? Are things about to turn positively PETRIFYING? Let’s hope not, eh?”
I have to confess that for the most part, reading this book was a struggle for me. I can’t find a thing wrong with it - it’s a well-written mystery, with lots of suspense and a couple of real surprises. I think it’s just not my type of book. There are plenty of kids who will dive right into the setting and fall in love with Wilma, but I was overwhelmed by the number of characters and put off by the cutesy word play and silly humor in some sections. I also wished desperately for Wilma to interact more with other kids - it’s hard to relate to a children’s book where most of the characters are adults.
As the book jacket suggests, this book is sure to be a hit with Lemony Snicket’s fans. I think it might also please readers who enjoy Enola Holmes, Gilda Joyce, Nancy Drew, and Ruby Redfort. The Case of the Fatal Phantom is the third book in the series. The first two titles are The Case of the Frozen Hearts and The Case of the Putrid Poison.
February 8, 2017
Awesome! My favorite of the three, holds mystery ghosts, and phantoms. Wilma has to solve the case, without getting killed, and so save an entire household. the problem is, weird things keep happening. the Fatal Phantom is getting closer to the prey. Can Wilma and Detective Goodman solve the case, before someone kills Wilma? Read this exciting story to find out!
February 9, 2011
I Love This Series!
April 9, 2016
I've read this book... EXCEPT the cover is different, the cover is of Wilma climbing on the shelves of the Hoo. Yes the Hoo
April 7, 2014
i didn't really get the book.there's a lot of people who did the crime.
Read
February 9, 2016Wilma continues to work at being the best apprentice detective she can be.
December 31, 2017
You can't help but cheer for Wilma Tenderfoot
May 6, 2021
This case, the third book, has Wilma seeing ghosts. I won't spoil it and say how, just know, there IS a spook in this one, although it's not who you think it is.
Tempers flare at the Blackheart Mansion, the largest and wealthiest abode on Cooper Island, as its heirs gamble away the family fortune and it appears a ghost will do anything to keep outsiders from finding the Blackheart Treasure, a gold claw buried somewhere on the island.
Pickle's nose gets Wilma into this adventure, in by finding a mummy in an archeological dig. Then Lord Blackheart hires Theodore Goodman to investigate the treasure, and they're off on a mad-cap treasure hunt, finding clues, deciphering maps, exposing hidden / secret journal entries, and staunchly insisting that ghosts do not exist!
Of course, the evil villain Barbu D'Anvers just has to insert himself with his evil plans for finding -- or stealing, if he and his henchmen don't find it first -- the treasure!
Will Goodman get there in time to save Wilma from the Fatal Phantom? Or is this her last case?
A great mystery and treasure hunt, just a tad on the spooky side!
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
Tempers flare at the Blackheart Mansion, the largest and wealthiest abode on Cooper Island, as its heirs gamble away the family fortune and it appears a ghost will do anything to keep outsiders from finding the Blackheart Treasure, a gold claw buried somewhere on the island.
Pickle's nose gets Wilma into this adventure, in by finding a mummy in an archeological dig. Then Lord Blackheart hires Theodore Goodman to investigate the treasure, and they're off on a mad-cap treasure hunt, finding clues, deciphering maps, exposing hidden / secret journal entries, and staunchly insisting that ghosts do not exist!
Of course, the evil villain Barbu D'Anvers just has to insert himself with his evil plans for finding -- or stealing, if he and his henchmen don't find it first -- the treasure!
Will Goodman get there in time to save Wilma from the Fatal Phantom? Or is this her last case?
A great mystery and treasure hunt, just a tad on the spooky side!
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews