The Secret of the Saucer

Hobtown Mystery Stories #3

by Kris Bertin, Alexander Forbes (Visual Art)

Return to Hobtown, the charming rural village in Nova Scotia at the heart of surreal and haunting mysteries, and home to the after-school Teen Detective Club dedicated to solving them. The third must-read volume of the page-turning series that the New York Times calls “forceful and haunting” starts here for the first time ever in a fully colored edition from creators Kris Bertin and Alexander Forbes!

The lines between conspiracy and reality tangle during election season in Hobtown as a new-old member of the Teen Detective Club surfaces to challenge Dana’s leadership and redirect the group’s attention back to the discounted but pressing concern that “ALIENS!” are among us. On a grander scale, amid the town’s hotly contested mayoral race, the arrival of a flying saucer and a chaotic “Ape Lord” being pursued by the local Knitting Circle have the teen sleuths of Hobtown unsure if they’re coming or going, as literal backward thinking tears at the threads of their friendships and their grasp on their latest case . . .

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Mystery

Paperback

About the author

Kris Bertin is a writer of from Halifax, NS. His first book of short stories, BAD THINGS HAPPEN, won the Writers' Union of Canada's 2017 Danuta Gleed Award and the ReLit Award for short fiction. Kris's graphic novel (illustrated by Alexander Forbes) THE CASE OF THE MISSING MEN, published in 2017 by Conundrum Press, was nominated for a Doug Wright Award.

Reviews

[Alin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Placeholder 4⭐️—I think I need to read this two more times and also backwards before I figure out if I liked it.

[Opal Edgar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another brilliant Hobtown mystery! Hold on to your hats with that one, 'cause they went Memento on us.
Of course, it all makes sense, but you better be awake when you read.

I'll admit the first thing I wanted to do when I finished was go through it all over again to get all the little details I missed the first time round. I would recommend the printed version. I read a digital copy, and it's good, but with this kind of alternative story-telling structure it's just nicer to be able to go back and forth the way you want.

Again, I love that world, and it was interesting to see our characters grow and their relationships become more complex. Their friendships are really dear to me, so I hope the authors don't choose to pluck the cords too hard.
A lot is still very much left to unpack in this creepy little town, but it's getting clearer... as clear and easy to understand as ghost cheese.
You like X-files? The dark as much as the weird goofy episodes? Well then, just treat yourself, grab the first volume of Hobtown Mystery.

[Matt Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of my more anticipated reads of the year and Bertin and Forbes largely delivered on another bizarre mystery/conspiracy/adventure in Hobtown. The inverted timeline does make for a more challenging read - even after reviewing it in reverse I still found it a bit perplexing. Instead of full throttle page turning because you can't wait to find out what happens next, you need to soldier through in the hopes that things will start to coalesce. So, I'm rating it a star lower than the other two volumes. However, I plan on re-reading those and following up again with this and I think my impression of it will improve with time. Still absolutely sold on Hobtown and will continue recommending these!

[Haruka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a chance to read this book in advanced. And here my honest review.
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I have read the other 2 of this series but somehow there some questions at the start of the story. This book was okay for me. I love the series and i like that there some relationship going on in the book. The storyline tho the way it was written at first confuses me. I thought i was reading wrongly but then it took a while for me to understand the story. Even with confusion, I still can't wait for the series upcoming books! I just love to learn more of the mystery hobtown!!

[Vintagebooklvr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mayhem, paranormal activity and conspiracies thrive in Hobtown as the town's elections loom. Not only is it a hotly contested race, a flying saucer arrives and an "Ape Lord" is being pursued by the local knitting circle. But the hardest thing for the Teen Detective Club maybe the divisions in the group as someone challenges Dana's leadership and threatens everything they work for...

This was an interesting experience because the story is told backwards. Great illustrations and quirky story.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

[Emma-Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really cool way to tell the story. So cool to work backwards, and in some ways experience the story the way Pauline was. Also the disjointed chapters captured the way everyone's brain got scrambled by the UFO. And then so neat to get to put everything back and order and read it again the other way! I was initially skeptical, and I found I really had to pay attention as I read to be able to follow what was happening backwards, but by the end of it I was really excited about the way the story had been presented.

[Dair · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. I think I actually give it slightly higher than a four, because the story is really interesting. The story is written backwards and to enjoy it I really had to read it backwards and then forwards. Not sure if it was better the way it was set up, or if I would’ve enjoyed it more with a traditional structure. An interesting experiment and as always, the art and storytelling was very strong. I hope there is a fourth book at some point.

[doowopapocalypse · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC from Netgalley.

This is late night marathons of Beyond Belief (specifically when hosted by Jonathan Frakes) fueled by pizza rolls and no name orange soda. This is if David Lynch tried to adapt Alfred Hitchock's Three Investigators. There's no time to wonder why no one noticed the artillery piece under that tarp, there are things watching from the woods.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story wasn't bad and I liked the weirdness of this smalltown where the detective club in town investigates these oddball cases. Being told Memento style really made it difficult to keep track of the plot though. Each chapter went a little further back in time and it was really hard to keep abreast of what was happening. I grew to hate it with each new chapter.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d like to thank edelweiss and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I will say I struggled to get into this one and didn’t enjoy it as much as the first two. Overall still a decent read and looking forward to volume 4.

[Manu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was not a fan of the memento style presentation, after spending couple of chapters from front to back I stopped and restarted from the back. I like the art style and the characters, but it is getting a bit repetitive and it seems like everyone is in one or more secret society.

[Amy Huske · Rating 3 out of 5]

i literally worship these books and have been waiting for this one with a frothing mouth but the backwards format constantly took me out of the freaking wonder of it. and i hate it when the gang isn’t getting along!!

[Nick Van · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid work and good outing for the gang. Enjoyable once one has gotten used to the narrative structure and things started coming together. Perhaps the best in the series, certainly the most complex.

[Elliot Hanowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful - Hobtown has lost none of its mystery or madness or (thank goodness) humor. I devoured it in a few hours and intend to read it again to better understand all the intricate moving parts.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely devoured all 3 volumes of these fantasy-horror comics about mystery-solving teens in 90s Nova Scotia. This volume is "Hobtown's Teen Detective Club does Memento." It's less gimmicky than it sounds, with a real plot purpose for the back-to-front story, and you'll want to read it at least once (maybe twice) in each direction! In general, this is a truly excellent series that should get tons more hype. But take care—these books might be about teens, but it's not Scooby Doo, and occasionally they put the "graphic" in graphic novel.