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The Half Baked Detective
Sam is a cynical stoner who always has his nose in a detective novel and his head in fantasyland. He lives in his mom's attic and lays around getting high all day and dreaming up detective stories. When a girl goes missing, her best friend and sister enlist Sam to help find her. As he chases down the clues, Sam encounters crooked cops, angry drug dealers, jealous boyfriends, forest-dwelling hippies, a stray dog, and a host of other colorful characters. And of course, he brings along his trusty weed pen to keep his head straight. At first, Sam enjoys playing detective as he starts tracking down the clues and putting the pieces together. But what begins as fun and games quickly turns deadly when a body shows up.
230 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 1, 2022
19 people are currently reading
2251 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 8, 2023
A fun read packed with twists and turns, and a mix of old-timey mystery and elder-millennial nostalgia for those who also grew up on clue and ramen noodles
March 14, 2025
*Paperback
⭐️⭐️ (2/5)
Song: Because I Got High by Afroman (obviously)
“Sometimes the worst people grew up to be the most successful.”
“Well, Mister Stoner. You sure you just smoking grass out here? Store man says they got crackheads out here doing all types of drugs.”
“A little girl shouldn’t know what a man’s balls smell like, Sam.”
This one is described as a #mystery #crime #thriller on the spine need to the little #weed pic. I saw that and it made me laugh. Then I read a couple pages and the main character is 𝙎𝘼𝙈 𝙎𝙏𝙊𝙉𝙀𝙍…I kid you not. So I’m very live and let live…that is to say, I’m clearly not the target audience but I’m not shaming those that are. Immediately my expectations dipped as far as whether this would be one that I enjoyed but it was our #bookclub pick for this month so I figured let’s be a god sport and dive in.
So I don’t read much YA and if I do it’s like Neal Schusterman, or like Lynn Painter…someone like that (very diff YA styles/genres) but generally speaking I doing usually enjoy YA books. This one read like it was made for younger readers except it had drug use and boobs thrown in.
One thing I can get onboard with is Paul Reubens = a national treasure.
If you’re into weed of any sort (joint, pens, gummies, etc) or really any substance including PCP, Coke, pills, etc. and you also like mysteries then this is the book for you.
Wasn’t for me but I’m sure there are some people who would think it was great, I just wasn’t one of them.
⭐️⭐️ (2/5)
Song: Because I Got High by Afroman (obviously)
“Sometimes the worst people grew up to be the most successful.”
“Well, Mister Stoner. You sure you just smoking grass out here? Store man says they got crackheads out here doing all types of drugs.”
“A little girl shouldn’t know what a man’s balls smell like, Sam.”
This one is described as a #mystery #crime #thriller on the spine need to the little #weed pic. I saw that and it made me laugh. Then I read a couple pages and the main character is 𝙎𝘼𝙈 𝙎𝙏𝙊𝙉𝙀𝙍…I kid you not. So I’m very live and let live…that is to say, I’m clearly not the target audience but I’m not shaming those that are. Immediately my expectations dipped as far as whether this would be one that I enjoyed but it was our #bookclub pick for this month so I figured let’s be a god sport and dive in.
So I don’t read much YA and if I do it’s like Neal Schusterman, or like Lynn Painter…someone like that (very diff YA styles/genres) but generally speaking I doing usually enjoy YA books. This one read like it was made for younger readers except it had drug use and boobs thrown in.
One thing I can get onboard with is Paul Reubens = a national treasure.
If you’re into weed of any sort (joint, pens, gummies, etc) or really any substance including PCP, Coke, pills, etc. and you also like mysteries then this is the book for you.
Wasn’t for me but I’m sure there are some people who would think it was great, I just wasn’t one of them.
March 8, 2023
An enjoyable ride! Well written plot with many elements, something sure to please any reader. There's mystery, there's humor, etc.. Likeable characters who never get boring and move the story along at a nice pace. A very pleasant experience overall! I'll definitely be looking for more Timothy J O'Connor books. This was my first one, but he could quickly become a favorite. Highly recommend!
April 21, 2023
*I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway: but all thoughts are my own.*
3.5 rounded up. I thought this was an easy read, and the mystery kept me reading. The main character really is a "half baked detective," because most of the time it doesn't seem to know what he's doing, but somehow managed to figure things out. I also liked the key/symbols as part of the mystery, that added something different and fun to the story. The Half Baked Detective also had a noir quality that I haven't read in a book in a long time, which made this an even better mystery. All in all, a solid read and I will read more from this author in the future.
3.5 rounded up. I thought this was an easy read, and the mystery kept me reading. The main character really is a "half baked detective," because most of the time it doesn't seem to know what he's doing, but somehow managed to figure things out. I also liked the key/symbols as part of the mystery, that added something different and fun to the story. The Half Baked Detective also had a noir quality that I haven't read in a book in a long time, which made this an even better mystery. All in all, a solid read and I will read more from this author in the future.
July 17, 2023
This was a GoodReads giveaway win of a Kindle ebook.
It was a very unlikely protagonist. Mostly he was half baked, but occasionally he came across as fully lit. I found it funny and enjoyable to follow his antics. There were plenty of references to old classic movie mysteries. Our poor Sam is knock about more than most detectives.
I would have liked some additional clues regarding who the actual culprit was, but I find many mysteries fail to leave breadcrumbs along the way and just slam down the full loaf at the end. It didn't really matter, because this was more about how our half baked hero managed to stumble his way to a successful conclusion.
Have a GoodReads.
It was a very unlikely protagonist. Mostly he was half baked, but occasionally he came across as fully lit. I found it funny and enjoyable to follow his antics. There were plenty of references to old classic movie mysteries. Our poor Sam is knock about more than most detectives.
I would have liked some additional clues regarding who the actual culprit was, but I find many mysteries fail to leave breadcrumbs along the way and just slam down the full loaf at the end. It didn't really matter, because this was more about how our half baked hero managed to stumble his way to a successful conclusion.
Have a GoodReads.
March 7, 2024
Fascinating
I received this book from a #goodreadsgiveaway.
I enjoyed the writing in this book. I love a good mystery and one with a Stoner as the lead was fun.
The mystery until the end kept me going. I felt as if I was on the adventure with Sam. Which at times were fun then scary.
Looking forward to exploring this new to me author.
I received this book from a #goodreadsgiveaway.
I enjoyed the writing in this book. I love a good mystery and one with a Stoner as the lead was fun.
The mystery until the end kept me going. I felt as if I was on the adventure with Sam. Which at times were fun then scary.
Looking forward to exploring this new to me author.
March 6, 2023
A very unlikely detective trying to find someone. The one-liners from movies were hilarious. The poor guy just seems to stumble from one place to another. The villain is unexpected but has one of the oldest motivation in humanity.
April 24, 2023
Fun Read. It’s a story I recommend
Overall, the story was predictable however there were a few twists which I was happy to get wrong. These small nuggets kept my attention throughout the story.
It’s a fun,fast read. You will enjoy taking this journey with Sam.
Overall, the story was predictable however there were a few twists which I was happy to get wrong. These small nuggets kept my attention throughout the story.
It’s a fun,fast read. You will enjoy taking this journey with Sam.
April 30, 2023
Thank you Goodreads for giving me this wonderful book. I absolutely loved it. I couldn’t put it down. The characters were interesting. I love how it got wrapped up in the end. It kind of reminded me of the old Black and White mysteries of yesteryear.
April 22, 2023
I won this from a Goodreads giveaway. The mystery was good and I liked the plot. I liked how the main charecter had an alter ego. The way women were written was weird though.
September 3, 2025
Cute and funny story. A quick read. A little corny and some editing errors but a good read.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews