Review: The Watcher in the Shadows by Chris Moriarty

The Watcher in the Shadows by Chris Moriarty. Sequel to The Inquisitor's Apprentice.

Harcourt Childrens Books
Publication Date: May 2013
List Price: $16.99
ISBN-13: 9780547466323

Review: How could no one have heard his last words? Watcher in the Shadows by Chris Moriarty is an average mystery book. The main character is Wolf, a man trying to find out who killed a famous clarinet player named The Klezmer King, Asher. Two people named Sacha and Lily assist Wolf in trying to find who killed The Klezmer King, Naftali Asher. Watcher in the Shadows is the second book in its series after The Inquisitor's Apprentice.

A man named The Klezmer King, Naftali Asher, dies mysteriously during his clarinet recital, so an Inquisitor named Wolf assisted by Sacha and Lily come and try to investigate everyone at the recital. Wolf was one of, if not the best, interrogator. A lady explains she heard The Klezmer King and his dresser, Sam, arguing. Sam may have been a little boy, except he was very intelligent. He always worked on The Klezmer King's clothes to make them look more fancy than they used to be. Could he have sabotaged The Klezmer King? He was always very kind though; he wouldn't hurt anyone it was out of his nature. Wolf tries to see if anyone heard The Klezmer King's last words because they could have been the killer's name. Somehow no one heard his last words. Could Sam have killed the Klezmer King, Naftali Asher?

Watcher in the Shadows was an average book that I would recommend for boys and girls between the ages of 11-15 who like mysteries. I think this because it uses words like "synagogue" and "hippodrome" younger kids might not know the meaning of these words. The book is a little hard to get into until you read farther. Don't read this if you haven't read the first book because you won't understand much of the book. I liked the plot, but it changes from the prologue. People are looking for a kidnapped girl and then the plot switches to people who are looking for a murderer. It goes from kidnapping to someone dying. The dialogue kept my attention, but there are a lot of things that happen you might not comprehend unless you read the first book. In summary, you should read this book only if you've read the first book in the series. Readers who are acquainted with the first book will enjoy mysterious chapter endings and the action in each chapter. Watcher in the Shadows is great overall for people who like mysteries!

Review written by Zachary (6th grade student).

We would like to thank Houghton Mifflin for providing a copy of The Watcher in the Shadows for this review.

Have you read The Watcher in the Shadows? How would you rate it?