Hair in all the Wrong places #3 by Andrew Buckley

Hair in all the Wrong Places #3 (The ‘Things that go Bump in the Night’ Squad) is the third in a series aimed at middle school children about how Colin Strauss became a werewolf and the crazy adventures he has been through since then in order to keep the town of Elkswood and its interesting inhabitants safe. It can be read as a standalone novel.

Colin and the Night Watch are after a hellcat. A nasty critter that seems to have no fear since it’s really hard to destroy. During this hunt, they come across members of the Order of Kane and rescue a girl who was kidnapped by them. All pretty routine, right? But Colin’s recurring nightmares of fire and death and Charles the Demon’s warning that “she will betray you” has him on edge. Add to this his newfound ability to speak to wolves, their latest English teacher who seems a little off, three kidnappings, and a problem with his girlfriend Becca, and you have all the elements of something crazy about to happen. Luckily Colin has backup in the form of the Night Watch team or will he have to go even deeper and use evil to fight evil?

Another brilliant book in the series! Even though the novels are aimed at middle school children, they have a maturity and cleverness about them that even adults would enjoy. The writing is seamless and comfortable to read and the layout of the parts of the story fit well together. I like the way that the characters are used between books and that you are not bombarded with new ones each time. As more and more back stories come through, you can start to see the pieces of the bigger picture come together. The author does a great job of letting you feel Colin’s emotions without being bogged down with too many feelings. There isn’t a cliffhanger as such at the end of the book, but a clever lead into the next one. Mr Buckley does tease you a bit at the end when he ALMOST tells you what Jeremy is (harrumph we have been waiting for three books now, hint hint) and then doesn’t let us in on the secret. Guess I’ll have to wait for the next book!

A very well-written book with a story that keeps you involved from start to finish. I highly recommend this.