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"Something Wicked: A Horatio Wilkes Mystery" by Alan Gratz

Author:

Alan Gratz

Publisher:

Dial Books, Penguin Group, New York, 2008

Reviewed by:

Kristine Wildner, , Holy Apostles School, New Berlin, Wis.

In his second book featuring amateur teen detective Horatio Wilkes, Alan Gratz has once again created an enthralling, multi-layered mystery paralleling a Shakespearian play – MacBeth. While the underlying plot and major characters involved in the crime mirror the classic play, the entire story is contemporary. Like the first book in the series, Something Rotten, Horatio Wilkes is visiting a friend, Mac, during the local Highland Games, a Scottish cultural festival. Mac, a bit of a hot shot, is completely manipulated by his older, beautiful girlfriend – Beth as she convinces him into taking on one daring stunt after another. After a fun visit to the palm reader, Mac becomes convinced that he will become “King of the Mountain” and winner of the highland games. His cousin, Banks, is predicted to eventually become the owner of the mountain. As Mac desperately strives to make the predictions come true, the mountain’s current owner, Duncan is viciously murdered. Horatio discovers the body and investigates the multi-layered motives of the people involved – including his good friend Mac.

The story is told from Horatio’s detective point of view with lots of dialog. Crude sexual remarks, although realistic in terms of young adult banter, will be offensive to some readers. Although familiarity with Shakespeare’s MacBeth is not required to understand the story, it does sweeten the tale for the reader if able to predict some events based on knowledge of character traits and events in Shakespeare. Adding to the appeal to today’s teens, some contemporary references and comparisons require a broad knowledge of 20th and 21st century popular culture to fully comprehend and will eventually date the book. The book will be especially popular after studying MacBeth and to students involved in Scottish cultural events – dance, bagpipe playing, etc. There is something here for both male and female readers with plenty of action balanced with a story told through dialog and complex personal relationships. Quotes and situations from Shakespeare anchor the story to a much broader historical realm. A solid, entertaining murder mystery recommended for high school students.