Fabio - The World's Greatest Flamingo Detective - Mystery on the Ostrich Express. By Laura James

Fabio is the world's greatest flamingo detective. Never heard of one of those before. He's thin, pink, and very very clever. Alongside him, fighting for justice, is his loyal friend Gilbert the giraffe. He hasn't mastered the art of disguise but Gilbert's very good at questioning people.

Zazie the wealthy fox owns the priceless Laluzi ruby. There's a rhyme about the ruby that says it can only be owned by those who have a true heart, otherwise it will find a new owner. And whilst on the fastest train in the world, the ruby has gone missing. It's Fabio and Gilbert's job to figure out who stole it, how they did it, and try and get it back. Will Fabio manage to name the criminal?

I enjoyed this mystery, even though I kind of figured out what had happened. I liked the names of the characters, and how there were lots of clues but not enough to give it away totally and completely. It's fun to try and figure it out yourself.

I didn't like that it was a bit too obvious who'd stolen it, and for me, the book was a bit too short. For younger readers or people who don't like long books, it would be good, because it also has lots of nice illustrations to break it up.

Fabio, The World's Greatest Flamingo Detective - Mystery on the Ostrich Express

Written by Laura James

Illustrated by Emily Fox

Published by Bloomsbury (2019)

121 pages