Bunnicula: Howliday Inn

Looks like Harold, the dog, and Chester,the cat, are going to spend the week at Chateau Bow-Wow while their human family are off on vacation. Not what they were expecting! Nor were they expecting the adventure they had!Arriving at Chateau Bow-Wow, Harold and Chester meet their fellow borders: Louise - a French poodle, Max - a turtle-neck wearing bulldog, Georgette - a dog (these three are part of a triangle...maybe), Taxi - a mutt of a dog, Lyle - a wacky cat, and Howard and Heather - a pair of dachshunds. There are also the humans that are there to take care of the critters; Harrison and Jill.The weather is stormy and rainy, complete with thunder and lightning; perfect backdrop for what happens! There is also that eerie howling that is heard and is later found to be Howard and Heather. Why the howling?It seems that the next morning Louise is missing! Rumours go around that she has run off, or poisoned, or.... Then Chester is missing! Harold is pretty sure he hasn't run off, but was he poisoned? The animals decide they must find their missing friends.There is a lot of humour in this and it is good fun kid stuff. There are also illustrations to go with the story.

Cute little kid's murder mystery story. Not as good as the first book of course, but enjoyable.

Cute little kid's murder mystery story. Not as good as the first book of course, but enjoyable.

Howliday Inn features Chester and Harold, the cat and author--dog--of Bunnicula. This time, instead of being introduced to a theoretically vampiric pet bunny, the boys are off to Chateau Bow-Wow while the family goes on a vacation. Once as comfortable as can be expected in their bungalows [which look remarkably similar to cages], they are introduced to the eclectic collection of other animals staying with them. With suspicious howlings in the night and a dog that goes missing after some compound drama, Chester's mind is alive with possibilities and detective impulses. The boys must figure out the goings on [going ons?] of the dubiously titled Chateau Bow-Wow before something terrible befalls one of the guests--or themselves. I honestly don't have too much to say here. Howe is a rather delightful author, or as he would have us believe, Harold is, and the books are great fun to read. From Harold's no-nonsense doggie ways to Chesters insane imagination and feline indignance, the characters are charming and the antics hilarious. I'm sure I'll be reading the other three Howe books because they only take a sitting, and after an eight-hour day of making sure manic mothers manage to make Mayan mystics properly [clay, popcicle sticks and paint all on a lovely foam-core base or shoebox], something as light and perpetually enjoyable is called for. Truly.

To build on my belief that this series should be called "The Harold and Chester Mysteries," Bunnicula doesn't even appear in this story. Instead, the Monroe's go on vacation and Harold and Chester are sent to a kennel called Chateau Bow-Bow. There, Chester immediately begins to share his suspicions of the other dogs and cats and their human caretakers. It turns out that there is something suspicious going on even if Chester's earliest assumptions were way off base, but it does lead up to a wonderful Holmes and Watson moment for Chester and Harold. Another fun book with a bit of mystery.

Great read-aloud.

It was an interesting little mystery, but some of it was written very awkwardly so it was difficult to figure out what was going on, who was talking to who, etc.

I really,really like this book. This is my second time reading it. I read it a long time ago, but had forgotten what had happend. So I re read it. If you like mysteries you definately need to read this book. It's NOT one of those mysteries were you know right away what happens. There are different twists and turns. I love the characters. Especially Harold. They are all funny, I can't wait to read more of this series. =)