MYSTERY CLUB

Set in London, England, two monster mysteries in graphic-novel format.

Kyle, who blogs his passion for ghosts and monsters, is actively on the lookout for a mystery to solve. In “Wild Werewolves,” the first of the two stories, a stranger named Lon Chaney approaches Kyle and his friend Zoey at the library. He believes that a few nights ago he turned into a werewolf, and he asks them to find a solution. Kyle and Zoe team up with Ashley and Tyler, two more friends, to work out why werewolves have suddenly appeared in the city. In “Mummy Mischief,” the four friends read an online news article about a mummy on the subway (the text has been Americanized) and go to the British Museum’s mummy exhibit to get more clues. Both stories are reminiscent of Scooby-Doo, and Robert’s bright illustrations offer a lot of potential. However, the stories lack conviction, and although the book tries (very hard!) to be funny, the wordplay is clunky and the jokes often fall flat. (For instance, the answer to the question “Why would a mummy travel on the subway?” is “Because taxis don’t give rides to mummies!”) Most importantly, perhaps, the allegedly teenage characters read like 8-year-olds. Zoey is the only character of color, but her identity does not come into play at all during the course of the stories.

Ultimately, this European import is clumsy and uninteresting.