Time Stops for No Mouse: A Hermux Tantamoq Adventure

The Barnes & Noble Review
If you and your child like mysteries, here's one that will take you on a roller-coaster ride in a race against time to save a mad doctor from wreaking havoc on his town, and perhaps the world. Did we mention that the hero is a mouse, and the mad doctor is a rat?

Welcome to the tiny town of Pinchester, where mice, rats, moles, and minks work hard during the day, go to the opera at night, and munch donuts from Lanayda Prink's coffee shop in between. And Hermux Tantamoq, a local watchmaker who enjoys speaking with his pet ladybug and munching extra-stinky cheese, is much like any other mouse. Then one day, beautiful aviatrix extraordinaire Linka Perflinger gives Hermux her watch to repair -- and promptly disappears. Hermux, who has developed a crush, suspects foul play and vows to find her. He stumbles across the key to the mystery surrounding Linka's disappearance when he intercepts the journal of an adventurous botanist wandering in the mystical country of Teulabonari, home of the native chinchillas (yes, chinchillas). Unfortunately, there are many who would stop at nothing to get their hands on the journal and the priceless information it holds, and Hermux is soon embroiled in a dangerous scheme involving a greedy cosmetics tycoon, a sinister plastic surgeon, a pushy newspaper reporter, a gang of ruthless lab rats, and a scheme that may destroy his peaceful town.

Hoeye's gift for storytelling pulls even the most hesitant reader into this little world, where mice are heroes, rats are murderers, and the mythical Fountain of Youth is a reality. Younger readers may get impatient with Hoeye's painstaking detail as he shows readers every step Hermux makes, but they'll soon realize that even the most minor scene plays a major part in this mystery. In addition, the short chapters make the book perfect for bedtime reading, and readers will have quite a time calling out the funny names of the characters. (Michele D. Thomas)