Murphy and the Mystery of the Outlaw Gold Mine

Alaska Williwaw, #2

by

Bradford D. Smith

A fun middle-grade mystery set in the historic gold-mining region near Juneau, Alaska.

Murphy and the Mystery of the Outlaw Gold Mine is the second book in author Bradford D. Smith’s fun, informative, and adventure-filled middle-grade Alaska Williwaw mystery series, set principally on Douglas Island near Juneau, Alaska. While out hiking the trails of Mount Roberts on the mainland, Murphy Delgado accidentally falls into part of the old underground mining tunnels that honeycomb the mountainside. But before his close friend, Katrina, can help extricate him, he sees two men in a lower tunnel who shoot at him rather than offer aid. Glimpsing the men’s mysterious machinery and covered in the ubiquitous red mud in the tunnels, Katrina pulls Murphy to the surface and safety, and straight into their next exciting adventure. 

Murphy and Katrina are a fun pair of protagonists who give young readers relatable main characters to root for as they problem-solve their way through a variety of hazardous situations. They work things out on their own, using the adults in their lives as safe havens and sources of information, never telling them exactly what they’re up to. Some of the scrapes they get into, though, stem directly from poor decisions and their failure to tell an adult the important things they’ve uncovered. 

Mentions of characters and events presumably from the previous book dot the narrative and conversations but were unexplained. I assume the encounters and inclusion tied the story to the characters’ history with each other and the others but from a newcomer’s viewpoint, these side stories slowed the current one down. Other than that, the story works okay as a standalone, but I do wish I’d started the series with the first book as the unexplained sorties into the past left me feeling a little confused and left out. The resolution came with its own fast-paced excitement as they outdo the bad guys. 

I recommend MURPHY AND THE MYSTERY OF THE OUTLAW GOLD MINE to readers of middle-grade mysteries and fiction, but especially for those who have read the previous book in the series. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.