It's Maisie Hitchins Blog Tour Time! We've already introduced you to Holly Webb's brilliant new girl detective Maisie Hitchins. We scurried away with a copy of the first book and have been chipping away at it over the space of a week or so (we love reading chapter books but it does take us a wee while to get through them compared to picture books, I'm sure you'll understand!)

We've been drawn to Maisie Hitchins for so many reasons. Of course one of the main reasons is Holly's knack of coming up with scintillating characters and settings that just grab our attention (in this case, setting a girl detective story in victorian times is like catnip for Charlotte!)

We love the design and feel of the books, they're early chapter books but are lovingly illustrated throughout with awesome black and white drawings by Marion Lindsay.

Most of all though we're back to the writing - and the stories which are page-turningly addictive and have us clamouring for more now we've polished off the first.

So what happens in "Maisie Hitchins - The Case of the Stolen Sixpence"? We won't spoil things for you too much but of course as the first novel you're introduced to Maisie herself, who lives in a boarding house with her grandmother and a housemaid. Maisie thrills to the adventures of Gilbert Carrington, the famous detective as he solves huge complex cases in his own inimitable style. Maisie feels that they have a common link, a knack for observation and solving mysteries - and before long Maisie is drawn into a case (or two) of her very own.

At the start of this thrilling adventure, she meets her sidekick Eddie the puppy, who she rescues from a sack thrown into the canal. Maisie and Eddie become inseparable, and Maisie vows to solve the mystery of who would do such a cruel thing to a dear little wonky-eared puppy like Eddie.

But Maisie is soon drawn into another case, the titular "Case of the Stolen Sixpence" when a butcher boy who tussles with Eddie over a string of sausages, is wrongly accused of theft and sacked on the spot. Maisie feels guilty for George's dismissal and knows that he was not the guilty culprit. But she has to prove it!

To say that Charlotte is now Maisie's biggest fan is a bit of an understatement. Normally we struggle to engage with chapter books because my impatient little miss hasn't quite got used to the relatively longer experience of reading and reviewing chapter books. The ones that make it through our fine-meshed net though are the ones that she engages with from the very start, and that was definitely the case with this first Maisie Hitchins adventure.

As the story reaches a brilliant climax, we were already eyeing the two other Maisie Hitchins books that Stripes were kind enough to send us, and also wondering when the other books we haven't yet got were due to be published as we'll be picking them up as soon as they hit the shelves.

If your little girl or boy love a thrilling detective adventure, and love the idea of a girl detective series taking its cues from the brilliance of the Sherlock Holmes stories but setting out its table in a child-friendly and wholly immersive way, you really need to get to know Maisie Hitchins, we've a feeling you'll become huge fans like we already are.


Charlotte's best bit: There's a wonderfully bittersweet moment with Eddie and his mum that is Holly's favourite bit as well as Charlotte's. Have tissues ready!

Daddy's Favourite bit: The first book introduces a fabulous cast of characters and wraps you in the atmosphere of Victorian times, with many a mystery afoot. Love the subtle nods to Sherlock Holmes novels. A book that has really caught Charlotte's attention and spurred her imagination in wonderful ways. 

(Kindly sent to us for review by Little Tiger Press)

Holly Webb, author of the new "Maisie Hitchins" series for Little Tiger Press

Welcome to the magical Maisie Hitchins Blog Tour! We were very fortunate to be asked to join in with a celebration of Holly Webb's awesome new girl detective series, and so we racked our brains to think of some tricky questions for Holly. Here goes!


ReadItDaddy (Daddy): Hi Holly and thanks for spending some time answering our tricky blogger questions. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your books.

Holly Webb: I’ve been writing books for the last ten years. I used to be an editor at a children’s publisher, working with some amazing authors, but I came up with a book idea I loved, and swapped sides! Since then I’ve written (scarily) more than eighty books.

ReadItDaddy (Daddy): Maisie Hitchins is a brilliant creation and Charlotte is already a huge fan. What made you want to write a girl detective series set in Victorian times (which is, by the way, a completely genius idea!)

Holly Webb: I’m so glad Charlotte likes Maisie! I love her as a character, she’s huge fun to write. Maisie came out of my love for Sherlock Holmes – I discovered the stories aged about 10 and was obsessed with them for ages. But I wanted a strong girl character, and I loved the idea that Maisie would solve crimes partly because no one would think she was a detective, as she was a very unimportant child…

ReadItDaddy (Daddy): You’re so prolific, and it looks like you have lots of plans for more Maisie Hitchins adventures, do you have any super-secret methods you can share with us for writing success and keeping up the impetus?

Holly Webb: Er, no… I wish I did… Lots of coffee? I suppose my only secret method is that I really enjoy writing (most of the time). And because I do write lots of different books, often at the same time, if I get stuck on one, I can often do something else. By the time I come back to the first book I’ve usually unstuck myself, if you see what I mean.

ReadItDaddy (Daddy): We’ve been huge fans of your wonderful festive books, any plans for Christmas 2014 or are you sworn to secrecy?

Holly Webb: Ah ha! No one has actually sworn me to anything, so I think I’m allowed to say that there is a wolf book! It’s been brilliant for me to write, as it’s set in backwoods America, and it meant I absolutely had to reread all of the “Little House” books. For research purposes only, of course.

ReadItDaddy (Daddy): Maisie is the sort of character we’d imagine would work superbly as a children’s picture book (we love Marion Lindsay’s covers and inside illustrations for the series). Any thoughts on that idea?

Holly Webb: Oooh, well, not till you suggested it. I love Marion Lindsay’s illustrations. When I was working on the first Maisie book, she did an amazing set of sample ideas, which I have up on my wall, they helped so much!

Maisie Hitchins and her trusty doggie sidekick Eddie! On the case!

From Charlotte:

ReadItDaddy (Charlotte): Can Eddie have his own adventure please? (I think she’d rather love to see Eddie get his own doggie detective book for younger readers)

Holly Webb: What a brilliant idea! (I am getting an awful lot of good ideas out of this interview. Hmmm.) I loved writing the part of The Stolen Sixpence where Eddie sees his old owner and his mother. It was one of those moments when I almost made myself cry (very silly).

ReadItDaddy (Charlotte): Who is your favourite (Disney or fairytale) princess?

Holly Webb: Cinderella. The film was re-released in cinemas when I was (I think) about 8, and I saw it three times. I can sing the mice’s dressmaking song! But I’ve recently seen Tangled and Frozen with my own children, and I really like the way that in the newer Disney films the princesses are in charge of their own stories. They don’t just sit around waiting to be rescued!

ReadItDaddy (Charlotte): How would I become an author? What should I concentrate on in school?

Holly Webb: I never planned to be an author at all. I just wanted to be a librarian, because I loved to read, and then I became an editor because it meant working with books. But that was fab training for being an author, because it meant that I read loads, and I thought carefully about what I read. So I would say read, read and read! And then try and work out why you liked a book, or why you got a bit bored halfway through. (Some spelling might be useful too, but actually, authors have lovely editors to help with all of that!)

Huge thanks to Holly for spending some time with us (and we can't wait to see what happens next with Maisie!)

Don't miss our review of Maisie Hitchins' first case - "The Case of the Stolen Sixpence".

As an extra treat from Stripes / Holly and Marion, here are some fantastic Maisie Hitchins Colouring Sheets for you to print out and colour

Sheet 1

Sheet 2

Do not miss Maisie Hitchins by Holly Webb and Marion Linsday, in her fantastic book series available from Little Tiger Press

Holly Webb's gorgeous snowy stories have become well-loved books for us, but when we found out that Holly had been burning the pencil at both ends to write a fantastic series of books based on a victorian girl detective, we couldn't resist finding out more.

Meet Maisie Hitchins, a plucky girl with flame red hair and green eyes, who is curious and inquisitive. Along with her sidekick Eddie (a rather frenetic and energetic little dog) they embark on a series of adventures and mysteries - starting with the first book in the series, "The Case of the Stolen Sixpence"

Maisie Hitchins - The Case of the Stolen Sixpence by Holly Webb

Today is publishing day for book one, but we've been fortunate enough to take a look at two more books in the series too!

Maisie Hitchins - The Case of the Secret Tunnel by Holly Webb (Release Date: 6th May 2014)

Maisie Hitchins - The Case of the Feathered Mask (Release date: 6th May 2014

One of the things we find hard is to find really great books that have adventure, excitement and mystery in them - but have strong 'girl' appeal. Though the Maisie Hitchins books work equally well for girls and boys, it's a series that has instantly caught Charlotte's attention (and will probably fill our bedtime reading slot for quite some time to come!) A perfect combination of setting (Anything "Victorian" is always a huge hit with Charlotte), an air of mystery and supernatural suspense, and more than a nod to fabulous detective mysteries like Sherlock Holmes make this a truly unmissable series for our very own little girl detective! Fantastic covers and illustrations by Marion Lindsay (we love love LOVE the house drawing at the start of each tale) really make this series a brilliant transition for children who are moving on from picture books into early chapter readers.

Two more books in the Maisie Hitchins series, "The Case of the Missing Emerald" and "The Case of the Phantom Cat" will closely follow.

We'll be catching up with Holly really soon on the blog and will keep you up to date with all things Maisie, rest assured!


Charlotte's best bit: So far we're reading through "The Case of the Stolen Sixpence" and it's instantly grabbed Charlotte's attention and peaked her curiosity. Fabulous stuff!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A fantastic character, a brilliant setting, tons of atmosphere and suspense, Maisie is set to become an instant hit with girls and boys who love a detective mystery or two.

(Maisie Hitchins books kindly supplied to us for preview by Stripes Publishing. Look out for full reviews soon!)