What a perfect addition to the first book

Middle Grade Monday is all about Book 2 of The Dirt Bike Detective Series, The Beast in the Shadows. We couldn't wait to start this second book following this great group of kids, and neither will you.

This group of kids, Chase, Oliver, Jax, Edward, and Gio continue to captivate us as they are hired to investigate a theft. I absolutely love how well they portray what school is like for kids these days. Douglas L Hoover, does a fabulous job making each one of these kids relatable in todays school. They have their own struggles and their own strengths, as well as they are all individual in their backstories, and cultures. He expands on each of their development in this book.

This is a great continuation of the first book, it's much shorter and my family could have listened for much longer!

We really enjoyed the narrator and the story. During the first book, we became so connected to these characters!!

If you enjoy middle grade mysteries with paranormal vibes, with a fun group of school kids, grab this series!! My kids and I loved the Sasquatch possibilities, we love all things
Big Foot!

I hope there are more adventures awaiting these kiddos, it sure seems like this school could provide us a few more mysteries!

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Continuing a fun paranormal tinged adventure!

The story of the dirt bike detectives continues with their attempt to solve a theft, a vicious attacking creature (werewolf, Lycan, sasquatch, or….), and evading the shadow entity that returns with a warning. They are safe nowhere as Chase is visited at home by the mysterious and threatening shadow being and their school is haunted by ghosts. They are optimistic they can solve the mysteries, well at least in the beginning.

Douglas Hoover, the author, continues the story of Chase, Oliver, Jax, Eduard, and Gio as they face new mysteries and beings. Every mystery with these kids has a paranormal or cryptozoology lens to it which is what makes the book so much fun. Remember when you were a child and your inability to see the whole picture? These kids have it in spades! The characters were very well developed in Book 1 but continue to grow in this book as well. The book can be read as a stand-alone or as a series; the author does a great job of informing the first-time listener of the characters’ past. The storyline is solid and simple yet made more complex with the children’s paranormal lens to it. Easy to follow with a few plot twists tossed in. His including a bully or rather a set of bullies is awesome especially when the payback is not only funny but so worth it! As with bullies, it is clear from this book that they will not have learned their lesson and the kids will continue to be threatened by them. The dialogue is authentic as are most of the experiences.

The narrator, Ramon De Ocampo does an excellent job of bringing the characters to life in rich and vivid tones. His delivery is precise, clear, and well-timed. He captures the excitement and frustrations of each child perfectly.

This is a great series! Having worked with others in the paranormal world, the manner in which these kids go off track is very realistic! Everything is tinged with the paranormal and they are no different. Whether you are a kid or an adult, give it a try – it’s great!

There were no issues with the quality or production of this audiobook.

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Another excellent adventure

From Stephen king’s IT to Dan Simmons’ Summer of Night, stories with teenagers fighting evil fascinate us and test our imagination. As adults, we got to enjoy such stories, but kids and teenagers need to grow up before they can experience those epic, but extremely dark adventures.

Enter, The Beast in the Shadows, a great audiobook about a group of 12-year-old misfit children who try to solve a series of paranormal mysteries in their school and its surroundings. The Beast in the Shadows is the second thrilling novel in a new extremely promising Saga Written by Douglas L. Hoover, featuring these unique characters introduced in The Dirt Bike Detective.

Late last year I listened to the first audiobook in the series, and to be honest with you, I enjoyed it a lot, so I was looking forward to seeing what these endearing teenagers were going to do next.

It was quite comforting to spend these five hours with Oliver, Chase, and their friends, Eduard, Gio, and last but not least with Jax, the girl of Oliver’s dreams. The author continues to evolve and expand the character arc for each of the above-mentioned school kids and this helps us to create a picture of what kind of adults they will be when they’ll grow up.

Since I listened to The Beast in the Shadows I am left, once again, caring a lot for these teenagers as the writing is vivid and the action moves swiftly.

Raven Ridge Academy, the school attended by our young heroes, is no safe place as old ghosts reappear, bullies harass the kids endlessly, and add to that the troubling fact that the teaching staff can’t be trusted, a simple investigation for a stolen pizza box can easily transform in the fight of their lives for these brave children. The story of The Beast in the Shadows is entertaining, these kids feel real and their adventures are filled with humor, wit, courage, friendship, and mystery.

It was a real pleasure to see accomplished Television, Film, Stage, and multiple award-winning Voice actor Ramón de Ocampo bringing for a second time to life these adventures, the kids, and the events of The Beast in the Shadows, with another pitch-perfect performance! Ramón is one of the best narrators in the Audiobooks Industry and manages with skill and passion to take an already excellent work of fiction to an entirely new level of immersion.

Mr. de Ocampo is an expert when it comes to assigning each of the characters a unique, easily distinguishable voice and that’s exactly what he does here. As such, the listener won’t have any difficulty in discerning who is speaking at a given time. The narration is excellent, fast, easy to follow, filled with laugh-out-loud moments, lively, and extremely entertaining.

If you are looking for an epic tale featuring a cast of unforgettable characters, then I highly recommend The Beast in the Shadows and the first audiobook of this saga, The Dirt Bike Detective! Although this is definitely another story targeting young adults, I’m sure that the entire family can enjoy it because good writing has no age restrictions!

I hope that Mr. Douglas L. Hoover will continue the series as I can’t wait to return to Raven Ridge Academy, Four more adventures.

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1 person found this helpful

Smartest Middle School Detectives

This was a simple investigation turned crazy adventure.
I loved this book, and the narrators voice makes it even more enjoyable.

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The Dirt Bike Detective #2 The Beast in the Shadows

I gave the The Beast in the Shadow 5 stars across the board! It’s a well thought out mystery with a quirky team of detectives that keeps you listening. Ramon De Ocampo has amazing voices, bringing all the characters to life beautifully. DLH brings us yet another masterfully written mystery that is not dumbed down for young readers or cheats to make the ending work. I’m already waiting for the next book to hit the shelves.

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A Perfect Sequel.

The second installment in The Dirt Bike Detective Series was just as good as the first. I listened to the first book on Audio and I loved it so much I decided to do the same with this book. Douglas L. Hoover will never cease to amaze me with the use of his imagery and there is no greater experience than to be able to listen to the picture being painted for me. I absolutely love the narrator, Ramon de Ocampo, and I think he was the perfect pick for this series. He does a wonderful job not only bringing Hoover’s words to life but also connecting with his inner child to bring these characters to life.
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While this story wasn’t as suspenseful as the first I did find it whimsical and entertaining which made it perfect in its own way. I’m very intrigued with the way this series is going and I can’t help but wonder if anyone else in the crew will be able to meet the infamous Odyssey and hear about the other world. I feel like that’s the setup this book was going for but I could be totally wrong and I will continue to ponder this thought as I *not so patiently* wait for the third book. I did really enjoy seeing the friendships between Ollie, Chase, Geo, Jax, and Edward flourish and I love how even when they get annoyed with one another they continue to show up and be there for the group. I, also, really love seeing how their friendships progress, especially because this was a group of kids who didn’t give each other the time of the day the school year before. They're all just a bunch of little misfits who found solace in one another's company and I adore that.
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I thought the author did a great job with bringing back characters we met in the first book and loved while also introducing some new characters that, I think, will make appearances in future books. The dynamic between Chase and his sister Aspen is so heartwarming because you don’t often see brothers and sisters caring for one another in books. I think this dynamic is especially important because this book is middle grade and promoting these healthy relationships to growing children can only help nurture them.
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Overall this book was whimsical, funny, and heartwarming which is very different from the tragic and suspenseful story that was told in the first book. However I did love this book just as much and even though it’s a middle grade series I will be adding it to my list of series’ to continue because I’m invested with these characters and I cannot wait to see where their story goes.

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