The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch

The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch is one of the most unique mystery novels I have ever read. The book is about an eleven-year-old named Cassandra, or “Cass”. Cass is a survivalist and predicts disasters that never, ever, happen. Her backpack, which she never takes off, is equipped with everything she would need if disaster struck. Her friend, Max-Ernest, a stand-up comedian who makes terrible jokes, and herself uncover a mysterious box filled with powder contained in little vials labeled the Symphony of Smells. The Symphony of Smells, however, held a hidden message, if you figured it out, it spelled HELP. Cass and Max-Ernest were determined to figure out who sent the message, and why. That choice was probably one of the most dangerous decisions they had ever taken on in their life.

When they first head to the house of the man who owned the Symphony of Smells, Pietro, they find a notebook detailing his journey from Italy to America with his brother. However, as they are sneaking out of the home of Pietro, they are nearly caught by a real estate agent hosting an open house for a striking couple. An extremely handsome man and a beautiful woman also looking for Pietro’s diary to use it for evil.

Cass and Max-Ernest decide to keep looking into the mystery, but when the couple kidnaps one of their schoolmates, Benjamin, Cass decides to go after him at their spa, The Midnight Sun. However, shortly before that, Cass and Max-Ernest got into a big fight and Max-Ernest let Cass go alone. Realizing his mistake a few hours later, he goes after Cass into the Midnight Sun spa. Will they both make it out alive, and will Benjamin perish in the couple’s hands?

I thought this was an amazing book because of the way Bosch writes it. He makes everything feel mysterious, making up names for the characters, even Bosch gives himself a pseudonem. Bosch’s real name is Rapheal Simon, but to give the novel a bigger sense of mystery, chose a pen name instead of using his actual one. I didn’t realize until I’d read the book about three times and then I looked it up and there it was, the chocolate loving, mystery novelist’s name. Bosch wrote a marvelous and thrilling book, dotted with laughs, doused with mystery, and out came a delicious novel, ready for the world to read.