Mary-Kate wasn’t expecting another close encounter with the creature kind after her first investigation led her to the Woolington Wyrm. A peek at P.K. Mayberry’s A Brief Guide to Monsters and Monster Hunters may have told her otherwise.

“The Rule of Monsters states that people who have met one monster are statistically much more likely to meet another.”

The stats take Mary-Kate to the Greek Islands. While the Prof, her mother, is working on an archaeological dig at a sardine processing plant, Mary-Kate meets a potential new friend, Nikos, even if he does own bicycles that don’t match.

Mary-Kate soon learns that the sardines aren’t the only fishy thing about this island. Rumour has it that the legendary two headed hydra has been causing all sorts of trouble recently.

Together, Mary-Kate and Nikos explore the island. While they’re investigating, Mary-Kate has plenty of opportunities to face her fears.

Fortunately, she came prepared. She has her trusty red sparkly shoes, coordinating outfits, strawberry scented notebook, glitter pens, novelty torch, back up novelty torch and some other very important lucky items on hand.

Mary-Kate is the anxious child role model a lot of us needed when we were kids. She acknowledges her fears while working to overcome them. She asks for help when she needs it and can be specific because she knows what helps her.

Mary-Kate is an absolute sweetheart. I want to follow her and the Prof around the world as they track down elusive, but certainly not mythical, creatures.

‘There are all sorts of weird and wonderful things in the world.’

I loved Freda Chiu’s illustrations as much as I did in the first book. The characters are quirky and expressive and the monsters are wonderful. The details match the descriptions in the text, something that doesn’t always happen in children’s books. My favourite illustration in this book shows Granny in her zebra print dressing gown.

I’ve been keen to spend more time with Granny so I’m thrilled that she’s accompanying Mary-Kate on her next investigation.