Steve Hockensmith is on the right track with, er, ON THE WRONG TRACK, an immediate sequel to last year’s HOLMES ON THE RANGE, the Western/mystery hybrid about the two Amlingmeyer cowpoke brothers: One worships Sherlock Holmes, despite not being able to read, and the other is the relenting Watson to his older sibling’s penchant to play detective.

Appropriately, the utterly genial ON THE WRONG TRACK is set on a fancy-schmancy choo-choo train. They’ve just been made railway detectives – Old Red, jumping at the chance to play Sherlock, loves the idea, while Big Red just gives in as usual and plays along. No sooner has their maiden voyage begun that a disembodied head bounces up from beneath the train, belonging to one of the employees.

Taking a page – or the entire binding – from Agatha Christie’s classic MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, just about everyone on board can be considered a suspect, and Hockensmith’s lineup is a diverse cast of crazy characters: a Pinkerton detective, an “Oriental” doctor, a “Negro” porter, a cocky drummer, a beautiful woman, a young newsboy and so on. If that weren’t enough to deal with, there’s the ever-present threat of being robbed by the Give-’em-Hell Boys.

The premise fits perfectly, and even if it isn’t all that original, Hockensmith’s dialogue more than makes up for it. His sense of humor shines through, and drives the story more than the actual whodunit aspect. Given this is the second go-round for the Amlingmeyer boys, the newness has worn off, so it doesn’t feel quite as fresh, but these guys are so likable, you’ll want to follow them anywhere – here included, where there’s a twist in every chapter and a laugh on every page. –Rod Lott

Buy it at Amazon.

OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• HOLMES ON THE RANGE by Steve Hockensmith