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The Fiery Eye, we learn early on in this Three Investigators romp, is a large flawless ruby that disappeared a half century ago from the temple in India where it was used to suss out evildoers (just go with it). Alfred Hitchcock (yes, that one) asks Jupiter, Pete, and Bob to take the case in aid of a young English boy, August August (but just call him Gus), whose dead uncle left him a letter that seems to indicate he had possession of the jewel and has bequeathed it to Gus. The letter is a riddle (but of course it is) so that the bad guys who are also in pursuit of the stone won't discover its hiding place before the boys do.

Hijinks ensue and involve a collection of old plaster busts of famous men that are acquired by Jupiter's junkyard-owning Uncle Titus, the boys' ingenious Ghost to Ghost Hookup system of obtaining information, and an actual girl! As Jupiter's Aunt Mathilda would say, "Mercy and goodness and sweetness and light!"

If you've read any of the other books in this series, you'll like this one. The biggest mystery solved for me was what happened to the Three Investigators' use of the gold-plated Rolls Royce, which they won 30 days' use of back in Book 1 (three years ago) and have been using ever since. The solution is only a temporary one, so I guess I'll have keep reading to see what comes next. ( )

I read a lot of The Three Investigators books when I grew up, so re-read one for fun. Nostalgia, but quite OK story. The early books (by Robert Arthur) are the good ones. ( )

The Three Investigators help a British boy find the inheritance willed to him by his great-uncle, an immense ruby of ancient lineage and seemingly cursed, the Fiery Eye. The will describes the Fiery Eye's hidden location in a word puzzle that they must decipher, and before some ruthless competition who are also on the ruby's trail. This story was unusual in that, for the first time, a girl their own age makes a brief appearance, with the promise of a future association -- and possibly a hint of romantic entanglement? -- with the Three Investigators. Also, Jupiter Jones is quite on his game in this book, thinking fast and inventively in unexpected situations with danger looming. ( )

A great, easy-to-read mystery. ( )