Herge, The Secret of the Unicorn (Methuen, 1946)This is where Herge really started to get great. A series of wallet-snatchings in plaguing Brussels, which Thomson and Thompson are investigating. Meanwhile, Tintin buys an old model of a ship as a present for Haddock, and is immediately accosted by two people who want to buy it from him. Both stories converge when the ship and one of the missing wallets become parts of the key to the final resting place of the Unicorn, Sir Francis Haddock's legendary ship. Just before the Unicorn went down, Haddock had been involved in a great battle with notorious pirate Red Rackham-- and the Unicorn is believed to hold Red Rackham's final treasure. But that's another story. Despite the fact that there's very little story to be found here (this is, after all, setup for Red Rackham's Treasure), Herge throws in all sorts of diversions and red herrings to keep the readers entertained. It's a wonderful read. ***