Kids Books - Detectives

Sophia's War: A Tale of the Revolution

Sophia's War: A Tale of the Revolution

By Avi

Sophia Calderwood, a regular 12 years old girl in American Revolutionary War of 1770s. Her older brother, William had enlisted and fought in army of Patriots (American) against Loyalist (British) but William got killed on the prisoner ship of Patriots'. Sophia met few people; Lt. John André, Benedict Arnold, Robert Townsend, John Paulding, etc. Things had grown intense as when Sophia turned 15 later in the book and her spy name was Molly Saville, using her mother's maiden name and her first name. She uncovered the major secret between "Mr. Moore" (Benedict Arnold) and "Mr. Anderson" (Lt. John André). - Happy Reading!

The Deadly Daylight

The Deadly Daylight

By Harrier, Ash

Set in a small town in Australia, The Deadly Daylight tells about how a 12-year-old named Alice England tries to solve the mystery of a man's puzzling death from sunlight. The main character works at her family's funeral parlor, and she has a very strange relationship with dead people. It goes like this. A mysterious hum resonates from an object of importance to the deceased, and then she is transported into a little snapshot of the person's life. This shall be important later on... She meets a person named Violet, who, like her, has little friends, but is different in many ways. Moreover, she has a dangerous sunlight allergy. Alice is invited to their house, but death occurs the day after. George, Violet's uncle, is dead, apparently killed by the family's sunlight allergy. Having a strange vision about George's last moments, Alice decides that something fishy is going on and decides to investigate with Violet. The clues keep piling up: a letter signed with a mysterious initial, a grumpy guard, and a strange phone charger owned by a secretive boy. What may seem a little not relevant now, might turn out to be relevant later. All in all, I enjoyed this book. The characters were cool. It is intriguing to see Alice England, the somewhat naive person, who is smart but does not know some very basic things. She is so naive and funny. She is confused by elements of society, such as boba, which she says is "gummy tea", and chokes on the little tiny pearls. She is mystified by the strange skill of tact but tries to do it anyway to please Violet, with interesting results. The dialogue, too, is good, and Alice talks in a formal, matter-of-fact tone that is much remarked upon and different from other people. The writing style is also much cleaner than most other middle-grade authors. With an engaging mystery, interesting characters, and great style, The Deadly Daylight is a good book to read. More than that, it is deliciously macabre and will leave readers wanting for more about Alice England. With such high standards, the next book in the series is sure to be good too... People who enjoy a cozy mystery with elements of the supernatural will appreciate this middle-grade novel.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

By Brian Selznick

DOODLER171

In this book, Brian Selznick does an outstanding job capturing each and every emotion within this book and turning it into the awe-striking illustration that just adds to the buildup of suspense created within every page. As a young boy, Hugo Cabret spends most of his young childhood with his beloved father learning, loving and cherishing each and every moment they share together; which mostly involves tinkering with the many parts and pieces his father saves from his studies at the museum. After his father passes in a perilous fire incident, Hugo is then sent off to live with his only relative left, his uncle, who teaches him the ways of life setting and living in the clocks of a busy Paris train station. As his uncle is a strong alcoholic, Hugo is basically orphaned, for his uncle disappears every night to soon be never seen again. Now, without an adult guardian for supervision, Hugo everyday risks being caught and sent away to an orphanage in his fight to find out the true use for the automaton his father left behind, as well as why everybody else is so caught up in trying to stop him, and possibly take the last piece of his father that Hugo has left to hold close to his heart...

The Name of this Book Is Secret (The Secret Series)

The Name of this Book Is Secret (The Secret Series)

By Pseudonymous Bosch

I read this book, and I really liked it. It is a book about a girl that may or may not have been called Cassandra, (that is the name used in the book) and a boy that may or may not be called Max-Ernest (that is his name in the book.) The book is about how Cassandra and Max-Ernest find a story about a man called Pietro's life. They come to a point in the story where Pietro and his brother are separated by a lady that matches the exact description of a lady they had seen only a few days ago. Just a little later on, a boy in their class is kidnapped, by the lady, who drives away in a limousine that says "The Midnight Sun Sensorium & Spa" Cassie looks The Midnight Sun up, and goes there as a Skelton sister, who in the book one of the famous make up producers Called the Skelton Sisters (they are actually sisters.) When she gets there, she meets a butler called Owen. He shows her to her room, and she goes to sleep. The next morning, he brings in a drink, with bits of gold inside. After, she has a mud bath, also with gold bits. At dinner, Max-Ernest comes in, and Cassandra accidentally spills a glass of wine on the lady's gloves. She turns out to be really old. When a large group of people have a meeting in the pyramid building, Cassandra and Max-Ernest start a fire, and save the boy. They get away with Owen, who turns out to be a spy. When they get home, everyone is happy. Except for the principal, who thinks Cassie and Max-Ernest kidnapped the boy.

The Everafter War (The Sisters Grimm, Book 7) (Bk. 7)

The Everafter War (The Sisters Grimm, Book 7) (Bk. 7)

By Michael Buckley

I really think you should read The Everafter War in The sisters Grimm, actually I recommend reading all The sisters Grimm series book! Here are some things that are in The Sisters Grimm : Romance, Tragedy, Mystery, and fairy tale. But sometimes they twist fairy tales. And here is some information about Everafters if you don't know already: Everafters are basically people/fairy/ animals that are in fairy tales. Most everafters don't like The Grimm family because the Grimm family put a magical barrier in Fairyport Landing, so no everafters can leave the town Fairyport Landing. Everafters are usually around 460 years old, Everafters can choose when they want to stop and start growing so they won't look as old as they really are. I have read all the sisters grimm books many many time. In fact I have read this sisters grimm book 14 times, I read them over and over because you will never get bored of The Sisters Grimm!

The Candymakers

The Candymakers

By Wendy Mass

This book reminds me why I always tell fellow readers to give young adult books a chance. The only complaint I have about The Candymakers is due to the fact that these books are unfortunately targeted towards young adult readers rather than adults that are young at heart. On that note, the only real problems I had were the same reasons this was not targeted to me. Again, unfortunately. The sentences were more concise and simple then I believe necessary for teens; there was a lot more telling than necessary, although there was notable detailed showing. Some of the plot was rather unbelievable; it all came together a little too easily. But, it is a fantasy world filled with candy, after all. How could I not fall in love with this book? The only other two fictional books that I have read set entirely in the Candy World are "True Confections" by Katherine Weber and, of course, "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl. And now this one, which holds its own among them. My favorite thing about this novel is its structure. The author is able to successfully write from different points of view- something many adult books cannot get right. Furthermore, these accounts are sold separately, in different chapters- a difficult thing to do. With impeccable exactitude, no facts, no details, none if the timeline, not the characters are mismatched. Readers get the feeling that they are experiencing the event as they switch between the four childrens' minds, each with their own secrets. They all have their own reasons for being there and all eventually really want to win competition. At first a few are enemies, but, of course, they eventually grow to really care about one another and sincerely can each other friends as they learn each other's secrets and inner thoughts. **** Spoilers **** Logan, The Candymaker's son, feels the need to prove to his parents that he is worthy of inheriting his father's position. He has no other friends because his parents have kept him sheltered since he was a young boy. During the annual factory picnic, he met Philip, who was touring the area. This was one of the first boys had met and he was excited to find a new friend. After playing like boys do around the candy factory for most of the day, they were at the chocolate vat when Phillip lost his toy truck in it. Not wanting to upset his friend and wanting to return it, he crawled into it. He ended up not getting it in time and scarring his entire face. He is still a very happy boy; it seems that he notices his scars far less than anyone else does. In fact, he often forgets that they are there. Daisy, who grew up in a special family- spies with all the technology and ninja moves- is on an assigned mission. She is there for reasons that at first she does only because she was told; until certain events cause her to truly consider what she is doing. And what is right and wrong. Finding and taking Life Is Sweet's secret ingredient with the goal to shut down the factory? Certainly in the latter category. Miles, whom carries a life jacket around everywhere and has taken an interest in the afterlife ever since he was out boating and watched a girl drown. He eventually funds or that girl was actually Daisy, who of course never died because she was utilizing her super powers. Last but not least, there is Philip, whom is extremely negative, pretentious, rude, and full of animosity as soon as he meets the others. We eventually find out that he is the former boy with the toy truck. As expected, he typically is not this type of guy. But as an equally lonely child, when he was erroneously informed by his father that he had been banned from the Life Is Sweet candy factory (he was actually invited back by the family), he is there to win the competition; to take Logan's thunder. I also loved his secret violin talents and music genius. Looking forward to reading her other books!

Holes

Holes

By Louis Sachar

If I had to choose one word to describe this book, it would be: AWESOME! Hit rewind-- flashback time! The great-great-great grandfather of present day Stanley is chasing after a girl. Not just any girl, but the most beautiful girl in town. But someone else also wants to marry her- an old 60-year-old farmer! The only way to get her hand in marriage is to bring her father the largest, fattest pig. Not having something to bring, young Stanley goes to Madame Zeroni, who gives him directions to climb the mountain, and have a pig drink water from the river, while singing a special song. On the last day, he should bring Madame Zeroni up the mountain and have her drink while he sings the song. If he doesn't fulfill this, his whole family will be cursed. Stanley never carried Madame Zeroni up the mountain. Is the curse real? OK, fast-forward to now: Present-day Stanley Yelnats is an average boy, until one day fate hits him in the head. No, literally, it hit him in the head!😂 A pair of valuable sneakers fall out of the sky as Stanley is walking home from a hard day at school and the police believes Stanley stole them! He has a choice for punishment once he arrives in court: he can either go to jail, or go to Camp Greenlake. Easy decision, right? Camp Greenlake, of course! But Stanley soon figures out that this camp doesn't even have a lake! It's been long dried up. Every day at this camp Stanley must dig a 5 by 5 hole in the hard, crusty, desert ground. Not much better than jail! One boy nicknamed Zero asks Stanley to help him learn to read and write in exchange for help shoveling his hole. After Zero runs away, Stanley runs after him-- but they have no water. Can they survive, and will the curse finally be broken? And what are the holes kids have been forced to dig really for? This book was so good! The plotline flowed together, and I was hanging on the edge of my seat to read more! The story itself is brilliant, I would have never thought of it myself! 5/5❤

Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret

Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret

By Trudi Trueit

WOW!!! That was my only reaction after reading this book! Just WOW! This book totally surprised me. Cruz Coronado lives in Hawaii and loves to surf. At least, he LIVED in Hawaii. The very exclusive Explorer Academy had accepted his application to attend... in WASHINGTON, D.C.! His deceased mother had gone when she was his age, and Cruz feels she would be proud of him going. At the Academy, they train kids and teens about how to explore. Pretty cool, right? Cruz definitely thinks so! There's augmented reality rooms to simulate what life will be like when they set sail to take an ACTUAL EXPLORATION! YEAH! They get to actually go out into the world and explore using the skills they learned at the Explorer Academy! Sounds like my kind of school!! But something sinister seems to be going on amidst all of the hubbub. Nebula (a medicine company) wants to stop the explorers from finding a special substance from jellyfish that can cure every single disease in the world, which would eventually put Nebula out of service (because no one is getting sick and buying their medicine)! LIKE, WHO WOULD DO THAT?!? Nebula is the DEFINITION of evil! And a strange man keeps popping up in Cruz's life... more like following him! Why is all of this happening to Cruz? Find out in Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret. This book is spectacular! I loved it because it had fun codes, and awesome story and writing style, and showed how cool exploring is! I would absolutely LOVE to attend Explorer Academy! This book was overall FABULOUS! I recommend this book to anyone, at any age!

Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad: Absolute Hero (Book 1)

Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad: Absolute Hero (Book 1)

By Tripp, Valerie

A spellbinding tale of adventure, intelligence, friendship, and female empowerment is found in this book, Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad: Absolute Hero! This short but sweet book follows Izzy Newton, a total STEM nerd entering Atom Middle School along with her best friends Charlie Darwin and Allie Einstein. The problem is, she's placed in the Forensics elective, and it's no secret that Izzy dreads public speaking. Worse even, the middle school's air conditioning and heating system have gone haywire, so the school building is absolutely freezing. Worst of all, Izzy's ex-best friend Marie Curie is back in town, and she's attending the same middle school! With everything going on in her life, it seems impossible to keep on top of things. Can Izzy solve the mystery of the school's rambunctious temperature, master the art of public speaking, and win an old friend back? Personally, I loved reading about Izzy's adventures and particular emotions and thoughts. This book is unique in the sense that it's not about the "trivial" factors of middle school, such as romance or petty drama, as many books often are—instead, the main focus is on five young, strong-willed girls set on improving the environment around them. This story is a perfect fit for any girl looking for a read that is out of the box, empowering, and an undeniably relatable telling of the middle school experience.

Connect the Stars

Connect the Stars

By Marisa de los Santos, David Teague

When thirteen-year-olds Aaron and Audrey meet at a wilderness camp in the desert, they think their quirks are enough to prevent them from ever having friends. But as they trek through the challenging and unforgiving landscape, they learn that they each have what it takes to make the other whole.

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