Mysteries, Espionage, & Detectives Books - Page 12

Mister Monday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 1)

Garth Nix

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 108 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

a fresh new look at children's fantasy 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I have always had a particular interest in children/teen fantasy. I normally am an adult fantasy reader, but sometimes it is nice to read a book that isn't trying to play off like the real world. This book is such a clever, compelling read that I was sorely disappointed to have to wait for more. I have never (so far) read a Garth Nix book that doesn't re-inspire me to read more books.

Anyway, onto the actually book itself. We are introduced to the typical male-boy protagonist, the awkward in school, unsure of himself protagonist with an incredible future. Arthur soon learns that his immediate problems are not the first day of school, but instead are the fact that he has to become the heir to the center of the universe.

The entire idea of the House with different levels of work (mostly paperwork) is extremely creative. Everything about the environment and, we could say, culture of the House is a parody and play on real life. It is ironic that the nether-world still has to deal with paperwork and useless workers and bosses that could care less if what they are doing is right or not. The House also offers a sense of the extreme. Anything described inside usually is accompanied by ridiculous dimensions. For example any major room is about 40-50 football fields length or the job of filling a few hundred thousand ink bottles. It also offers a different version of the afterlife, as in it doesn't exist. The main reoccurring theme is "from nothing we came, and to nothing we return" a bit unsettling for the typical child.

And that brings me to my next point. These books are labeled, "Children Fantasy", but contains many references to myths and ideas that I believe are beyond a normal 9 year's old pool of knowledge. There are also a few really violent scenes that make me want to classify this more for Teens. Not that I am saying don't read this for the violence, just be warned if your a parent I recommend reading this ahead of time to make sure it'd be ok for your child (and really it only takes about a day or two to do).

In conclusion, this is a highly originally tale and I for one can't wait to read the other books of this series. My only complaint is that Garth Nix takes about a year for every book he writes and that's a long time to wait. But I guess if it makes the books a masterpiece, it's a small sacrifice.

Editorial Review:

Seven days. Seven keys. Seven virtues. Seven sins. One mysterious house is the doorway to a very mysterious world -- where one boy is about to venture and unlock a number of fantastical secrets. This is another thrilling, triumphantly imaginative series from Garth Nix, the best-selling author of THE SEVENTH TOWER, SABRIEL, and LIRAEL.

A Thief in the Theater: A Kit Mystery (American Girl Mysteries)

Sarah Masters Buckey

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Great to read about Kit again! 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 5 people found this review helpful.

Another outstanding book by one of the best writers of the History Mystery Books published by American Girl about 10-12 years ago. Great to read further adventures about Kit Kittredge, the AG who grew up during the great depression. Also always enjoy a good mystery. Is being read now by my 35 yr old dghtr, who will then read it to my 5 yr old gr dgtr --this book appeals to 3 generations! Wish MY parents were alive to have read it...

Editorial Review:

It's 1935 and Kit Kittredge is volunteering backstage for a local theater company. She plans to write an exciting newspaper article about a new play that stars famous actors from New York City. But from behind the scenes, Kit and her friend Stirling discover more drama than they bargained for! Includes an illustrated "Looking Back" essay.

This story features characters from American Girl's popular Kit series and is written by Sarah Masters Buckey, previously nominated for both the Edgar and Agatha Awards.

Eleventh Hour

Graeme Base

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 58 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Amazing graphics, imaginative rhymes, compelling overall -- 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

-- And it's a "kids book"!!!

I'm 26 now, but I remember the astonishment and awe I first felt borrowing this book from my 5th grade class's "library" when I was 10 years old. Back then, I gave up after 4 hours of not being able to figure anything at all out and had to look in the Sooper Sikret Section, but this time around, I got a few more of the clues on my own before having to look up the Section :P

A great book to sate the inquisitive mind of a bright child, honestly. Highly recommended!

Worth every penny! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I'm a freshman in college and I still love this book. My third grade class room had a set but we were NOT allowed to open the pages in the back! The entire class spent lots of time pouring over the sumptuous pictures and trying to spot each and every hidden...well, I won't give it away. I came across the book in a bookstore recently and bought it immediately because I had such fond memories. Do yourself or your kid a huge favor and buy it!

Editorial Review:

When Horace turns 11, he celebrates in grand style by inviting his friends to a splendid party. When the time comes for the birthday banquet, a most curious mystery will be revealed. Base has hidden messages that will keep sleuths searching happily for hours for the answer to the mystery. Full color.

Wright 3

Blue Balliett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 37 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Mission-Style Restoration 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I first learned of Blue Balliett with the publication of her second book "The Wright Three". As a fan of Frank Lloyd Wright, I was intrigued by the premise. I have not read the previous book, "Chasing Vermeer", which features Calder and Petra as amateur sleuths, but I definitely will after finishing this book. Balliett is a gifted storyteller, perhaps too intelligent for run-of-the-mill children's books, so it's a good thing that "The Wright Three" is anything but common.

The story begins with Tommy Segovia, former best friend to Calder Pillay, moving back to the Hyde Park area. Calder has made a new friend in Petra Andalee, and Tommy feels left out, desperate to be friends with Calder if he doesn't have to accept Petra in the process. As the sixth-grade year winds down, their eccentric teacher arouses their interest in the local Wright landmark, the Robie House, which is doomed for destruction. It is to be cut into four pieces and housed in art museums around the world. With Tommy, Calder, and Petra discovering interesting details and artefacts about the Robie House, they eventually put aside their differences to come up with a way to save the house. But the house may want something else entirely, for the closer the three children get to figuring out the mysteries associated with the building, the more they begin to believe the house is alive.

"The Wright Three" is an extremely readable and enjoyable book. The plot relies heavily on coincidence, and the resolution seems a bit rushed after such a tremendous buildup. But I have to credit Balliett for quoting from classic works of literature (Wells' "Invisible Man") and weaving pentominoes, obscure mathematics and codes into the story. You can tell that she truly loves the subject matter, and can even forgive the liberties she's taken with the facts. Brett Helquist's illustrations are gorgeous, as usual; perfect artwork for a book that explores the mysterious connection between art and life.

Editorial Review:

Spring semester at the Lab School in Hyde Park finds Petra and Calder drawn into another mystery when unexplainable accidents and ghostly happenings throw a spotlight on Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House, and it's up to the two junior sleuths to piece together the clues. Stir in the return of Calder's friend Tommy (which creates a tense triangle), H.G. Wells's The Invisible Man, 3-D pentominoes, and the hunt for a coded message left behind by Wright, and the kids become tangled in a dangerous web in which life and art intermingle with death, deception, and surprise.

Double Identity

Margaret Peterson Haddix

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 47 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

So my only protection is a kindergarten teacher and a ninety-eight-pound female minister....And they don't even believe I'm in danger.

As Bethany approaches her thirteenth birthday, her parents act more oddly than usual. Her mother cries constantly, and her father barely lets Bethany out of his sight. Then one morning he hustles the entire family into the car, drives across several state lines -- and leaves Bethany with an aunt she never knew existed. Bethany has no idea what's going on. She's worried her mom and dad are running from some kind of trouble, but she can't find out because they won't tell her where they are going.

Bethany's only clue is a few words she overheard her father tell her aunt: "She doesn't know anything about Elizabeth." But Aunt Myrlie won't tell Bethany who Elizabeth is, and she won't explain why people in her small town react to Bethany as if they've seen a ghost. The mystery intensifies when Bethany gets a package from her father containing four different birth certificates from four different states, with four different last names -- and thousands of dollars in cash. And when a strange man shows up asking questions, Bethany realizes the's not the only one who's desperate to unravel the secrets of her past.

Al Capone Does My Shirts

Gennifer Choldenko

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 185 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Murderers, mob bosses, and convicts . . . these guys are not your average neighbors. Unless you live on Alcatraz. It’s 1935 and twelve-year-old Moose Flanagan and his family have just moved to the infamous island that’s home to criminals like notorious escapee Roy Gardner, Machine Gun Kelly, and of course, Al Capone. Now Moose has to try to fit in at his new school, avoid getting caught up in one of the warden’s daughter’s countless plots, and keep an eye on his sister Natalie, who’s not like other kids. All Moose wants to do is protect Natalie, live up to his parents’ expectations, and stay out of trouble. But on Alcatraz, trouble is never very far away.

A Newbery Honor Book
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
An ALA Notable Book
People magazine Best Kids’ Book
A School Library JournalBest Book of the Year
A Kirkus Editor’s Choice
A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
Parents’ Choice Silver Honor Award
A New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing
A Junior Library Guild selection
A Children’s BOMC selection

The Password to Larkspur Lane (Nancy Drew, Book 10)

Carolyn Keene

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 15 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

ANOTHER Nancy Drew that I love! 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I have read BOTH versions of Password to Larkspur Lane, AND have seen the movie Nancy Drew Detective (1938) on televsion more than once. I have always liked this Nancy Drew like many others that I have read; though I have liked both versions. I have in general liked the originals better than the "new stories for today's readers". The original Nancy Drews paint a picture of life in the Thirties and early Forties, when there were no automatic transmissions, dial phones, transistor radios, or televsions, much less DVD's, audio CD's, automated teller machines, PC's. Indeed, in the era when the original Nancy Drews were written, THERE WERE NOT EVEN MUNTZ TV'S! Two facets of Password to Larkspur Lane stand out, and are particularly funny. One is the use of the phrase "singing horses" as password, changing it from "blue bells". Imagine horses singing into microphones! I can see WHY those gangsters chose "singing horses" as password, as larks are associated with singing, and spurs with riding horses.
That is NOT the REAL origin of the word "larkspur", but the gangsters knew that Dr. Spires HEARD the word "blue bells" used, so changed it to something SUGGESTING larkspurs. Nancy at first could not figure out why the flowers were called larkspurs, as horses do not sing and larks do not suggest horseback riding, but THEN could see why "singing horses" was chosen. (Mister Ed can sing, but that's about all.) The other funny part was Dr. Bull's use of a dummy telephone to pretend to call the cops.
Dr. Bull, called Bell in the new version, could not see why Nancy WANTED him to call the cops, or why she called it a dummy telephone. Nancy wanted him to call the police to get the racketeers arrested, and she declared "the telephone is a dummy because there are no___" but stopped short of saying "wires"
as the quack nut-doctor saw HIMSELF that this telephone was not hooked up to switching machinery, and ccould not fool Nancy. As there were no cell phones in 1933 or even 1966, such a phone as Dr. Bull/Bell used WAS a dummy telephone! (Whether this counterfeit sanatorium HAD a real phone is not clear.) At all events, a friend of mine called a dummy telephone a BULL TULLOPHONE, Bull Tull for short, and drew pictures of pairs of phones, one hooked up with letter-number phone number, the one with no wires all-digits, to show dislike for digitization! Then there was the happy ending when police, her father, and Ned flew in to arrest the participants in this racket, and Mrs. Mary Eldridge's reunion with her nephew John, his wife, and little Marie. ALl in all, a very good Nancy Drew.

Editorial Review:

Nancy Drew -- just the way you remember her! First published in 1932, this is the tenth book in the Nancy Drew "RM" Mystery Series. This reissue is the original edition from before the book was completely rewritten in 1968, and also features the original cover art by Russell Tandy. In the book, a carrier pigeon furnishes Nancy with a clue to a mysterious retreat.

Jack: Secret Histories (Repairman Jack Novels)

F. Paul Wilson

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 15 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Jack Secret Histories by F. Paul Wilson 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

If you're a fan of Repairman Jack, or F. Paul wilson then you'll like this one too. A great read.

A Two Pronged Review of a Great Book 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

1st--for young adult readers looking for good books: Let me tell you if you like creepiness (the kind that sneaks up on you from a seemingly "normal" story) and if you like mysteries and page-turners about regular people like you...here's a book made just for you. It's set in 1983 (so you might get some insight into what it was like when your parents were growing up) Jack is just "Jack." He and his friends find a body in a desolate area near their small New Jersey town. But that's not all they find. Buried with the body is a box made of a mysterious material that only opens for Jack. Louise (Weezy) Jack's friend is really into "secret" histories, the things about the history of the world they don't teach you in school--Atlantis, Knights Templar, Aliens, Bigfoot--and she knows she's just found a piece of secret history. Strange things are afoot in their small town, though. Other people are dying, and everything seems to be related to Jack and Weezy's find. Jack is a great character, he doesn't like bullies or unfairness...and he seems to have a knack for FIXING situations. Very cool, you'll want the next in the trilogy as soon as you're done!

2nd--for Repairman Jack's adult fans: How cool is this? Backstory on Jack. Don't let the "YA" label turn you away. In 1983, Jack's Mom is alive. You get to meet a young Kate & Tom. The old ladies with dog are present...as are others from adventures in Jack's "future." In this book you get to watch Jack develop his taste for fixing. It stands to reason that Jack would be a pretty solitary kid who's very resourceful and creative. Everything you love about the adult series is here (well, except Gia and Vickie and Abe). This is well worth your time. Check it out!

Editorial Review:

Ever come across a situation that simply wasn’t right—where someone was getting the dirty end of the stick and you wished you could make things right but didn’t know how? Fourteen-year-old Jack knows how. Or rather he’s learning how. He’s discovering that he has a knack for fixing things. Not bikes or toys or appliances—situations….

It all starts when Jack and his best friends, Weezy and Eddie, discover a rotting corpse—the victim of ritual murder—in the fabled New Jersey Pine Barrens. Beside the body is an ancient artifact carved with strange designs. What is its secret? What is the secret of the corpse? What other mysteries hide in the dark, timeless Pine Barrens? And who doesn’t want them revealed?

Jack’s town, the surrounding Barrens, his friends, even Jack himself…they all have…Secret Histories.

Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City: Inside the Shadow City (Kiki Strike)

Kirsten Miller

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Solid Adventure 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Imagine you live in a big city, across the street from a little park. Picture that one night when you wake up, there is a giant hole in the center of the park. You gaze further, and can't help but notice a muddy creature trudging out of the sunken ground. But wait, there's more! If you are Ananka Fishbein, curiosity will probably get the better of you, and you will find yourself climbing down the hole into an underground passage, with closed doors lining the hallways. This, reader, is the Shadow City. Then appears a mysterious girl called Kiki Strike, who materializes into Ananka's classroom. Our main character is determined to find out more about her new classmate. Kiki, on the other hand, drags her pursuer into the shadow city, along with some Girl Scout rejects. Their unusual talents - mechanical genius, chemistry whiz, best computer hacker in Manhattan, and master of disguise - help Kiki carry out her plan to control the deserted underground city. No one knows what she plans to do, but when Kiki disappears, Ananka grows suspicious when in that time, many robberies are committed through forgotten underground passages. The Irregulars know that they are the only living humans that have knowledge of the Shadow City.

As you become totally absorbed in the book, Kirsten Miller's fantastic description puts you into the story itself. While reading, every painful, scared emotion or sorrowful feeling she describes is your own emotion too. The beginning is a bit confusing, but give the book a chance and you will learn to love it as I do. Late at night, I would find myself with a flashlight, sneaking in a chapter past midnight. As Kirsten's fiction novel wraps you up in adventure, there is also useful information at the end of each chapter. Some examples: other underground worlds, how to catch a lie, how to follow someone without getting caught, how to catch someone eavesdropping, how to prepare for adventure, and other useful, strategic facts and advice.

This book is perfect for a middle school girl to read. There is a limited amount of girly girl talk, and the rest of it is solid adventure. I assure you that after the first chapter, any girl from ages 9-14 will be captured by the plot, and enter the Shadow City and Manhattan, not returning until every last detail is revealed. Happy readings!

Amanda G.
Grade 6
Ms. Kawatachi

Editorial Review:

Life will never be the same for Ananka Fishbein after she ventures into an enormous sinkhole near her New York City apartment. A million rats, delinquent Girl Scouts out for revenge, and a secret city below the streets of Manhattan combine in this remarkable novel about a darker side of New York City you have only just begun to know about…

Cam Jansen 14 Chocolate Fudge Mystery (Cam Jansen)

David A. Adler

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 9 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Cam Jansen is one of the Best Kid Detectives I've ever read 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

You have to love Cam Jansen. When you're a kid, you read all of these stories about magic powers, mystery, and adventure. But everyone tells you magic can't exist. Cam Jansen manages to solve every case without the use of magic... she's a real girl. That's what makes her special and what makes you want to red more and more. Cam Jansen is a real kid superhero, and the thought that a person like her could actually exist... makes her the best kid detective ever!

Cam Jansen book lover 3 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This book was not the best Cam Jansen. It was a little boring. I love most of Cam Jansen's books. Cam Jansen and the mystery of the Carnival Prize is my favorite so far.

Cam Janson 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

This book is about a girl named Cam Janson or her real name Jennifer Janson. She thinks the man in the yellow house is a robber. The woman she keeps chasing because she thinks she is bad.
This was a great book.Its a good book for mystery that's why I liked it so much. I want to read this again!

Editorial Review:

The Cam Jansen series is perfect for young readers who are making the transition to chapter books. The first ten books in the series have received updated covers, bringing new life to these perennial bestsellers. Now the series redesign continues with five more books, giving Cam a cool, modern look!