12 Days of Mysteries: Day 1

Here at Sleuths, Spies & Alibis, we're celebrating the holidays under cover! Book cover, that is.

For the next twelve weekdays, counting down to December 24, we'll be sharing some gift-giving recommendations for you. With our numerous book ideas -- and some great charitable organizations we'd like to tell you about -- finding the perfect something for the young mystery/thriller lover in your life shouldn't be a mystery!

Kicking off the season, here is Kristen Kittscher with her picks for your young mystery lover:

HIDE AND SEEK, by Kate Messner

Junior members of a secret society that protects the world's most important artifacts go to the rain forests of Costa Rica to recover an important treasure before it falls into the wrong hands. A fun, fast-paced mystery my students love.

MASTERPIECE, by Elise Broach

A beetle whose a talented artist and an eleven year old boy end up on the tail of a forger at the Met. A quirky, page-turning tale of friendship and mystery.

THE NIGHT TOURIST, by Katherine Marsh

Ninth grader Jack adventures into a Underworld of ghosts in New York City to discover what happened to his mother. Such a beautifully told, smart mystery full of adventure.

GILDA JOYCE, PSYCHIC INVESTIGATOR by Jennifer Allison

The first book in a hilarious and poignant series about psychic girl detective Gilda Joyce.

KIKI STRIKE, INSIDE THE SHADOW CITY, by Kirsten Miller

A group of smart, delinquent Girl Scouts and latte-sipping, Vespa riding teen Kiki Strike go undercover (literally) in the tunnels below NYC to solve an international crime. One of my all-time favorite mysteries for kids. Great for 5th - 7th graders.

Under Cover #8

Time to check in and see what mysteries our detectives are reading! 

Diana Renn: I just bought YOU DON'T HAVE A CLUE: LATINO MYSTERY STORIES FOR TEENS. I was drawn to this anthology (released last year by Pinata Books) because I haven't read many mysteries for young people that feature Latinos in prominent roles. Actually I'm not sure I've read any. (I welcome recommendations!) I'm also intrigued by the mystery in short story form. Having recently tried to write a "micro-mystery," I can say it's a real challenge to develop a suspenseful mystery and compelling characters in under 10,000 words. I'm hoping to learn some new tricks from this group of established and emerging authors, and see what can be done within the short story form. I also love that the anthology editor, Sarah Cortez, is a poet, educator, and law enforcement officer based in Texas, and the stories take place all over the U.S.

Kristen Kittscher: I'm finally discovering the wonderful middle grade series GILDA JOYCE: PSYCHIC INVESTIGATOR by Jennifer Allison. Spunky, smart, and always curious, Gilda has quickly become a favorite middle grade heroine of mine. Allison strikes the perfect balance between humor and intrigue in her well-paced storytelling. This week I'm reading THE GHOST SONATA, in which Gilda travels to Oxford, England to accompany her best friend Wendy Choy for an international piano competition and quickly finds herself embroiled in a strange mystery. Who is sending the contestants ominous tarot cards and why? What about the strange music that haunts Wendy in the Oxford boarding house they are staying? The ghost of a young piano prodigy whose death might not have been accidental seems to be responsible. Gilda's psychic powers are put to the test as she tries to uncover the source of the mysterious haunting -- and there are plenty of laughs and romance along the way. 



Elisa Ludwig: I am just delving into an ARC of THE OTHER WOMAN'S HOUSE by English author Sophie Hannah. The premise of this book is simply fantastic: A woman takes a virtual real estate tour of a house online and in it, discovers a woman lying in a pool of blood. When she goes to show her husband, the body is gone. This is the first of Hannah's books that I've read but I'm in need of a great thriller and I'm already really enjoying her clean prose style and snappy dialogue.