The Mastermind Plot

Gr 4–6—This sequel to The Midnight Tunnel (Scholastic, 2011) stands on its own as an appealing mystery with a plucky young sleuth. Suzanna Snow, 11, sets off for Boston to spend time with the grandmother she hardly knows. The city is quite different from her home in a seaside town in New Brunswick but Zanna finds it exciting. Her famous detective uncle, who resents her presence, is on the case of some missing artwork, and Zanna cannot help but investigate as well. Aided by her cousin Will and a testy new schoolmate named Adele, she is partly responsible for solving the mystery. Her prickly relationship with Adele leads to some comical situations as do her lack of skills in terms of how girls in 1904 are expected to behave. Fans of Nancy Springer's "Enola Holmes" series (Philomel) will be happy to add Zanna Snow to their list of quirky, bright, and determined female detectives.—B. Allison Gray, Goleta Public Library, CA