C. J. Daley
Huge thanks to Scholastic for the physical arc! I thought the cover was good and the rest is history.
An older kid’s locker caught on fire. Everyone in school is speculating about it: arson, revenge, accident. Everyone seems to be an expert. But when four students who share the locker alcove where the fire started are called to the office, all that speculation now has faces to point the blame at. Can Gabe, Liam, Dani and Kate solve the crime before they’ve lost to the court of public opinion? And regardless of what happened to the locker, was there something more serious that caused it to happen?
For me, this was just a really nice, brain off kind of read. I read it on vacation, and while the mystery is quite simple, I did enjoy the characters. Gabe is a troublemaker, perhaps some would even call him a bully. But after seeing a fight go too far, he’s determined to turn a new leaf, even if others struggle to believe it. Liam is shy, nerdy, and uncomfortable being the new kid in school. While that temperament wouldn’t normally lend itself to vandalism, he was seen being interviewed by the locker’s owner. Kate and Dani are both part of the school’s paper, and if anyone was going to know secrets or gossip, their classmates are bound to assume it’s them. All four of them share lockers near his, and with minimal poking it could be blamed on any of them. But are they guilty?
This is definitely a mystery for younger ages. It isn’t overly complicated, and if you are looking for the clues, you can see the twist, but it is perfect for middle grade readers. The school features a diverse student body, which was very similar to the school I attended, but for those that don’t live in that type of area, this would be great to have on hand to show them.
For me, the best part of this is the main four. Some Scooby Doo references sprinkled in, this is just such an unlikely group to smush together. Liam could so easily have been one of Gabe’s victims, Dani and Kate are actual ex-best friends. The author does well to show how everyone can be complex and multilayered enough for introspection and growth. Sometimes the real bullies are those pretending to be the nicest.
Huge thanks to Scholastic for the physical arc! I thought the cover was good and the rest is history.
An older kid’s locker caught on fire. Everyone in school is speculating about it: arson, revenge, accident. Everyone seems to be an expert. But when four students who share the locker alcove where the fire started are called to the office, all that speculation now has faces to point the blame at. Can Gabe, Liam, Dani and Kate solve the crime before they’ve lost to the court of public opinion? And regardless of what happened to the locker, was there something more serious that caused it to happen?
For me, this was just a really nice, brain off kind of read. I read it on vacation, and while the mystery is quite simple, I did enjoy the characters. Gabe is a troublemaker, perhaps some would even call him a bully. But after seeing a fight go too far, he’s determined to turn a new leaf, even if others struggle to believe it. Liam is shy, nerdy, and uncomfortable being the new kid in school. While that temperament wouldn’t normally lend itself to vandalism, he was seen being interviewed by the locker’s owner. Kate and Dani are both part of the school’s paper, and if anyone was going to know secrets or gossip, their classmates are bound to assume it’s them. All four of them share lockers near his, and with minimal poking it could be blamed on any of them. But are they guilty?
This is definitely a mystery for younger ages. It isn’t overly complicated, and if you are looking for the clues, you can see the twist, but it is perfect for middle grade readers. The school features a diverse student body, which was very similar to the school I attended, but for those that don’t live in that type of area, this would be great to have on hand to show them.
For me, the best part of this is the main four. Some Scooby Doo references sprinkled in, this is just such an unlikely group to smush together. Liam could so easily have been one of Gabe’s victims, Dani and Kate are actual ex-best friends. The author does well to show how everyone can be complex and multilayered enough for introspection and growth. Sometimes the real bullies are those pretending to be the nicest.