The Midnight Tunnel by Angie Frazier

I hope Elizabeth enjoys Angie Frazier's The Midnight Tunnel as much as I did. My sisters and I are all mystery fans. I sent a copy of this to my niece, Elizabeth, since she challenged me to read again this year. Maybe I'll make a mystery reader out of her as well. This first Suzanna Snow book, designed for readers eight to twelve, introduces one of the most intelligent young detectives I've read about in quite a while.

Eleven-year-old Suzanna (Zanna) Snow is the daughter of the managers of a resort hotel in New Brunswick, Canada. In 1904, the Rosemount Hotel is a summer destination for the wealthy, and Suzanna's parents hope she'll join them in management eventually. To that end, her mother is attempting to transform her into a lady, providing her with a list of social taboos, each describing what a proper lady would never do. Suzanna's mother might as well give up. Zanna has her own list, notebooks filled with overheard conversations, detective rules and quotes. Zanna aspires to be a detective, just like her father's brother, Uncle Bruce, a famous detective in Boston.
 
When the lights in the hotel go out in the middle of a storm one night, and a little girl goes missing, Zanna just might have her chance. She saw something in the servants' tunnel during the storm, and she's convinced she saw someone taking the child. But, only her friend, Isaac, the boy who works on the lobster boat, believes her. When her Uncle Bruce is hired to find Maddie, Zanna knows he'll accept her help. Instead, she finds her clues belittled. And, that revered uncle doesn't seem to be as wonderful as she dreamed. He even brought a nephew with him. Will James is supposed to be apprenticing as a detective, which makes Zanna jealous.  However, Will and Isaac seem to be the only two people willing to listen to Zanna, who is determined to find the missing Maddie.

Frazier's juvenile mystery, with its appealing heroine, interesting setting and time period, is a fascinating story. And, any of us who grew up with Nancy Drew or Harriet the Spy will welcome this new addition to the genre. The humor in this story comes from Suzanna's failure as an assistant in the kitchen. She just isn't cut out for the hotel business, but, hopefully, The Midnight Tunnel will launch her successful detecting career.

Angie Frazier's website is www.angiefrazier.com

The Midnight Tunnel by Angie Frazier. Scholastic, Inc., ©2011. ISBN 9780545208628 (hardcover), 288p.

*****
FTC Full Disclosure - The publisher sent me a copy of the book, in hopes I would review it.

Gold Fever by Vicki Delany

If you're looking for entertainment, excitement, and history, you can't go wrong with one of Vicki Delany's Klondike Mysteries. Gold Fever, the second book in the series, is everything you could ask for in an historical mystery.

Fiona MacGillivray, owner of the Savoy Saloon and Dance Hall, would always remember the summer of 1898 in the mining town of Dawson, Canada, as a summer of mud. She should remember it as a summer of murder. Fiona, self-designated as "the most beautiful woman in the territory," has to deal with the whims of Irene, her most popular dance-hall girl, the threats of Joey LeBlanc, a notorious madam in town, and, maybe the worst threat of all, her growing son, Angus. Then, there's the murder of a former employee, and the stories a new arrival could tell about Fiona's past. And, there's Angus.

Fiona might be secretive about her past, determined to live a good life, but nothing is more important than her son. And, Angus, at twelve, is becoming a man who wants to be a Mountie. He is also growing to be a kind, considerate young man, the type of boy who would take a prostitute, an Indian named Mary, under his protection, and insist his mother find her a place to live, and a job. And, when Mary is accused of murder, Angus is determined to find the actual killer. And, a determined mother will do anything to protect her son.

In Gold Fever, Delany reveals a little more of Fiona MacGillivray's past. It's an exciting historical adventure, giving readers a view of the not-so-glamorous life in the Klondike during the Gold Rush. 1898 was a time of saloons, dance halls, gambling, and prostitution. But, a thriving town needed laundries, dress shops, restaurants, and police protection in the form of the Mounties. Through Angus' eyes, we see a thriving community, while noticing the poverty and the injustice. Through Fiona's eyes, we see opportunity despite hardship. There's a wealth of details based on research. Those details, along with the characters, bring Vicki Delany's Gold Fever to life.

Vicki Delany's website is www.vickidelany.com

Gold Fever by Vicki Delany. RendezVous Crime, ©2010. ISBN 9781926607023 (paperback), 292p.

*****
FTC Full Disclosure - The author sent me my book, in hopes I would review it.