AustLit

'Bernie mutters to me. ‘No way. Who’d go into the mangroves at night?’
I swallow. Not me. Not into Sebastian land. No one would head into crocodile heartland in the middle of a dark night. No one, unless they had a very good reason.

'Andy and his best friend Eli live in a small coastal town in far north Queensland.
When Eli’s cousin Jacob is arrested for a jewellery theft, Andy and Eli both know he is innocent.

'The police have evidence. But something is not right, and Andy and Eli need to work out what, and fast or Jacob will end up in jail.

'So, with the help of twins Bernice and Fletcher (AKA Bernie and Fletch) and Andy’s trusty sausage dog, Washington, they set out to hunt for clues to what really happened. The trail points to a mysterious red-bottomed boat rumoured to be hidden deep in the mangroves.

'Does it hold the evidence they need to prove Jacob’s innocence?

'Can they find it without getting lost forever?

'And how will they outwit Sebastian, the legendary gigantic saltwater crocodile?

'Charlie Archbold’s action-packed new middle-grade adventure is a fun story of sleuthing, courageous deeds, the triumph of good over evil – and the power of friendship.' (Publication summary)

'The first middle-grade novel from award-winning author Nicki Greenberg, this book is a classic whodunnit mystery set aboard a grand ocean liner in the 1920s. With first-class glitz and glamour and a deliciously plotted intrigue featuring an uppity stage star, a missing diamond, a leopard and a loveable cast of child sleuths, The Detective's Guide to Ocean Travel is an exciting romp on the high seas, perfect for fans of Murder Most Unladylike and The Good Thieves.' (Publication summary)

''GREETINGS. AM LOOKING FOR A MAJOR CRIME TO SOLVE. PLEASE INFORM ME OF ANY RECENT MURDERS, KIDNAPPINGS OR JEWEL HEISTS IN THIS AREA.'

'Clara wants to be a famous detective with her own TV show. She can read claw marks, find missing feathers and knows morse code and semaphore.

'There's just one problem. She's a small scruffy chook, and no one takes her seriously.

'But when she teams up with Olive, the daughter of the local policeman, they might just be able to solve the crimes that have been troubling the town of Little Dismal.

'A puzzling and hilarious mystery from bestselling author, Lian Tanner.' (Publication summary)

'The girls at Maddy’s new school look through her as if she is invisible, and say mean things behind her back. The only person who has tried to talk to her is Gareth, who is new too. And he’s good at maths. Talking to him would mean social death. But then strange things happen in old inner-city terrace house Maddy’s family has moved into. She hears spooky noises on the stairs and sees strange faces in the mirror – first a ghastly white face, then a girl in a weird old-fashioned dress. They’re ghosts! The house is haunted!

'The girl in the mirror – Clarissa – starts to talk to Maddy. Maddy’s bedroom was Clarissa’s room back in the 1890s, and it’s the same mirror on the wall – though Clarissa is a Young Lady, so she has to call it a Looking Glass. The spook on the stairs is Clarissa’s brother Bertie, who died of whooping cough when he was six years old. Clarissa and Maddy get on really well – but then Clarissa disappears, and Maddy has strange visions of a huge, evil thing like a giant spider looming over her.

'Maddy’s baby brother gets seriously ill with whooping cough. Even in the hospital, the doctors are helpless.

'Meanwhile, back in the 1890s, the girl in the mirror is having problems of her own. Clarissa’s mother has been in a decline since Clarissa’s poisonous Aunt Lily was widowed, and she moved into their house. Aunt Lily makes a Strengthening Tonic for Mother every week, from plants in the garden. But what if the Tonic that Aunt Lily makes for Clarissa’s mother is actually making her sicker? What if she wants to get Clarissa’s mother out of the way forever?  The two girls have to use all their intelligence and verve to fight against Aunt Lily’s plots, each in her own time, with help from Clarissa’s ghostly brother Bertie—but will they succeed?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Stella Montgomery is in disgrace, and the Aunts have decided there is only one thing to be done. She is to be sent to Wakestone Hall, a grim and dreadful boarding school where the disobedient are tamed and the wilful are made meek.

Life at school is lonely and miserable, and when a friend disappears, Stella is determined to find her - no matter the dangers that certainly lie ahead…Soon Stella is thrown deeper into the mysteries of Wakestone… and her own past.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.