MYSTERY AT THE BILTMORE: THE VANDERHOFF HEIST — Review & Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.”
~ Louis L’Amour ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

I never tire of reading good articles about creating villains. HERE Sarah Allen from Sarah’s Smorgasbord has a great article about Writing a Satisfying Self-Destructive Villain. Her examples are just plain fun to read.

Time keeps on ticking, ticking, ticking… which can create much-needed tension in our books. HERE C. S. Lakin has a great post on How Fiction Writers Can Manipulate Time. It’s worth your time.

Plot twists are fun, and HERE is a fun post about How to Pull off a Plot Twist by K. M. Weiland.

Another astonishing week in the world of news. I won’t say much, but for anyone who has questions about the shutting down of USAID, I suggest you try to find Fareed Zaharia’s GPS show from this morning. For an agency that did so much good with such a tiny budget, it seems it should have been the last, not the first, to be cut. I guess that’s what happens when someone with no government experience or understanding or oversight is given free rein and a buzzsaw. There is some good news though. Pitchers and catchers reported to spring training last week. It begins. Baseball season will be here soon. I’ve never been to spring training, but I think about it every year. Maybe one of these days I will just do it. But this year isn’t the year. I will go to more parks this year. I have nine parks left to visit, and the hurricane took the roof off the Tampa Bay Rays park, so I can’t get that one this year. I think I will leave the Southeast for next year. It will take some serious planning, but I’m hoping to hit six more parks this year! So let the season begin!

Last week I offered a gently-read copy of THE TRAIL by Meika Hashimoto to one of you. Carol Baldwin shared my link for an extra chance, and that worked in her favor. She is the winner. Carol, I will get your book out to you soon. If you don’t know Carol, she has her debut novel coming out soon. You can read all about it on her site HERE, and you can also find her blog there, which always has interesting content and great reviews.

I have always been a big fan of chapter books. I think it takes a special talent to be able to write for emerging readers and help them to become lifelong readers. Whenever I get a chance to snag a review copy of a chapter book, I do it. MYSTERY AT THE BILTMORE: THE VANDERHOFF HEIST by Colleen Nelson came up on the Manhattan Book Review list in the fall. I don’t know why I waited so long to get the review up, but it’s never to late to review a good book. This is really a romp. And isn’t that an inviting cover? Here is the review I wrote for MBR.

Elodie’s parents are art theft detectives who travel the world for their jobs, often leaving Elodie and her dog, Carnegie, behind with Miss Rosa. Elodie decides to start her own detective agency. She is called by Mrs. Vanderhoff’s housekeeper to help find some sapphire and diamond earrings that have gone missing. Elodie meets a new resident of the Biltmore, Oscar, who is pretty talented at parkour. The two youngsters get busy collecting clues, investigating all kinds of odd characters that are residents of the building, and getting help from the two doormen. But are these two youngsters and their dog sidekick up to the task?

Author Colleen Nelson has written a very fun chapter book with lots of quirky characters, an interesting setting, and a crackerjack mystery. The dialogue is just right for the young characters, and situations will keep youngsters turning the pages. Colorful spot illustrations by Peggy Collins throughout the book add to the fun of this cute mystery and will keep young readers engaged. Her use of subtle colors and slightly cartoonish characters with realistic details in the background are the perfect complement for this story. Younger middle-grade readers will love it.

I have a gently-read hardback of this book to give to one of you. All you need to do is be a follower (it’s free and easy — see the top, right corner of the post) with a US Address, and leave a comment. If you share the link to this post on social media, please let me know in your comment, and you will get an extra chance. And please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.