The Red Blazer Girls

Gr 5—8—The Red Blazers Girls are back with another multilayered mystery to solve. This time they are on the trail of a missing rare violin. Margaret, a violinist, has a lot riding on this case. If she finds the instrument, it is hers to keep. Once again, the young sleuths must break and trace some cryptic codes and brainteasers that involve logic, math, and literature to find the violin. In the process, Sophie, Margaret, Becca, and Leigh Ann end up trying to save the man who was their prime suspect. The girls also form a band (The Blazers), get a gig, find out who is mysteriously cleaning up St. Veronica's school, and outwit a mean classmate.The Ring of the Rocamadour (Knopf, 2009) is a must-read to get what is going on in this book, but fans of the earlier title will love it. Plenty of adventure is packed into one neatly solved mystery. The dialogue is fast paced and somewhat humorous. The clues are a bit harder than those in the first book, a bonus for readers who like a challenge. Suggest both books to kids who are looking for something funny and intriguing.—Shannon Seglin, Patrick Henry Library, Vienna, VA