Fast Five Fiction: Mystery Week

It's Friday and time for Fast Five Fiction! Each week I share five fiction books: new books, notable books, books around a common theme. Our summer reading theme this year is Adventure Begins at your Library and we've got a ton of great books for readers of all ages. Each week we're adventuring through a different genre in children's department. This weeks theme is mystery so I'm sharing some newer, popular mystery books.

Click the title to be directed to the book in our catalog. Book descriptions are from Goodreads. 

Charlie Thorne series by Stuart Gibbs

From New York Times bestselling author Stuart Gibbs comes the first novel in a thrilling new series about the world's youngest and smartest genius who's forced to use her unbelievable code-breaking skills to outsmart Einstein.

Charlie Thorne is a genius.
Charlie Thorne is a thief.
Charlie Thorne isn't old enough to drive.

And now it's up to her to save the world...

Decades ago, Albert Einstein devised an equation that could benefit all life on earth--or destroy it. Fearing what would happen if the equation fell into the wrong hands, he hid it.

But now, a diabolical group known as the Furies are closing in on its location. In desperation, a team of CIA agents drags Charlie into the hunt, needing her brilliance to find it first--even though this means placing her life in grave danger.

In a breakneck adventure that spans the globe, Charlie must crack a complex code created by Einstein himself, struggle to survive in a world where no one can be trusted, and fight to keep the last equation safe once and for all.

City Spies series by James Ponti

Sara Martinez is a hacker. She recently broke into the New York City foster care system to expose her foster parents as cheats and lawbreakers. However, instead of being hailed as a hero, Sara finds herself facing years in a juvenile detention facility and banned from using computers for the same stretch of time. Enter Mother, a British spy who not only gets Sara released from jail but also offers her a chance to make a home for herself within a secret MI6 agency.

Operating out of a base in Scotland, the City Spies are five kids from various parts of the world. When they're not attending the local boarding school, they're honing their unique skills, such as sleight of hand, breaking and entering, observation, and explosives. All of these allow them to go places in the world of espionage where adults can't.

Before she knows what she's doing, Sara is heading to Paris for an international youth summit, hacking into a rival school's computer to prevent them from winning a million euros, dangling thirty feet off the side of a building, and trying to stop a villain...all while navigating the complex dynamics of her new team.

No one said saving the world was easy...

Chester Keene Cracks the Code by Kekla Magoon

Chester Keene takes great comfort in his routines. Afterschool Monday to Thursday is bowling, and Friday, the best of days, is laser tag! But Chester has one other very special thing--he gets secret spy messages from his dad, who must be on covert government assignments, which is why Chester has never met him.

Then one day, Chester's classmate, Skye, approaches him with a clue. They've been tasked with a complex puzzle-solving mission. Skye proves to be a useful partner and good company, even if her free-wheeling ways are disruptive to Chester's carefully built schedule.

As Chester and Skye get closer to their final clue, they discover the key to their spy assignment: they have to stop a heist! But cracking this code may mean finding out things are not always what they seem.

The Jules Verne Prophecy by Larry Schwarz

Owen Godfrey is spending his summer in Paris studying science fiction writer Jules Verne, the brilliant mind behind Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty Days. When Owen and his new friends find what appears to be a dusty copy of Verne's collected works in an old bookshop, they're intrigued by the hidden codes written inside. As one clue leads to another, the trio gets swept up in an epic treasure hunt spanning the city--from the depths of the catacombs to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and by way of skateboard, boat, car, and even a hot air balloon! But they quickly realize they're not the only ones searching for the hidden riches, and that there are others who will stop at nothing to get to them first.

This fast-paced larger-than-life adventure is filled with action, high stakes, and three friends who are dead set on cracking the Jules Verne mystery.

Virginia Mysteries series by Steven K. Smith

Do you remember your first real adventure? When summer was filled with magic and anything seemed possible?

When young brothers Derek and Sam move with their family to Virginia, they have no idea what adventures the summer will bring. As they explore their creaky old house and the deep surrounding woods, they uncover a sixty-year-old mystery of a valuable coin collection stolen from the local museum. Join the boys as they spend their summer running from danger and searching the woods, secret caves, rushing waters, and hidden passageways for treasure and the rare 1877 Indian Head cent coin!

Summer of the Woods is the first book in The Virginia Mysteries series. If you enjoy mystery and adventure like the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Magic Tree House, or National Treasure, you'll love author Steven K. Smith's exciting middle-grade series. The stories are modern-day fictional mysteries with twists of real locations and events from Virginia history. These fast-paced books are popular with both boys and girls ages 7-12, appealing to even reluctant readers.

Happy Friday and happy reading!