"I laughed out loud at The Phone Book being treated like a historical artifact, though it hurt to be reminded that I’m getting older."
On a summer holiday at their Great-Uncle Bartleby’s three siblings go on a time travel adventure to solve a 60 year old museum theft. Thirteen year old Charlie and her ten year old twin siblings Tom and Lucy are headed from their home in London to the seaside and their Great-Uncle Bartleby’s home.
Thinking that it’ll be quiet and boring, Charlie isn’t looking forward to it, but when they arrive the house delivers more than she is expecting. Her sister Lucy stumbles across an intriguing pocket watch and after they’ve seen a news piece about the unsolved theft of the precious Azure Star from their parent’s museum in 1965, they decide to head back and crack the case.
But there’s more to grapple with in the sixties than solving the crime, will the Time Sleuths be able to solve the case and make it back home? The Mystery of the Azure Star is a fun and fast-paced time travelling adventure that will be an exciting story for middle grade readers. Charlie and her siblings not only have to face the challenge of solving the case but also how to navigate 1965 England.
The Penroses need to figure out pre-decimal money, the train system and navigate without phones or the internet. Because the story is set in modern history parents, guardians and teachers may recall some of the “oddities” Charlie and her siblings faced. I laughed out loud at The Phone Book being treated like a historical artifact, though it hurt to be reminded that I’m getting older.
This first case was just the start of the Penroses’ adventures, and readers can look forward to more entertaining time-travel adventures.
Charlotte Walker, A LoveReading4Kids Ambassador
Thirteen-year-old Charlie Penrose and her ten-year-old twin siblings, Tom and Lucy, expect a sleepy summer at their Great-Uncle Bartleby’s seaside home. But then they stumble upon a golden pocket watch with a cryptic inscription, which hides a power none of them could have imagined. With one press of a button the children are whisked back to 1965, and the fateful night the precious Azure Star vanished.
| Primary Genre | Indie Author Books |
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Thirteen-year-old Charlie Penrose and her ten-year-old twin siblings, Tom and Lucy, expect a sleepy summer at their Great-Uncle Bartleby’s seaside home. But then they stumble upon a golden pocket watch with a cryptic inscription, which hides a power none of them could have imagined.
The Mystery of the Azure Star features in the following genres: Indie Author Books , Indie Books We Love, Mystery / Mythology, Recommendations, Children’s / Teenage: General interest, Children’s, Teenage and Educational
Paperback. Not Available.
The Mystery of the Azure Star was written by Ben Thistle and published by Sleuth Press