  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 04/01/2015 Gr 4–7—Tabitha Crum and her sidekick, a mouse named Pemberley, love a good mystery. Luckily, she has so many in her life: why don't her parents love her? What will she do when they abandon her at the local orphanage? Why has she, of all people, been invited to spend the weekend at the estate of the reclusive Countess Camilla DeMoss? It is soon revealed that Tabitha, along with five other children, might be the long-lost grandchild of the eccentric Countess, thus inheriting her large fortune. However, it becomes clear that all is not what it seems at Hollingsworth Hall. Why does the Countess always carry knives? What really happened to the Countess' dead son? Are there ghosts at the Hall? When the electricity goes out and a dead body turns up, the whole house goes into a panic. But the biggest mystery of all is: who is the true heir to the fortune? While the story certainly gets its inspiration from many places—Roald Dahl, Trenton Lee Stewart, and Scooby Doo—the way in which it is told is original, engaging, and funny. Tabitha is a smart, plucky heroine whom readers will get behind: they'll cry with her when she feels unloved, they'll be scared with her in the dark, and they'll cheer when she wins in the end. The writing is beautiful, expertly capturing all the suspense, hope, and love in the story. The conclusion is satisfying but, thankfully, with the possibility of further adventures. VERDICT A delightful gem that will fly off the shelves.—Laura Lutz, Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City - Copyright 2015 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 05/01/2015 *Starred Review* This loving homage to classic mysteries features an early twentieth-century English setting, a snowed-in manor house, mistaken identities, a decades-old secret, hidden passageways, and a passel of precocious children. Tabitha Crum, the unfortunate child of greedy, awful adoptive parents, receives a mysterious invitation to the home of a reclusive, famously philanthropic countess for the weekend. Her parents are hoping for a profitable windfall, but all Tabitha wants is an adventure. Once Tabitha and the other guests, five other children her age, arrive, they finally discover their purpose: the countess is looking for her long-lost grandchild, and since they’re all adopted, it’s very likely one of them. Yet something is askew. Children start disappearing, and Tabitha, who’s a great fan of Inspector Pensive mystery novels, uses her powers of deduction and her faithful pet mouse, Pemberley, to root out clues. But she finds more than just secrets; long starved for affection from her horrid parents, Tabitha is delighted to discover some heartening friendships in the process as well. Lawson offers a compelling puzzle, vividly drawn characters, and a clever and capable young detective, who bravely sniffs out clues before the final secrets are revealed—with everyone together in the parlor, naturally. - Copyright 2015 Booklist. Loading...
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