February 24, 2026 by Delacorte Press
E ARC provided by Netgalley
Amber Adler is not happy that her mother bought a Victorian style house so that she could run the Cozy Koi Bed and Breakfast in Crook's Bend while Amber's father is working as a world famous detective in New York City. Not only does she have to share common spaces with complete strangers, sometimes they even are given her bedroom! Amber loves classic Agatha Christie mysteries, and has "investigated" her mother's guests so many times that she is often in trouble. The most recent case involved an elderly couple that Amber accused of stealing a bathrobe. They had actually turned the robe in to the desk for repair, but not before Amber staged a big reveal of their crime. When the wealthy Willoughby family arrives for a family reunion, Amber lines up her suspects before there's even a crime, which she thinks will be the murder of the patriarch, E.B. Also at the B&B are Lorraine, E.B.'s wife, and her tiny dog Lady, obnoxious son Sterling, the Fleekers, who are scientists and have a six-year-old son, and Beryl, who designs jewelry. Amber overhears many things that sound menacing but are quite literal: e.g. one of E.B.'s children wants him to actually BUY a farm. E.B. is actually quite nice and talks to Amber, sharing his love of the Hardy Boys with her and telling her about his elaborately carved cane with a $6.2 million ruby in the head. When there is a storm in the middle of the night, E.B.'s cane is violently taken from him. The hotel handyman, Mr. Biddle, had left a ladder outside when he was cleaning the gutters, and the Willoughbys assume that either he or Amber's mother are responsible for the theft. Amber starts to investigate with the help of Mr. Biddle's wife, who is the town librarian. Amber assume disguises, hangs out to eavesdrop at a salon and the local pub, and generally inserts herself into the family's business. Will she be able to find the ruby?
This book is cleverly set up like a Christie novel, with quirky characters who all have a motive, and Amber fashions herself as a detective. I liked the bed and breakfast setting. My favorite part of the book was E.B., who was a business tycoon who was extremely nice to Amber, and had turned from being a horrible employer in his youth to being a really good person. Amber got on my nerves; I couldn't believe how insensitively she endangered her mother's business. Of course, this was excused by the fact that she really missed her detective father. This would be a good choice for readers who like mysteries like Eagle's The Stolen Songbird or Quinn's Ruff vs. Fluff books.
January 6, 2026 by Random House Books for Young Readers
Public library copy
After Olive Zang's adventures at RASCH in The Royal Conundrum and The Copycat Conundrum, she and her friends are back at Foggy Manor in San Francisco. When the city is gripped with excitement over sightings of ghosts and sea monsters that bring a Foodie Festival on the Golden Gate Bridge to an abrupt end, Olive, along with James, Iggy, Theo, and Phil, are off to investigate. In between lessons on how to flibbertigibbit, they visit Professor Fable Howser at Marine World to try to get some insight. Marine World is owned by the evil Oscar "Odious" Odion, but they hope that Dr. Howser will have some information. NOCK, the secret spy No One Can Know organization to which Olive's parents and grandmother belong, starts a New Creatures Division to help investigate. When the kids find the sea monster, Frannie, is one of the tanks, they know they need to free her. They are even more determined when a Frannie's very young daughter is found out in the water. Using a Silly Boat Parade as cover, will the Misfits be able to save the endangered animal?
This was another quirky adventure that showcases San Francisco rather nicely, as the kids travel around the city. There's a good balance between scenes set in school and those set out and about, and we even get to meet some of the characters from previous books, like Rance Reed. There are lots of great illustrations by Santat, and the chapters are very short and move quickly. Readers who fancy themselves spies and who wrote themselves into stories like Landis' Capitol Chase, Ponti's City Spies, or Walsh's The Bug Bandits will enjoy this adventure and be curious about the MixFits that show up at the end up the book to "replace" the Misfits!
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