Mystery and Detective Stories for Middle and High School

Martika begins having strange dreams about jungles and jaguars just before her quinceañera. Her mother brings her to Tía Tellin — the neighborhood bruja, or witch, to help sort out what she sees. Martika is astonished to learn that Tía Tellin is her great aunt and that they are both descended from a long line of Mayan healers, whose powers include psychic divination. When the daughter of her mother's client is kidnapped, Martika's visions help guide the search for the missing girl. — Booklist

Elatsoe — Ellie for short — lives in an alternate contemporary America shaped by the ancestral magics and knowledge of its Indigenous and immigrant groups. She can raise the spirits of dead animals—most importantly, her ghost dog Kirby. When her beloved cousin dies, all signs point to a car crash, but his ghost tells her otherwise: He was murdered. Who killed him and how did he die?

Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start at college, but when family tragedy strikes, Daunis puts her future on hold to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into an FBI investigation of a lethal new drug.

John Hawkins is in yet another new school as he begins the 7th grade. His life would be just fine except for the fact that Dowser, the school bully, has it out for him.

Maximiliano Córdoba loves stories, especially the legend Buelo tells him about a mythical gatekeeper who can guide brave travelers on a journey into tomorrow. If Max could see tomorrow, he would know if he'd make Santa Maria's celebrated fútbol team and whether he'd ever meet his mother, who disappeared when he was a baby. He longs to know more about her, but Papá won't talk. So when Max uncovers a buried family secret — involving an underground network of guardians who lead people fleeing a neighboring country to safety — he decides to seek answers on his own.

Marvel Comics presents the all-new Ms. Marvel, the groundbreaking heroine that has become an international sensation! Kamala Khan is an ordinary girl from Jersey City — until she is suddenly empowered with extraordinary gifts. But who truly is the all-new Ms. Marvel? Teenager? Muslim? Inhuman? Find out as she takes the Marvel Universe by storm! As Kamala discovers the dangers of her newfound powers, she unlocks a secret behind them as well. Is Kamala ready to wield these immense new gifts? Or will the weight of the legacy before her be too much to handle?

These mysteries have a clever twist ― you have to be a super sleuth, tapping into your math wisdom and critical thinking skills to solve them. Each story, presented in both English and Spanish, takes just one minute to read and challenges your knowledge in a variety of math disciplines. These brainteasers keep you engaged and eager to learn more. Also available in Korean.

Not an ordinary mystery book, One Minute Mysteries makes science fun! Each one-minute mystery (solutions included) exercises critical thinking skills while covering earth, space, life, physical, chemical, and general science. A bonus section includes five mysteries from our upcoming title in the series, One Minute Mysteries: Solve 'em with Math! This entertaining and educational book is great for kids, grown-ups, schools, educators, homeschoolers and anyone who loves good mysteries, good science, or both!

These mysteries have a clever twist ― you have to be a super sleuth, tapping into your science wisdom and critical thinking skills to solve them. Each story takes just one minute to read and challenges your knowledge in a variety of science disciplines. These brainteasers keep you engaged and eager to learn more.

Ellen Oh, founder of the We Need Diverse Books movement, returns with Spirit Hunters, a high-stakes middle grade mystery about Harper Raine, a Korean-American new seventh grader in town who must face down the dangerous ghosts haunting her younger brother. The whole atmosphere gives Harper a sense of déjà vu, but she can’t remember why. She knows that the memories she’s blocking will help make sense of her brother’s behavior and the strange and threatening sensations she feels in this house, but will she be able to put the pieces together in time?

When three very different girls find a mysterious invitation to a lavish mansion, the promise of adventure and mischief is too intriguing to pass up. Ofelia Castillo (a budding journalist), Aster Douglas (a bookish foodie), and Cat Garcia (a rule-abiding birdwatcher) meet the kid behind the invite, Lane DiSanti, and it isn't love at first sight. But they soon bond over a shared mission to get the Floras, their local Scouts, to ditch an outdated tradition.

"The Case of the Pen Gone Missing is a tricky one for a young sleuth. The hitherto unattainable Toots Rodriguez solicits Mickey's help when she is accused of stealing a classmate's special pen, the one actually touched by the President of the United States when he signed the bill sponsored by the classmate's father. Mickey's observational skills are blunted by his attraction to this deadly damsel in distress, but a timely tip from a mysterious 'Angel' puts him on the right track, and he not only finds the pen, but exposes the real culprit." — Mystery Scene Magazine

Marco, the new boy in school, is small and "mean as a skunk." He has no fear. Mickey knows, because he saw the incident with Simon Ortega, a football player who's a head and a half taller than Marco. Unable to understand why Marco is so mean, Mickey is even more dumbfounded when Bucho, the school's resident bully, backs down from the new, short kid. What drives a bully? Mickey wonders. Thus his newest challenge: to turn a bully into a friend, or at the very least, a nicer person. Mickey Rangel, kid detective extraordinaire, is on the case!

Rafa would rather live in the world of The Forgotten Age, his favorite fantasy role-playing game, than face his father’s increasing restrictions and his mother’s fading presence. But when Rafa and his friends decide to take the game out into the real world and steal their school cafeteria's slushie machine, his dad concocts a punishment Rafa never could’ve imagined ― a month working on a ranch in New Mexico, far away from his friends, their game, and his mom’s quesitos in Miami.

Product Description: When Pancho arrives at St. Anthony's Home, he knows his time there will be short: If his plans succeed, he'll soon be arrested for the murder of his sister's killer. But then he's assigned to help D.Q., whose brain cancer has slowed neither his spirit nor his mouth. D.Q. tells Pancho all about his "Death Warrior's Manifesto," which will help him to live out his last days fully — ideally, he says, with the love of the beautiful Marisol. As Pancho tracks down his sister's murderer, he finds himself falling under the influence of D.Q. and Marisol, who is everything D.Q.

Product Description: Mickey Rangel, kid detective extraordinaire, has just exited the school bus one sweltering afternoon when he hears a blood-curdling shriek. It's coming from the creepy neighbor lady's house. "My lemons, Mickey, my prize-winning lemons. They're gone. They re all gone," Senorita Andrade cries. Who could have removed several sacks full of lemons? In this second bilingual book in The Mickey Rangel Mystery series for intermediate readers, author and educator René Saldaña, Jr.

It's Monday morning, and kid detective extraordinaire Mickey Rangel is on the hot seat. When his principal instead brings up the recent rash of graffiti on school grounds, Mickey is initially horrified that she might think he's involved. But he quickly realizes why she has called him in: she needs his help! Mrs. A. has heard that Mickey is a detective, and he confirms that he's the "real deal," with an online certificate to prove it. She wants him to unmask the Mischievous Marker, the person writing messages all over the school's walls.

Product Description: Welcome to Tía Lola's bed and breakfast! With the help of her niece and nephew and the three Sword Sisters, Tía Lola is opening the doors of Colonel Charlebois' grand old Vermont house to visitors from all over. But Tía Lola and the children soon realize that running a B & B isn't as easy they had initially thought — especially when it appears that someone is out to sabotage them! Will Tía Lola and the kids discover who's behind the plot to make their B & B fail?

Product Description: When twelve-year-old Izzy discovers a beat-up baseball marked with the words "Becausemagic" while unpacking in yet another new apartment, she is determined to figure out what it means. What secrets does this old ball have to tell? Her mom certainly isn't sharing any, especially when it comes to Izzy's father, who died before Izzy was born. But when she spends the summer in her Nana's remote New Mexico village, Izzy discovers long-buried secrets that come alive in an enchanted landscape of watermelon mountains, whispering winds, and tortilla suns.

Perry Firekeeper-Birch has always known who she is: the laidback twin, the troublemaker, the best fisher on Sugar Island. Her aspirations won't ever take her far from home, and she wouldn't have it any other way. But as the rising number of missing Indigenous women starts circling closer to home, as her family becomes embroiled in a high-profile murder investigation, and as greedy grave robbers seek to profit off of what belongs to her Anishinaabe tribe, Perry begins to question everything.

In the seaside town of Nautilus, Minerva Gutiérrez absolutely hates her job at the local ice cream stand, where her sexist boss makes each day worse than the last. But she needs the money: kicked out of school and stranded by her mom's most recent hospitalization, she dreams of escaping her dead-end hometown. When an armed robbery at the ice cream stand stirs up rumors about money hidden on the property, Min teams up with her neighbor CeCe, also desperate for cash, to find it. The bonus? Getting revenge on her boss in the process.

Product Description: The teens featured in these stories deal with situations typical to all young adults, but they also deal with every kind of thrilling situation imaginable, from missing girls to kidnappings and dismembered bodies. There's something for everyone here, with aliens, ghosts, and even an Aztec god making appearances in these stories. Set in schools and communities from New York City to Venice Beach, California, the protagonists reflect the breadth and diversity of the Latino authors included in this innovative collection.