Sammy Keyes And The Showdown In Sin City

"The most winning junior detective ever in teen lit. (Take that, Nancy Drew!)" —Midwest Children's Book Review In this pivotal book in the Sammy Keyes series, Sammy tackles the persistent mysteries of her own life. Mysteries like: Who is her father? And why has her mother kept it such a secret? How long can she manage to hide out in Grams' seniors-only building before someone catches on? Is her mother really planning to marry her boyfriend's father? (Ew.) And why, why is Heather Acosta so nasty? During one crazy weekend in Las Vegas, with the help of an entire army of Elvis impersonators, Sammy finally gets some answers. But of course knowledge comes at a price—and solving the mysteries of her own life will cost Sammy more than she ever meant to pay. . . . The Sammy Keyes mysteries are fast-paced, funny, thoroughly modern, and true whodunits. Each mystery is exciting and dramatic, but it's the drama in Sammy's personal life that keeps readers coming back to see what happens next with her love interest Casey, her soap-star mother, and her mysterious father.

"The most winning junior detective ever in teen lit. (Take that, Nancy Drew!)" —Midwest Children's Book Review What Sammy should have done was put the binoculars down and call 911. What she does instead is tighten up the focus on her right eye to get a better look. There's something very familiar about this thief. But when Sammy eventually spills her story to Officer Borsch, he doesn't believe her. He treats her like some snot-nosed little kid. Well, Sammy's not going to stand for that. She's a snot-nosed seventh grader now, and she knows what she saw. And somehow she's going to prove it. The Sammy Keyes mysteries are fast-paced, funny, thoroughly modern, and true whodunits. Each mystery is exciting and dramatic, but it's the drama in Sammy's personal life that keeps readers coming back to see what happens next with her love interest Casey, her soap-star mother, and her mysterious father.

"The most winning junior detective ever in teen lit. (Take that, Nancy Drew!)" —Midwest Children's Book Review Sammy knew that getting to know her new rockstar dad on a cruise would be a little uncomfortable. . . . But when the heiress to a perfume empire disappears from the ship, it turns out everyone's in for a rocky ride. In this penultimate book in the Sammy Keyes mystery series, Wendelin Van Draanen pays homage to the mystery genre. This book is a classic locked-room whodunnit—Sammy Keyes style. The Sammy Keyes mysteries are fast-paced, funny, thoroughly modern, and true whodunits. Each mystery is exciting and dramatic, but it's the drama in Sammy's personal life that keeps readers coming back to see what happens next with her love interest Casey, her soap-star mother, and her mysterious father.

The final mystery starring Sammy Keyes: “the most winning junior detective ever in teen lit. (Take that, Nancy Drew!)” —Midwest Children’s Book Review Sammy doesn’t go looking for trouble, but she seems to find it everywhere. She’s forever sniffing out clues and chasing down bad guys—and driving her friends a little nuts. She’s gone up against thieves and counterfeiters and gangsters and blackmailers and murderers, and always stayed one step ahead. Until now. Last night, one of the bad guys caught up. Last night, someone followed Sammy up the fire escape and pushed her from the third story. Now she’s in the hospital, out cold. And her friends are left with the questions Sammy’s always been so good at answering: Why? How? But most of all . . . WHO? In this emotional conclusion to her beloved long-running series, Wendelin Van Draanen shows just how many lives one nosy girl can touch and pays tribute to a life well sleuthed. Praise for Sammy Keyes: “If Kinsey Millhone ever hires a junior partner, Sammy Keyes will be the first candidate on the list. She’s feisty, fearless, and funny. A top-notch investigator!” —Sue Grafton “Sammy’s brave, resourceful, observant and a loyal friend, but this girl sleuth is no well-mannered Nancy Drew. She’s endearingly hot-tempered, nosy, and not always obedient—in short, she’s someone I want to read about again.” —Margaret Maron

Sammy Keyes is usually pretty cool but currently she's reeling at the teen scene at a New Year's Eve party. She has to find out who burned down Moustache Mary's pioneer-era cabin and a series of puzzles before she can regain her self-confidence.

When Alec and the Black are hired to work as stunt doubles in a film about Alexander and his horse, Bucephalus, they find themselves on set in the remote mountains of the Greek/Bulgarian border. Movie making involves a lot of waiting, so they set out for a morning of exploring. Chasing an elusive albino mare, the two find themselves caught in an underground river which drops them, half-drowned, beside a city lost in time. Revered at first, they soon discover that they are intended as the entertainment at a horrific ritual . . . sacrifices to the legendary flesh-eating mares in the coloseum of King Diomedes. Another thrilling new Black Stallion novel by Walter Farley's son, which proves that the art of writing a great horse story is definitely in the genes!

A funny friendship turns serious in this haunting book about secrets, lies, and what it means to be a true friend. “Rusty, I swear to howdy, if you tell a soul...” Joey Banks is a walking adventure. He’s funny, daring, mischievous—and frequently in trouble. Or he would be if anyone found out about half the stuff he’s done. But Rusty Cooper knows how to keep a secret. And Joey’s the best friend he’s ever had. But then comes a secret that is at once too terrible to tell and too terrible to keep. A secret so big it threatens to eat them alive. What would a true friend do now? Wendelin Van Draanen has written a richly layered book that offers a thought-provoking look at the boundaries of friendship and what it really means to be true.

Newbery Honor Award-winning author Mavis Jukes is back with a lovable new character named Carson. His father moves him to a new town in Northern California, where he'll be the new kid in class—friendless and alone, except for his beloved stuffed moose (named Moose, of course). As Carson settles into his new surroundings, a series of delightful mishaps start to occur: the class pet, a rat named Mr. Nibblenose, gets lost to surprising results; the culprit of a mysterious lunch theft might actually be something that's not human at all; and when his beloved Moose goes missing, Carson makes his first new non-stuffed-animal friend. Told with childlike charm and wit, The New Kid is perfect for newly independent readers.