Common Sense Media Review
Teen puts herself in danger to solve crime.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
One day when Ingrid is late for soccer practice she decides to run there, rather than wait for her mother to pick her up. She soon gets lost, and meets Cracked-up Katie, a local eccentric, who calls her a cab. The next day she finds out that Katie has been murdered, and realizes that she left her cleats at Katie's house. Worried that she will be implicated, she sneaks into Katie's house and takes back her shoes. But while there she discovers several clues that the police don't know about. When she finds out that the police have arrested two suspects who are probably innocent, she decides that, like her hero Sherlock Holmes, she must solve the murder herself.
Is It Any Good?
Fans who don't take all the drama too literally will be pleased to know this is the first of a series and can follow intrepid Ingrid into other mysteries. This is the first children's book by Peter Abrahams, a popular writer of adult mysteries, and it follows the teen-girl-detective formula pretty closely: plucky girl stumbles into mystery, decides to solve it herself rather than confide in adults, juggles mystery with school life, avoids being noticed by clueless parents, gets into mortal danger, solves mystery, explains it to police. It's basically Nancy Drew updated for the 21st century. Some parents may find it troubling that Ingrid is impulsive and dishonest, and repeatedly puts herself in danger by lying and sneaking around -- and some readers may be bothered by the tacked-on dramatic denouement.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Ingrid's character. She often puts herself in danger and lies to people -- but she does ultimately solve a crime. Is she a hero in your eyes? In reviews of this book, Publishers Weekly called Ingrid "charming" and Kirkus says her "behavior will have readers both rooting and worrying for her simultaneously." Do you agree with either of these descriptions? What words would you use to describe her?
Also, the Common Sense Media review calls Ingrid a "Nancy Drew updated for the 21st century." If you've read those books, do you agree? What other detective teen books have you read? What's appealing about the idea of a teen spy or a teen detective?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Mystery
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : HarperCollins Children's Books
- Publication date : October 30, 2005
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 10 - 10
- Number of pages : 375
- Last updated : December 3, 2025
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