Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valor
(Winterborne Home #1)

In this entertaining adventure reminiscent of Annie, five precocious foster siblings discover secrets in their sprawling new home. April, 12, has been in the foster system ever since her mother abandoned her with nothing but an ornate key and promise of her return. When the key turns out to bear the crest of the fabulously wealthy Winterborne family--whose sole heir, Gabriel, vanished a decade prior after his family was killed--April sneaks into the family's just-opened museum exhibit, intent on finding what it might unlock. She accidentally sets the exhibit aflame, and when she awakens in the hospital, April and several other children, including genius Sadie, who is black, and Londoner con artist Colin, are brought to Winterborne House as an effort to turn it into a group home. Once there, April discovers that Gabriel is alive, hiding in the mansion's secret passages, and has a good reason for remaining hidden for so long--someone's fiendish plan, which the children must help him thwart. In her middle grade debut, Carter (Not If I Save You First) offers up mystery, intrigue, and swashbuckling action in a rollicking story of long-lost secrets and found family. Ages 10-12. Agent: Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary Agency. (Mar.)

Gr 4-6—Whenever one mystery is solved, it usually unearths countless more questions, like a ball of yarn slowly unraveling but filled with knots. April, an independent and scrappy orphan, is whisked away to gloomy and ostentatious Winterborne Home after her involvement with a fire. Questions abound as April is warmly welcomed into the colossal yet grim mansion whose family namesake, Gabriel Winterborne, has been missing for over a decade. April quickly realizes that the key her mother left her bears the Winterborne insignia and an unknown wanderer lurks in the shadows at night. Potential connections and even more surprises emerge as April must gather the courage to ask for help from her new acquaintances while diving headfirst into adventure and mystery. A modern thriller flavored with classic adventure, this novel is well suited for middle grade sleuths. Carter drops hints, yet her writing forces readers to create their own inferences about both the plot and the main characters. Highly descriptive writing intensifies the action, while an infusion of pop culture slang and sass keeps the text upbeat and modern. By the end, gumshoes may groan in anticipation as Carter skillfully answers some questions, yet unveils a plethora more, leaving the door wide open for further books in a potential series. VERDICT Readers will further enjoy the fast pace of this book filled with short chapters and cliff-hangers. Strongly recommended for school libraries.—Mary-Brook J. Townsend, The McGillis School, Salt Lake City