annieb123
Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.
The Mystery of Locked Rooms is a fun action driven mystery adventure for middle grade readers by Lindsay Currie. Released 2nd April 2024 by Sourcebooks on their Young Readers imprint, it's 256 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. Paperback due out from the same publisher first quarter 2025. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.
This is a diverting action filled middle grade adventure with elements of mystery. The three main characters are best friends, and this is very much a buddy caper. It's over the top outlandish and not to be taken seriously (it's chiefly a book for kids). There are good takeaways here, and the author manages to include them without being preachy at all. There are several good themes for classroom or group discussion such as friendship, loyalty, thinking problems through and finding creative solutions, family stress/money/health issues and how they affect kids, and continuing with challenges even when it's difficult.
The unabridged audiobook format has a run time of 5 hours 50 minutes and is capably read by Eleanor McCormick. She has a well modulated alto voice with a generic midwest (USA) type accent. She enunciates very clearly and delineates the characters well (it's a limited cast). Sound and production quality are high throughout the read.
Four stars. Readers should being a healthy suspension of disbelief to the read. It would be a good choice for public or school library acquisition, home use, classroom discussion, or book club selection (for youngsters).
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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