The Mystery of Locked Rooms

January 29, 2024
Seventh grader Sarah and her two best friends West and Hannah call themselves the Deltas for their love of puzzles. Their unique and perfectly balanced individual skills aid in their team efforts to solve even the hardest of escape room riddles. Because of their friendship, Sarah—who arrived in Park Glen three years ago—finally feels like she belongs. But when her father is diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and her mother, who is working two jobs, can’t make ends meet, Sarah’s family faces possible foreclosure on their home, meaning they might have to move if they can’t get the money they need, and fast. To help, West and Hannah propose hunting for an alleged treasure left in an abandoned 1950s funhouse built on the outskirts of town by triplets who vacated the lot after one of them died young. In this page-turning thriller, Currie (It Found Us) builds suspense via high-stakes brain teasers in dark rooms and periods of isolation as the Deltas endeavor to solve the biggest, most dangerous series of escape rooms they’ve ever faced. Sarah reads as white; supporting characters are racially diverse. Ages 8–12. Agent: Shannon Hassan, Marsal Lyon Literary.

February 1, 2024
"Like three sides of the same triangle, none of us can imagine what life would be like if we weren't together." Sarah, West, and Hannah have been an intrepid trio since they first met. They bring their passion for math and numbers and their perfectly aligned strengths to solving escape rooms. With a foreclosure looming on Sarah's family home--which would mean moving to live with her grandparents in Michigan--the only solution is to seek out the rumored Triplet Treasure belonging to Hans, Stefan, and Karl Stein. The treasure is supposedly hidden in a long-abandoned fun house they built in the 1950s. To outmaneuver the triplets' ingenious riddles and tricks, the friends will need to overcome personal obstacles and unlock the doors within themselves. While the stakes are high, it's reassuring for readers to know that Sarah's family has a place to go, even if it's far away from her friends. Early chapters detail the health challenges faced by Sarah's father; his chronic illness has placed a strain on the family's finances. Currie sets up a moving metaphor: Sarah's enthusiasm for escape rooms becomes a means of tackling the unsolvable puzzle that has left her parent confined to his own inescapable room. This topic is treated with a gentle touch, but Sarah's emotional depths could have been explored more deeply; West's and Hannah's emotional arcs are fulfilling, however. Main characters read white. A riddling, sporting adventure and a story of true friendship. (Mystery. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

February 15, 2024
Grades 4-6 Twelve-year-old Sarah never really fit in. That is, until she met West and Hannah, the other members of her best-friend group known as the Deltas. Their love of math and escape rooms drew them together, and when Sarah finds out her home is being foreclosed on and she'll have to move away from the only people who've ever understood her, she hopes their shared skills can bail her family out. How? There's a local legend of a treasure hidden in an abandoned funhouse, and Sarah sees that treasure as the answer to all her family's problems. Currie has a light touch with heavy issues, such as coping with a parent who has a chronic illness and financial instability, while also exploring problems such as personal insecurity and the strength needed to be honest and vulnerable with the people you care about. This page-turner with touching character moments makes a fun read for anyone who enjoys puzzle solving, escape rooms, and books centered around the power of friendship.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

February 1, 2024

Gr 4-8-Locked rooms filled with secret passages, puzzles, and codes create challenges for friends West, Hannah, and Sarah, or as they call themselves, the Deltas. As the story opens, they have just become the first team of mystery solvers to beat the escape room at Lasers and Lava in record time. While riding high on that victory, they begin discussing a long-since abandoned fun house built by a set of triplets many decades ago. Legend has it that treasure awaits the person who manages to escape from it. Treasure is just what Sarah needs now. Since her dad isn't able to work anymore, and her mom can't work enough, their house is being foreclosed on and they will probably have to move. With that motivation, the Deltas decide that they could take on the challenge of the fun house and find the treasure that will keep them together. Upon arriving at the house, Sarah finds the first clue and their way inside. Once in, they must solve puzzles, decipher codes, and escape from one room after another. But the challenges start, becoming more personal and sinister, leaving the Deltas to wonder who planned these, and how to break free. These twists and turns will keep readers rapidly turning the pages to find out if the trio successfully escapes. VERDICT With highly likable characters, authentic dialogue, and tension-building action, this exciting and engaging story will grab the attention of many readers who will not put it down until the end. Highly recommended for all libraries.-Laura Fields Eason

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