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The Children in the Garden
Now that Mikey and his friends have solved the mystery of the children under the ice, they are off to solve another murder mystery with the help of a little girl ghost and her dark secret of the children in the garden. Can Mikey catch the killer before he hurts what he loves most...his family? Or will the killer catch him first? Find out in this thrilling sequel to The Children Under the Ice!
414 pages, Paperback
First published May 13, 2015
32 people want to read
About the author
R.A. Douthitt
23 books94 followersFormer writing teacher, R. A. Douthitt is an award-winning author of many books for middle grade readers and adults in fiction and non-fiction. She is the winner of the 2022 Christian Indie Awards FIRST PLACE in YA, the 2017 Moonbeam Children’s Books Award-Bronze Medal for Best Book Series, and the 2018 Gateway to the Best third prize winner of the Missouri Romance Writers of America contest. Ruth is working on a Christian-themed women's inspirational fiction series, coming soon. She currently works for Grand Canyon University and lives in Phoenix with her husband Scott and their little dog. When she isn't writing, Ruth loves to run, draw, paint, and garden.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 31, 2018
This is a wonderful mystery, which holds all of the needed thrills, chills and intrigue while still keeping it perfect for the middle grade audience.
Mikey has solved the first mystery, The Children Under the Ice, and is waiting to play his part in the up-coming trial—something he's pretty nervous about. But when a ghost appears, it's clear he won't have time to dwell on his fears. The girl needs Mikey's help to solve not only her own death, but that of several boys as well. The case isn't nearly as clear cut as the first one, and soon Mikey finds himself wrapped up in more murders and clues than he bargained for. If he isn't careful, not only could the killer escape, but he and his entire family might become the next victims.
I love this series! The author masterfully weaves a murder mystery, which holds all of the excitement of an adult mystery, but sizes it down just right for kids. Mikey and his friends come across as an average group of kids not only in their relationships, but the way the handle things, joke around or even get on each other's nerves. Mikey might be able to communicate with ghosts (at times) but he still comes across as normal as the boy next door. He makes decisions as best he can, values his family and friends more than anything else, and never admits to knowing everything.
There's never a dull moment in this book. Every scene locks the reader in and offers more to the mystery. Layers upon layers of secrets, twists and turns make it hard to guess where the entire thing will end. Some aspects are predictable, letting readers have the satisfaction of knowing they were right, while other twists lead to completely unexpected results. In this book, there is a little more paranormal fantasy built in, which gives the mystery an interesting twist.
In many ways, this borders on a thriller and maybe even the horror end of things, keeping a creepy and tense air the entire way through. But it never goes too dark. The murderer is dangerous and the threat real, but it doesn't tip into violence or gore. Even the ghosts, despite the danger they pose, have borders which keep the scary moments from going overboard. The tension remains high, and not once does the author talk down to the readers but meets them on their level.
In other words, this is perfect for mystery and ghost loving middle graders who are ready to dive into a serious murder mystery and sink into an exciting adventure.
I received a complimentary copy and loved this book so much that I wanted to leave my honest thoughts.
Mikey has solved the first mystery, The Children Under the Ice, and is waiting to play his part in the up-coming trial—something he's pretty nervous about. But when a ghost appears, it's clear he won't have time to dwell on his fears. The girl needs Mikey's help to solve not only her own death, but that of several boys as well. The case isn't nearly as clear cut as the first one, and soon Mikey finds himself wrapped up in more murders and clues than he bargained for. If he isn't careful, not only could the killer escape, but he and his entire family might become the next victims.
I love this series! The author masterfully weaves a murder mystery, which holds all of the excitement of an adult mystery, but sizes it down just right for kids. Mikey and his friends come across as an average group of kids not only in their relationships, but the way the handle things, joke around or even get on each other's nerves. Mikey might be able to communicate with ghosts (at times) but he still comes across as normal as the boy next door. He makes decisions as best he can, values his family and friends more than anything else, and never admits to knowing everything.
There's never a dull moment in this book. Every scene locks the reader in and offers more to the mystery. Layers upon layers of secrets, twists and turns make it hard to guess where the entire thing will end. Some aspects are predictable, letting readers have the satisfaction of knowing they were right, while other twists lead to completely unexpected results. In this book, there is a little more paranormal fantasy built in, which gives the mystery an interesting twist.
In many ways, this borders on a thriller and maybe even the horror end of things, keeping a creepy and tense air the entire way through. But it never goes too dark. The murderer is dangerous and the threat real, but it doesn't tip into violence or gore. Even the ghosts, despite the danger they pose, have borders which keep the scary moments from going overboard. The tension remains high, and not once does the author talk down to the readers but meets them on their level.
In other words, this is perfect for mystery and ghost loving middle graders who are ready to dive into a serious murder mystery and sink into an exciting adventure.
I received a complimentary copy and loved this book so much that I wanted to leave my honest thoughts.
February 4, 2017
The Children in the Garden by R. A. Douthitt is the second stunning piece to this series. I was wowed with the first book, and I'm definitely in love after reading this second one. R. A. Douthitt has done it again. Creating another masterpiece. A tale that both children and adults will enjoy reading. The characters are twelve-year-olds who solve murder cases with the help of ghosts.
One of the boys in particular can see all the ghosts. All it took was for him to play hockey on an ice pond and since then he has seen ghosts. The first was his uncle and uncle's friends. Now, we meet a group of boy ghosts who are cruel. They were cruel when they were living and cruel after death. They haunt a garden called Kew Gardens. There they are called for help by a little girl ghost, Irelene.
She has been told by Mickey's Uncle Kevin that Mickey is the guy to go to for help. Mickey at this point isn't too thrilled about solving ghost crimes. His dad is now married to the nice librarian and he has a baby brother named after his Uncle Kevin. It seems after the bad good can happen. But little does Mickey know that the ghosts from the garden are in connections with the ghosts he will meet later. An old book called the Secret Garden with clues from Irelene and a group who want to get revenge on Mickey will keep readers entertained as well as frightened. I couldn't stop reading it. This book was just as amazing as the first one. Humor, action, adventure, ghosts and danger....The Children in the Garden has it all. Overall, I highly recommend this novel to readers everywhere.
One of the boys in particular can see all the ghosts. All it took was for him to play hockey on an ice pond and since then he has seen ghosts. The first was his uncle and uncle's friends. Now, we meet a group of boy ghosts who are cruel. They were cruel when they were living and cruel after death. They haunt a garden called Kew Gardens. There they are called for help by a little girl ghost, Irelene.
She has been told by Mickey's Uncle Kevin that Mickey is the guy to go to for help. Mickey at this point isn't too thrilled about solving ghost crimes. His dad is now married to the nice librarian and he has a baby brother named after his Uncle Kevin. It seems after the bad good can happen. But little does Mickey know that the ghosts from the garden are in connections with the ghosts he will meet later. An old book called the Secret Garden with clues from Irelene and a group who want to get revenge on Mickey will keep readers entertained as well as frightened. I couldn't stop reading it. This book was just as amazing as the first one. Humor, action, adventure, ghosts and danger....The Children in the Garden has it all. Overall, I highly recommend this novel to readers everywhere.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews