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The Problim Children #3
Island in the Stars
Mystery and mayhem abound in the final book in New York Times bestselling author Natalie Lloyd's middle grade series, as the Problim siblings board a pirate ship to rescue their missing Mama and baby brother from the villainous Cheesebreath.
Problim Children to the rescue! Sal and his siblings follow a trail of Toot’s toots as they sail through the barrier islands to rescue their baby brother from the evil Cheesebreath. He’s been holding Toot and Mama Problim hostage in the hopes that the Problims will lead him to their granddaddy’s treacherous treasure. But not all treasure is gold, and this one was buried long-ago for good reason.
Can the Problims find Mama, rescue their brother, and destroy the treasure before Cheesebreath and their nasty neighbor Desdemona capture them all?
Bursting with adventure, mystery, humor, and heart, the final book in Natalie Lloyd’s series is an affectionate ode to the wonders of being a weird kid in a weird family.
Problim Children to the rescue! Sal and his siblings follow a trail of Toot’s toots as they sail through the barrier islands to rescue their baby brother from the evil Cheesebreath. He’s been holding Toot and Mama Problim hostage in the hopes that the Problims will lead him to their granddaddy’s treacherous treasure. But not all treasure is gold, and this one was buried long-ago for good reason.
Can the Problims find Mama, rescue their brother, and destroy the treasure before Cheesebreath and their nasty neighbor Desdemona capture them all?
Bursting with adventure, mystery, humor, and heart, the final book in Natalie Lloyd’s series is an affectionate ode to the wonders of being a weird kid in a weird family.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 11, 2020
22 people are currently reading
267 people want to read
About the author
Natalie Lloyd
13 books533 followersNatalie Lloyd is the New York Times Bestselling Author of novels for young readers (and the young at heart).
Her first novel, A Snicker of Magic (2014), was an ALA Notable Book, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice, a top 10 Kids Indie Next Pick and an NPR, iBooks and Parents Magazine best book of the year for children. The book has been optioned for television by Sony Tristar. Natalie’s other novels include The Key to Extraordinary (Scholastic 2016), The Problim Children series (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen 2017), and Over the Moon (Scholastic 2019). These novels have won accolades from Entertainment Weekly, Junior Library Guild, SIBA, Amazon and Bank Street College of Education, among others. Silverswift, her first Audible Original, was published in 2020. Hummingbird, her seventh (and most personal) novel for kids, was published in August 2022. In January 2023, it was awarded a Schneider Family Honor Award by the American Library Association. Her next novel, The Witching Wind, will be available in Fall 2024.
Natalie writes in the shadows beside a sunny window in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She loves adventuring with her husband, Justin, and their dogs.
Her first novel, A Snicker of Magic (2014), was an ALA Notable Book, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice, a top 10 Kids Indie Next Pick and an NPR, iBooks and Parents Magazine best book of the year for children. The book has been optioned for television by Sony Tristar. Natalie’s other novels include The Key to Extraordinary (Scholastic 2016), The Problim Children series (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen 2017), and Over the Moon (Scholastic 2019). These novels have won accolades from Entertainment Weekly, Junior Library Guild, SIBA, Amazon and Bank Street College of Education, among others. Silverswift, her first Audible Original, was published in 2020. Hummingbird, her seventh (and most personal) novel for kids, was published in August 2022. In January 2023, it was awarded a Schneider Family Honor Award by the American Library Association. Her next novel, The Witching Wind, will be available in Fall 2024.
Natalie writes in the shadows beside a sunny window in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She loves adventuring with her husband, Justin, and their dogs.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
November 19, 2020
Wow! Such a great ending! In the acknowledgments in the back, the author did refer to this as the final book, so looks like just a trilogy. Such a great trilogy at that. This one was even more of a grand adventure than the other 2! This was away from home, & a completely different location & everything. Our story came to its climax, so the suspense was at an all time high. So impressed by the riddles, every part of the Problim family & the 7’s, & the whole backstory w/the treasure-so creative & the author did such an amazing job. Such a beautiful ending too. This one was from Sal’s point of view, & he learns & grows so much in this book. Seeing him come into his own was just magical. Definitely full of more great lessons to take away. The part w/the thin place had me emotional! So beautiful. Another gorgeous cover, w/amazing illustrations throughout again too.😍😍 Highly recommend the whole trilogy.💜💜
February 23, 2025
my least favorite from the trilogy :( the pov changing wasn’t for me, i preferred to be in mona’s mind instead of sal. she felt like the main character and heart of the siblings but in this book she’s almost forgettable:( i still love these cute little children so much, specially wendell and frida
i really just need the Problim parents to be present for the love of god 😭 stop leaving your children alone
i really just need the Problim parents to be present for the love of god 😭 stop leaving your children alone
October 20, 2020
This trilogy wraps up with a full family reunion. Lloyd continues to develop her characters and reveal more about them to readers. This final adventure to destroy the fountain of youth and complete their grandfather's last request takes each child to deep challenges that make them face themselves and their relationship with others. No one is left out of the trip to the island as friends and enemies converge for the final showdown. Hope the few hints of future adventures means more books to come.
July 22, 2021
This was really cute and fun! I didn't love the second book (though I did enjoy my reread of the first one more than I expected to), but this was a good conclusion. It was an adventure story, and I definitely got Voyage of the Dawn Treader vibes with the mist, the entrance to the hidden lab, etc. There's even a Narnia mention in the book! Anyway, it was fun and imaginative. Natalie always has such a magical way of creating worlds and situations and memorable places. (Loved the Isle of St. Maria!) I got teary eyed a few times too.
September 6, 2022
This was not my favorite series and I was glad it was finally over. 3 books in, and--sorry--the ending did nothing for me. On the positive side, I felt like this book had more heart than the other two, and I did really like the relationship dynamics between the siblings, which were mostly positive. It's nice to read a book where the sibling characters look out for each other and love each other.
September 22, 2020
The six older Problim children— and some new friends— work together to solve the remaining riddles left for them by their missing grandfather in time to save their kidnapped baby brother.
I found the story a bit difficult to follow, but all in all, I still enjoyed reading about the siblings and their quirky and heartwarming adventures. A fun finale to the Problim Children trilogy!
I found the story a bit difficult to follow, but all in all, I still enjoyed reading about the siblings and their quirky and heartwarming adventures. A fun finale to the Problim Children trilogy!
April 20, 2021
I absolutely loved this trilogy and had so many mixed emotions as it was ending. The characters were so well developed and I just loved them all. It was so well written and just completely enveloped you in it. It had it all...adventure, humor, some sappy moments... you could just feel the story and the family coming together more and more. Its not often a book can make my night better. Thank you.
September 19, 2020
A fun end to a fun series! Written in classic Natalie Lloyd style, the readers are reminded of simple yet important lessons about family, friendship, and love. The last couple lines are one of my favorites, ultimately saying: all children are full of magic. ❤
November 1, 2024
I finished the series and it was exactly like I said! The book had mystery, sibling love, friendship, and a must-read. It was beautifully written and hard to put down. I am set on the opinion that Natalie Lloyd is one of the best authors ever!
August 24, 2020
Amazing in every respect . . . more to write about. All the stars
October 2, 2020
I think this was the best of the 3 books in this series. It was really delightful as are all of her books
September 23, 2021
I read these books because my daughter is reading them too so we can chat about them. great for tweens. Uplifting and creative, very fun.
April 10, 2022
Lots of fun. A good ending to this quirky series.
July 25, 2024
4.25 stars
December 28, 2024
Another Natalie Lloyd adventure. She literally never disappoints. Her books always remind you to focus on the humanity of the people around you. 😍
August 12, 2025
Why am I crying reading a kids book? 😭❤️ This was such a sweet ending to the trilogy!
June 24, 2022
5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews