Middle Grade Sci-fi (near-future), Action, Mystery series. Multicultural adult scientists? solve crimes. Space travel. Speeding cars on Earth. Explosions. Painted illustrations & few sentences on every page. Covers: red border. Read late 80s/early 90s.

[Tony]

I remember reading a whole bunch of these as a kid in the late 80s/early 90s. A series of books aimed, I'd say, at a pre-teen audience. Painted illustrations on every page, with just a few sentences of text. The books were thin paperbacks, roughly A5-size. The covers were red, with the front consisting of an image with a red border.

Sci-fi/action. The series is set in the near future, with people still driving cars, etc. I forget where it takes place, but I think they're scientists. Space travel is involved, but I think it also takes place on Earth. I think the plots tended to revolve around solving crimes, etc.

The cast of characters remains constant throughout the series. It's quite multicultural, with people of different ethnic backgrounds. The illustrations were in a realistic style, but it occasionally edged into the uncanny valley.

I remember people speeding around in cars. I remember explosions. I remember espionage and mystery. That's about it for the time being.

I hope someone can help. I got rid of these books when I was younger, and now I can't get them out of my head.

Thanks.

[Rainbowheart]

Does anything on the 20th Century YA and Middle Grade Science Fiction list look familiar?

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

It is mandatory to include genre and plot details in your topic header, as per the Group Rules.

Because this group is so huge, we will close threads that don't adhere to this requirement.

Please add more plot details to your topic header from what you've already written.

[Kris]

Tony, I copied book details to the topic header. Feel free to edit it.

Were the "bad guys" humans and/or aliens?

[Tony]

Kris, Thank you. I didn't know how to edit it. Aliens didn't feature heavily. It was more about the people on the base. I'm sorry I only remember so much detail. That's why I've had so much trouble thus far.

[Kris]

You're welcome. I updated the topic header by clicking the small "edit" link after the header. This only works on the full Desktop Website - not the Mobile Website or the App.

[Rainbowheart]

Tony, did you rule out everything on this list?

20th Century YA and Middle Grade Science Fiction

[Tony]

Rainbowheart, Sorry I didn't reply to your first comment. Unfortunately, I didn't find it on the list. I made sure to check all the lists I could find before posting. Thank you for your suggestion.

[Rainbowheart]

No worries, I hope we can track it down for you!

Did you read these books in the UK?

[Tony]

Rainbowheart, Yes, in the UK. I think the books were probably British too.

[Kris]

Tony, are the main characters all adults? Are there any kids featured?

[Tony]

Kris, All adults. I remember a lot of them being scientists.