Spotlight on the Cedar Creek Mystery Series
The Cedar Creek Mystery Series by Anne Louder McGee consists of three books—The Mystery at Marlatt Manor, The Mystery of the Missing Ming, and The Mystery Beneath Midville Museum.
McGee’s Cedar Creek Mysteries are an episodic series where each story is self-contained, but her books feature the same primary characters and independent storylines.
Mystery at Marlatt Manor
McGee’s first Cedar Creek Mystery, The Mystery at Marlatt Manor, is about an old haunted house. She says, “I have visited many haunted homes in different countries. In each case, I have been left with the sense that stories lie hidden behind walls just waiting to be unlocked and told.” In one Victorian home a poltergeist whispered to McGee the tale of Violet Marlatt. The author says, “It seemed only right that I should put pen to paper and let others know what I heard.”
The book tells the story of Mallory Gilmartin, a young teen uprooted by divorce from her Philadelphia home. She is transplanted to rural Virginia and resents it. Cedar Creek is a complete bore and its middle school doesn’t even have a girls’ baseball team. Everything changes fast when a sports car forces the thirteen-year-old cyclist off the road and into a ditch as it speeds away from the spooky house on the hill.
Soon after, Mallory’s mom tells her about Violet Marlatt, a missing teen who disappeared 50 years ago from that mansion during a party, and was never seen again. That night, Mallory sees a flickering light in the deserted house followed by the silhouette of a girl. Could that be Violet’s ghost?
McGee’s middle school novel is fast paced as teen sleuth Mallory uncovers the mystery of the missing girl and the weird people that seem to be hunting for a possible lost treasure. Along the way, the author introduces us to a cast of quirky characters. First, there’s Grandma Aggie, who would rather ride a motorcycle, skydive, or delve into forensic science than sit in a rocker and knit. There’s also Kyle, an 8th grade nerd who wears checkered pants; Roger Dunlop, a grumpy banker; and Albert Hampton, Marlatt Manor’s creepy caretaker.
Coupled with all this, Aggie may lose her beloved home and Mallory has strange dreams that may be the key to solving everyone’s problems, including the manor’s mystery.
If you like suspense, psychic ability, and a scary story, The Mystery at Marlatt Manor is for you. Just beware, once you start reading, you won’t be able to stop until you reach the surprising climax.
The Mystery of the Missing Ming
Teen sleuth Mallory Gilmartin is back in a new adventure. Last time we heard from her in The Mystery at Marlatt Manor, Malory was unraveling a devious plot regarding a deserted mansion. In her new Cedar Creek Mystery, someone stole librarian Edna May Florentine’s valuable Ming vase from her home. To make matters worse, a mysterious interloper is accusing the elderly librarian of stealing that same vase from his house 30 years ago; so the local heat takes Edna May away in handcuffs.
Anne Loader McGee brings us book two of the Cedar Creek Mystery series with her signature crisp sentences and humorous dialogue, McGee keeps readers engaged in a fun-filled adventure that unfolds during the 1970s in Cedar Creek, Virginia.
The cast of characters in The Mystery of the Missing Ming include Aggie Hobbs, Mallory’s 60 something grandma, who expects her grandchildren to call her Aggie, OR ELSE! Sidekick, Kyle, reluctantly gets involved in Mallory and Aggie’s schemes that too often get him into trouble with his dad and or the law. Added to the mix is Mallory’s gift of communicating with the dearly departed. McGee swirls this around with her magical wand creating a thoroughly enchanting novel that readers won’t be able to put down.
The Mystery Beneath Midville Museum
Teen sleuth Mallory Gilmartin is back for Anne Louder McGee’s third installment of her Cedar Creek Mystery Series. This time Mallory visits Midville Museum on a class trip with history teacher, Mrs. Romano. The class is shown a mysterious sarcophagus containing the mummy of a singer. Weren’t mummies prepared for only Pharaohs and the royal family? To add to the weirdness, an earthquake strikes only the first floor of the museum, and there are reports of an Egyptian statue moving on its own power.
When Mallory hears about a friend’s mother about to be fired from the museum staff for stealing, she agrees to step in and solve the many mysteries surrounding the new Egyptian exhibit.
What happens next is non-stop action and fun as author Anne Louder McGee takes her readers through funny and exciting scenes as Mallory, with the help of friend Kyle and grandmother Aggie, solve the Mystery Beneath Midville Museum.
Though McGee’s novel is the third installment to the Cedar Creek Mystery Series, it is not necessary to read the first two books in the series. However, those novels are equally as entertaining for readers of all ages as Mystery Beneath Midville Museum.
All three of McGee’s Cedar Creek Mysteries are entertaining reads, funny, thrilling, and highly recommended.
About the Author
Originally from New Zealand, Anne McGee now makes her home in Southern California. In addition to the Cedar Creek Mystery Series, she also penned Anni’s Attic, a Civil War epic, and is the co-author of the “Sing Out Loud” instructional singing books for children. You can visit her at: www.annemcgee.com.
Pop’s Rating:
Grandma Aggie sounds like my kind of gal.
These three mysteries books seem to be very exciting and will put one on edge.
I would love to experience a field trip with Mallory Gilmartin!