Andi Unexpected

Adult mystery author Flower (the Appleseed Creek series) makes her middle-grade debut with this first book in the Andi Boggs series about a generations-old secret that become a stabilizing focus for two grieving sisters. When their parents die in a plane crash, 12-year-old Andi and her teenage sister, Bethany, come to live with their free-spirited aunt in a small Ohio college town. While settling into her new home and exploring the attic, Andi happens upon a long-hidden box containing mementos of a namesake ancestor, Andora Boggs. Her new friend and neighbor Colin enthusiastically joins Andi’s search for more information about who Andora really was, and what she meant not only to the Boggs family but also to the entire town. Flower creates a cast of memorable characters and a colorful, historically detailed setting. Though a somewhat sinister foe threatens to derail Andi’s investigation, she proves a resourceful sleuth. Throughout, the realistic but warm rapport between the sisters and their aunt is the tent pole for a story about starting anew while remembering the past. Ages 8-11. Agent: Nicole Resciniti, The Seymour Agency. (Oct.)■