My Secret Guide to Paris

Eleven-year-old Nora is heartbroken when her Grandma Sylvia is killed suddenly in an accident. For as long as Nora can remember, Grandma Sylvia has regaled her with tales of Paris’s magic, and they had always planned to travel there together. Then Nora discovers that Grandma Sylvia has left behind a stack of envelopes to be opened in Paris, a map, plane tickets, and a locked box (the key to which Nora is certain is in Paris). It takes some persuasion, but soon Nora is Paris-bound with her mother and teenage brother. With the help of her new British friend Phoebe, Nora follows Grandma Sylvia’s letters on a treasure hunt that takes her from John-Paul Hévin’s chocolate shop to the Musée de l’Orangerie. This love letter to the City of Light will have readers believing that everything’s better in Paris. Schroeder (the Charmed Life series) lets the city’s romance shine in a thoughtful story, laced with mystery and French vocabulary, about losing family and gaining individuality in a place where curiosity can bloom. Ages 8–12. Agent: Sarah Crowe, Harvey Klinger. (Feb.)