The Secrets Below (The Whispering Seas Mysteries #1)

Mother-daughter duo Camilla (The Bachelorette Party) and Viveca Sten (Hidden in Memories) team up in a dual children’s debut to deliver a melodic speculative mystery set on Harö, an island in the Stockholm archipelago. For reasons she doesn’t understand, 12-year-old Tuva’s classmates avoid her, claiming that she’s a freak. They also team up to take their orienteering exams, leaving Tuva alone to complete the assignment, which takes place on a land navigation course through the mountains near the school. During the exam, she encounters popular new classmate Rasmus without his partner, Axel. As if in a trance, Rasmus—who’s been acting strangely all day—follows mysterious dancing lights into the woods. After helping him snap out of it, Tuva returns with Rasmus to the testing area, soon realizing that Axel has gone missing. Tuva is blamed for his disappearance during the ensuing search, and tension around town skyrockets as more people start vanishing. When Tuva’s family boat is attacked by an unseen entity, she must confront the dark implications behind a previously unknown tie to the sea. The complexly rendered setting injects intrigue and curiosity into a dark, fable-like fantasy told via lyrical prose and sensorial imagery. Characters are Swedish. Ages 10–14. (Feb.)