Detective Agency
The Case of the Missing Moonstone
by Jordan Stratford
Partial Amazon Description:
(This is a made-up story about two very real girls: Ada Byron, who has been called the world’s first computer programmer, and Mary Shelley, the world’s first science-fiction author. Ada and Mary didn't really know one another, nor did they have a detective agency together.)
Flap Copy Description:
Lady Ada Byron, age eleven, is a genius. She's also isolated, awkward, and a bit rude. But a genius.
Mary Godwin, age fourteen, is a romantic. She's also adventurous and kind, and has a talent for noticing things. And she is soon to become Ada's first true friend.
Together, they form the Wollstonecraft Detective Agency. It's a secret constabulary because they suspect clients would not trust their problems to two young girls. (And because it would be better if their parents didn't find out...)
They may look innocent, but in order to solve the case of a stolen heirloom, these two girls will break into (and then out of) Newgate Prison, dodge suspicious men wearing fezzes, tell a few smallish lies, and pursue the thief by both carriage and hot-air balloon.
Clever criminals of London, beware!
My Thoughts:
Bravo to Mr. Stratford for creating a delightful mystery series for girls! By using Ada Byron (Ada Lovelace) and Mary Godwin Shelley as the two main characters, he has also introduced young female readers to two historic English women from the Victorian Era. The character development, complex plot, and surprise ending, all make this well-written middle grade novel a winner in my book. I highly recommend The Case of the Missing Moonstone to readers from the ages of eight to fourteen, and look forward to Book Two in the Wollstonecraft Detective series: The Case of the Girl in Gray.
Click here to learn more about the author, Jordan Stratford.
