Skip to main content

Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson


Beyond the Grave is the fourth installment of The 39 Clues. Each book is written by a different author and some of the author’s own style is incorporated in the writing. This book is written by Jude Watson, an author I was not familiar with. I am happy to inform you that she did an excellent job with the Dan and Amy Cahill. Just as a quick overview, the series begins as the two main characters grandmother dies. When she dies everyone in the family (extended are included as well) gets the choice to inherit a million dollars or get the first clue to the scavenger hunt that ends with knowledge and even greater fortune. The two children set out to uncover clues about famous people that they are related to such as Winston Churchill, Napoleon, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison and more.

In Beyond the Grave the scavenger hunt continues Dan and Amy travel to Egypt and the tombs of the pharaohs. This book is also full of mystery and suspense as the children’s relatives try to get them “out of the picture” as often as they can. The children also have to decide who they can and cannot trust again and again. In this book, I was thrilled that their deceased grandmother helped them out more with clues then she has in the past.

If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Maze of Bones, make sure you pick it up first. These are short, interesting reads and would be great family read-alouds.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Display: Dino-mite Reads

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs By Mo Willems New York: Balzar + Bray, 2012. Picture Book. "Once upon a time, there were three hungry Dinosaurs: Papa Dinosaur, Mama Dinosaur . . . and a Dinosaur who happened to be visiting from Norway. One day--for no particular reason--they decided to tidy up their house, make the beds, and prepare pudding of varying temperatures. And then--for no particular reason--they decided to go . . . someplace else. They were definitely not setting a trap for some succulent, unsupervised little girl. Definitely not!" --Editor Smart Vs. Strong! Written by Jill Esbaum Illustrated by Miles Thompson New York: Simon Spotlight, 2021. Easy Reader. 64 pages. "When Thunder gets stuck in quicksand, Cluck uses his smarts to free his friend." --Editor How Dinosaurs Went Extinct Written by Ame Dyckman Illustrated by Jennifer Harney New York: Brown and Company, 2023. Picture Book. "When a child in a museum asks how dinosaurs became extinct, Dad co

Review: The Enigma Girls

  The Enigma Girls By Candace Fleming New York: Scholastic Focus, 2024. Informational. 371 pages. If you have an interest in little known aspects of history or in World War II in particular, this book is for you. The Enigma Girls tells the story of 10 young women who worked at Station X at Bletchley Park in England helping to break ciphers during World War II. Each of the girls grew up in different circumstances, and thus, each worked at in a different part of Station X cracking codes. The reader learns about how Station X worked through the stories of each of the girls. Whether it was transcribing the Morse code messages that the Germans were sending to their armies or decoding, translating, or paraphrasing messages, each girl had a part to play. The stories of the girls are intermixed with plenty of photographs as well as special chapters about how to decode various types of ciphers. Learning about Station X through the eyes of the girls that worked there helps the reader gain a huma

Review: The Hidden Dragon

The Hidden Dragon By Melissa Marr New York: Nancy Paulsen Books, 2023. Fiction. 161 pages. Three children, Otter, London, and Sophia, live in a fantasy world with dragons. Otter (short for Ottilie) is the daughter of a ship captain, and she loves the sea and its dragons. London is a stowaway boy, searching for a new life full of adventure. Sophia lives in a thief house with other children, all dedicated to helping each other and trying to make the kingdom better. As trouble begins to brew both on land and at sea, these three heroes realize that maybe it's up to the kids to make things right. Readers experience the book from multiple perspectives, and with a bit of mystery and adventure, this is an amazing fantasy read. With the inspiring message that children truly can make a difference, readers will enjoy how each character fights for what's right, even when it's inconvenient. The ending is resolved a little quickly, but this is a great read for all "hatchlings."