The Body Under the Piano

By Marthe Jocelyn

Toronto: Tundra Books, 2020. Mystery.

In 1902 in the small town of Torquay, England 12-year-old Agatha Morton is desperate to solve her first murder mystery. Aggie is naturally shy and reserved, except for in her notebooks where she writes dramatic and bloodthirsty murder mysteries - what her mom calls her "Morbid Preoccupation." In a chance encounter, Aggie befriends a Belgian refugee named Hector Perot the day before a murder is committed in their quiet town. With Aggie's Morbid Preoccupation and Hector's talent for fastidious details, the two kids set out to solve the mystery before the killer strikes again.

This new middle-grade mystery series is inspired in part by the childhood of the original Mystery Queen - Agatha Christie. This reimagining of Agatha as a precocious, crime-obsessed child pairs her with a character inspired by Agatha Christie's most famous detective -- Hercule Poirot. This new detective series is an exciting and enjoyable read whether or not readers are familiar with the works of Agatha Christie. Plenty of red-herrings and a remarkable new detective make this book an excellent foray into the world of murder mysteries.

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