The Mystery at Marlatt Manor by Anne Loader McGee

How would you react if you had evidence that a dead person was trying to tell you something? Thirteen-year-old Mallory Gilmartin has had to move with her mom Lorna and older brother Ron from their home in Philadelphia, PA, to the small community of Cedar Creek, VA, after her father leaves the family and her mother finds a job there. The author has “modern and gothic world collide” in this very readable series-“all the right stuff for a New Age Nancy Drew”. Of course, a ghost named a Violet will only draw more interest. Having just moved to Cedar Creek, her mom’s home town, from Philadelphia, Mallory is not thrilled with this ‘small town’ stuff until she begins to meet some new friends while investigating the Marlatt Mansion. The more Mallory learns the less sense the ‘deal’ makes. As Mallory is checking out the Marlatt Mansion, she uncovers a real estate deal connected to the mansion and its heir that appears to being ‘pushed through’ quickly which even affects her grandmother, Aggie. You can read more about Anne at her website.Ĭlick here to add Advice from a Caterpillar to your RSS reader.Haunted mansion on Dark Hollow Hill! Anne Loader McGee’s The Mystery At Marlatt Manor (#1) begins a series whose protagonist is 13 year old Mallory Gilmartin, a teenage sleuth in Cedar Creek, who believes she hears a voice calling her name in her dreams or maybe the term nightmares is a better fit which draw her to an abandoned ‘haunted’ mansion where 50 years ago, the young daughter of the Marlatt family disappeared. Originally from New Zealand Anne is descended from a Maori tribe called the “Tainui”. Middle grade readers – boys and girls alike – will enjoy unraveling The Mystery at Marlatt Manor with Mallory.

Anne McGee has created a solid page-turner reminiscent of Phyllis A. As the new girl in town, Mallory must sift through the likes of nerdy Kyle, know-it-all Renée, Edna May the surly librarian, Artemis Wurley the shady real estate agent, Roger Dunslop the uptight banker, Albert Hampton the crabby caretaker, and the guy in the maroon-colored sports car, in order to sort out friend from foe. On top of that, the town is home to an unusual assortment of suspects, including Mallory’s Grandma Aggie, who seems to know everything about everyone. Whatever happened to Violet Marlatt? While she uncovers the events of the past, she is haunted by strange dreams and the figure of a young girl. Mallory is lured into the mansion’s baffling secret. But living in the old Marlatt cottage under the shadow of the Marlatt Manor proves to be anything but dull.

When thirteen-year old Mallory Gilmartin moves to the weird little town of Cedar Creek she thinks her life has ended.

The Mystery at Marlatt Manor by Anne Loader McGee