Review & #Giveaway – The Secret Room by John Alexander @alexandernovels #LSBBT #ChildrensMystery #ChapterBook #AmberAutumnSeries

StoreyBook Reviews 

THE SECRET ROOM

(Amber-Autumn Series, #4)

by

JOHN ALEXANDER

  Genre: Children’s Mystery / Chapter Book

Date of Publication: October 14, 2017

Number of Pages: 159

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Amber and Autumn, elementary school sisters, don’t seek out problems to solve, but they often find themselves engaged in uncovering truths, solving mysteries, and helping others in the process. Autumn’s natural curiosity, combined with her boldness, leads her to push for answers to anything she does not understand. Amber, her older sister, more cautious and easily spooked, prefers to let Autumn drive ahead to solve mysteries which come their way, but her keen skills of observation often lead to the resolutions they seek.

In The Secret Room, the girls, during their stay at a  B&B, discover a long-forgotten room in the attic and uncover its secrets. The story takes place at the House of Seasons, a bed-and-breakfast in historic Jefferson, Texas. Their quest to uncover secrets takes the girls on a journey through Jefferson history including a cemetery, a river boat tour, and even an evening ghost walk.

 

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PRAISE FOR THE SECRET ROOM

“Great book, really enjoyed reading.  I’d guess a target audience would be 7 to 13-year-olds. Thank you for allowing me the honor to preview your book.  I look forward to purchasing your published work.” — Joseph (Teen Beta reader)

The Secret Room is a fun read. Not only is it a mystery; it also contains some of the history of Jefferson, Texas, and the surrounding area, as well as pictures of some special places there. Children and adults will enjoy reading it, just as I did.  — Carol (Adult Beta Reader)

“Overall I thought it was a great book. I would be excited to read the next book in the series.” –Madeline (4th grade Beta Reader)

“The whole time I liked the suspense and the mystery side of it.” – Beta Reader

“I relate more to Amber because she doesn’t like a situation without light and she doesn’t like doing scary things first. She sends her little sister in to do it first and I do that. Amber is the older sister and so am I.” – Beta Reader

 

A book chock full of mystery and history!

This may be the 4th book in the series but you can definitely read them out of order. Amber and Autumn are sisters and have a penchant for uncovering mysteries. This time it happens in Jefferson Texas which is known for its history. The author did a fantastic job of weaving some of history into the story. I liked the photos that were included at the beginning of the book since they depicted the B&B where Amber and Autumn were staying in Jefferson.

Since this is aimed at middle grade readers, there is no murder – just a secret room and a famous owner. Amber and Autumn are able to uncover many clues to the delight of the owner.

If you want to get a young one interested in mysteries, this would be a good starter series for the younger crowd.

We give this 4 paws up!

John writes chapter books that appeal to elementary school children to capture their imagination and help them discover the love of reading early in life. John lives in Frisco, Texas with his beautiful wife and his King Charles Cavalier Spaniel, Charlie Brown.

John spent his childhood in a small town in east Texas. He attended college at the University of Texas earning a BS in Physics and a BA in Math (minor in Computer Science). His years in the high-tech industry, most of it on the “bleeding edge,” allowed him to develop new technology with software.

John had the privilege of co-authoring two editions of CallManager Fundamentals. The two books sold over 23,000 copies, exceeding the publisher’s goal of 8,000. Having discovered his love for writing while still working in high tech, he began writing fiction in his spare time and published The Enclave, a mystery / suspense novel, in 2010.

After leaving high-tech in 2014, he now spends full time pursuing his writing passion. He loves writing books that help children discover early in life that reading is a fun adventure. He recently released illustrated editions of the first three books in the Amber-Autumn mystery series: Christmas Garden Illustrated, Grandfather’s Blessing Illustrated, and Golden Campout Illustrated. The Secret Room is the fourth book in the series.

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—————————————-

GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!

GRAND PRIZE: Signed copies of all four Amber-Autumn series books + $10 Starbucks Gift Card

TWO RUNNERS-UP: Signed copy of The Secret Room

November 27-December 6, 2017

(U.S. Only)

 


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