The Law of Finders Keepers

by Sheila Turnage Narrated by Lauren Fortgang

Overview

The heart-warming conclusion to the beloved Mo & Dale Mysteries by Newbery Honor author Sheila Turnage featuring the most shocking case yet!

Pirate fever sweeps through the town after an opportunistic treasure hunter shows up looking to lay claim to Blackbeard's lost gold buried somewhere in Tupelo Landing. When the (probably) world-famous Desperado Detectives--Mo and Dale and Harm--are hired by Mayor Little's mother to find the pirate loot for her, and the high-stakes race for riches is on!*

But that's not the only treasure hunt in town. Mo LoBeau unearths shocking new clues that may lead to her long-lost Upstream Mother--in the riskiest, scariest, and possibly richest case of her life.*
Will Mo find her Upstream Mother? Can the Desperados sidestep Blackbeard's curse and outsmart a professional treasure hunter? Will Dale faint under the pressure of Valentine's Day?* *

Could the stakes be any higher? Yes. With twin treasures hanging in the balance, Mo, Dale, and Harm realize one of them may have to leave Tupelo Landing. For good.

Listeners can come to this new Mo & Dale Mystery right after Three Times Lucky if they like.
And don't miss the rest of the Mo & Dale Mysteries!
Three Times Lucky
The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing
The Odds of Getting Even

Editorial Reviews

OCTOBER 2018 - AudioFile

Narrator Lauren Fortgang’s varied accents and voices give even more personality to Turnage’s cast of zany, lovable characters in this final book in the Tupelo Landing series. Sixth-grader Mo and the Desperado Detectives are investigating a new lead on the whereabouts of Mo’s mother. Meanwhile, a treasure hunter enters the town to find lost pirate’s booty, and the townspeople set off on a race to find it first. Mo, Dale, and Harm join the search for worldly treasure as they juggle the demands of school, work, and Dale’s budding romance. Fortgang infuses each character with heartfelt emotion and lively Southern charm, making this a pitch-perfect delight for listeners new to the series and old fans alike. S.C. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

A SIBA "Okra Pick" for Best Southern-flavored Literature

"[A] lively cast rich with heartfelt emotion . . . wit propels this fast-paced treasure-hunt tale into a pitch-perfect delight . . . if [readers] can get through the end without welling up, they're tougher than most—it's absolutely worth the wait."—Kirkus, starred review

“Turnage’s fine-tuned talent for storytelling is as evident as her understated, irrepressible humor and her creative ability to turn a phrase . . . The large, intergenerational cast of idiosyncratic characters enriches this first-person narrative at every turn. Amusing, dramatic, and tender.”—Booklist, starred review

“Every volume a standout, the Mo and Dale Mysteries series ends on as high a note—just as it began. Turnage delivers, once again, a fast-paced adventure with a cast of characters who are as real as they are quirky and laugh-out-loud dialog. . . . Readers of character-driven novels filled with humor will be thrilled by this smart and sweet series, start to finish.”—VOYA, starred review

PRAISE FOR THREE TIMES LUCKY:
• Newbery Honor
• New York Times bestseller
• Edgar Award Finalist
• EB White Read-Aloud Award Honor Book

"What do you get when you combine Because of Winn-Dixie's heart with the mystery and action of Holes? . . . Mo LoBeau is destined to become a standout character in children's fiction."—Kirkus, starred review

"Here is a writer who has never met a metaphor or simile she couldn't put to good use."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Turnage's lively novel features a distinctive voice and a community of idiosyncratic characters."—Booklist, starred review

"The heroine of Sheila Turnage's "Three Times Lucky" is so plucky that young readers may wish she lived next door."—Wall Street Journal

"A literary descendant of Scout Finch of "To Kill a Mockingbird"—Mo LoBeau announces this novel's mystery from behind the counter of the Tupelo Diner: 'There's been a murder and we're out of soup.'"—Newsday


PRAISE FOR THE GHOSTS OF TUPELO LANDING:
• New York Times bestseller

"The perspicacious Mo LoBeau is at it again! . . . humor and action abound."—School Library Journal, starred review

"Just as its predecessor did, this sequel shines thanks to Turnage's deft, lyrical language and engaging characters."—Kirkus, starred review

"Turnage's ability to create convincing characters and her colorful use of language combine to make this a fresh, droll, rewarding trip to Tupelo Landing."—Booklist, starred review

"The budding detective has clearly taken to heart something her foster mother always emphasizes: 'All the world's a stage, sugar, so hop on up there.'"—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A rollicking sequel."—Wall Street Journal


PRAISE FOR THE ODDS OF GETTING EVEN:
"With her mix of homespun humor, well-plotted mystery, and delicious characterization . . . Turnage's tale is full of heart."—Kirkus, starred review

"Another rewarding adventure . . . narrated by Mo in her distinctive, imaginative voice. The writing lulls you with laughter, then occasionally blindsides you with unexpected tenderness."—Booklist, starred review

"Well crafted, with fast pacing; readers will gallop through the nonstop action to a satisfying conclusion. A must-read for fans of the first two volumes, and a rewarding adventure all on its own."—School Library Journal

"Turnage's rich voice, abundance of heart, and wicked sense of humor handle the dynamics of the town with verve . . . [A] clever, sweet, laugh-out-loud funny series."—VOYA

"Friendship prevails in this fine novel . . . There's a complexity to the characters, from mean-as-a-snake Macon to drop-dead-handsome Lavender, all carefully developed throughout the series, creating a terrific read."—Horn Book

"A rousing tale of action, adventure, and intrigue. . . . So sit back and enjoy a well-told yarn that is sure to please readers of all ages."—SLC

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2018-06-25
In the fourth and final book in the series that began with Three Times Lucky (2012), "possible orphan" Mo LoBeau comes up against an adversary slicker than motor oil on a pond and discovers clues to the whereabouts of her long-missing Upstream Mother.The search for Blackbeard's treasure brings professional treasure hunter Gabriel Archer into Tupelo Landing, North Carolina, with a lot of oily talk and shady intentions. When Miss Lana and the Colonel give Mo a box that was set aside for her when she floated into their lives on a signboard 12 years earlier, Mo's search for her Upstream Mother is reinvigorated with new clues. Soon Mo and her faithful cast of characters—Dale, Harm, Lavender, and Queen Elizabeth the dog, as well as the ever hateful though sometimes surprising Atilla—must juggle the search for worldly treasures as well as treasures of the heart. Turnage brings a lively cast rich with heartfelt emotion and quick-witted charm. Exceptional command of voices delivered with wit propels this fast-paced treasure-hunt tale into a pitch-perfect delight: "Stole is such a harsh word," the mayor says when discussing how the cache came to Tupelo Landing. "Let's say she set it free and it didn't come home to him." The book assumes a white default.Lovers of the previous books will delight in the return of Mo, and if they can get through the end without welling up, they're tougher than most—it's absolutely worth the wait. (Fiction. 8-12)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172081613
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/11/2018
Series:	Mo & Dale Mysteries
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One

The Odds-and-Ends Drawer

The Desperado Detective Agency’s biggest case ever crept up on tiny Tupelo Landing in the dead of winter, and kicked off on the rarest of days. Unlike most of our borderline famous cases, it started with two things found. 

One thing found by me, Miss Moses LoBeau—ace detective, yellow belt karate student, and a sixth grader in her prime. 

One thing found by a stranger. 

Before all was said and done, it plunged me and my fellow Desperados—my best friends, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III and Harm Crenshaw, the agency’s newest detective—into a blood-thirsty chapter of our town’s history, and an unspoken chapter of Harm’s past. It put our lives in peril, tested our courage, and sent us racing for treasures of the world and treasures of the heart. 

As for me, Mo LoBeau, it bent my rivers and scattered my stars. 

As usual, I didn’t see it coming. 

In fact, I was dead asleep in the wee hours of January 11, when my vintage phone jangled. I clicked on my Elvis in Vegas lamp. “Desperado Detective Agency, Mo LoBeau speaking. Your disaster is our delight. How may we be of service?” 

I squinted at my alarm clock. Five thirty a.m. 

The voice came through scratchy and worried. “Mo? It’s Thes.” Crud. Fellow sixth grader Thessalonian Thompson, a weather freak desperate to take me to a movie. 

I yawned. “No movie.” 

“It’s not that, Mo. I’m over you,” Thes said. “It’s going to SNOW. I’m giving a few special friends a heads-up.” 

SNOW? We haven’t had real snow in Tupelo Landing since third grade! 

“Really?” I said, kicking off my covers. “Is school out? Is this a snow day?” 

“That’s the problem. School’s not out. Miss Retzyl makes that call, and she doesn’t know my forecast because she’s not answering her phone.” 

Our teacher, Priscilla Retzyl—tall, willowy, able to do math in her head—is the most normal person in my shy-of-normal life. I adore her. Secretly she likes me too, but ever since she got Caller ID she’s been slow to pick up sixth graders’ calls. 

“Mo, will you go to her house with me?” Thes asked. “I’m an introvert and you’re not.” 

True. 

The gardenia outside my window shimmied in the moonlight. What in the blue blazes? Dale’s face popped into view, his mama’s flowered scarf pulled tight over his blond hair and knotted beneath his chin. Not a good look. “Mo,” Dale whispered. “Wake up. Thes says it’s going to snow.” 

“I know,” I said, tapping on the glass. “Come to the door.” 

“Which door?” Thes asked. 

“Not you,” I replied into the phone as Dale crashed to the ground. I made an Executive Decision. “Thes, call Harm. Ask him to meet us at Miss Retzyl’s house in twenty minutes for an Ensemble Beg. But you better be right about the snow.” 

I smoothed my T-shirt and karate pants as I strolled the length of my narrow, window-lined flat. I swung the door open and Dale bolted inside with his mongrel dog, Queen Elizabeth II, at his heels. “Hey,” I said. “We got a snow mission. I’ll be ready in three shakes.” 

“Sorry about the gardenia,” he said. “I didn’t want to knock, and wake up . . . anybody.” 

Anybody would be Miss Lana, who wakes up slow. Also the Colonel, who’s moody thanks to an eleven-year brush with amnesia. The Colonel and Miss Lana are my family of choice and I am theirs. The Colonel saved me from a hurricane flood the day I was born. Together, we operate the café at the edge of town. 

Dale unzipped his oversized jacket—a castoff from his daddy, who won’t need it for seven to ten years unless he gets time off for good behavior, which he won’t. “Hurry, Mo. I’m sweltering to death,” Dale said. “Mama made me layover.” 

“You mean layer,” I said, sliding my jeans over my karate pants. 

Dale, a co-founder of the Desperado Detective Agency, ain’t a dead-ahead thinker, but he thinks sideways better than anybody I know.  

I pulled on my red sweater and combed my unruly hair. I opened my filing cabinet, shoved aside unanswered Desperado Detective Agency letters, and snagged my orange socks. 

“Get gloves too,” Dale instructed as someone swished across the living room. 

“Morning, Miss Lana,” I called. “Dale and Queen Elizabeth are here. Can I borrow some gloves? It’s going to snow.” 

“Snow? Really?” she said, peeking in. Miss Lana, a former child star of the Charleston community theater and a fan of Old Hollywood, gave me a wide, sleepy smile—the real one, not the one she keeps in her pocket for pain-in-the-neck customers at the café. “I love snow!” 

She leaned against my doorframe, her Gone with the Wind bed jacket over her pink nightgown, her short coppery hair glistening in the lamplight.

“Hey, Miss Lana,” Dale said, whipping his mama’s flowered scarf off his head. “I hope you slept good. The scarf wasn’t my idea. Mama said wear it or my ears would freeze off.” 

Dale’s a Mama’s Boy from the soles of his red snow boots to his scandalous good hair—a family trait. Because I’m a possible orphan, my family traits remain a mystery. 

I tossed Dale my bomber cap and laced my plaid sneakers. 

“Help yourself to my gloves, sugar,” Miss Lana said. “They’re in my odds-and-ends drawer.” As she stumbled toward the smell of coffee, we raced to her room. I zipped to the curvy white chest of drawers. Her top drawer erupted in elastic and lace. 

“All her drawers are odds-and-ends drawers,” I muttered, opening them one by one and plucking a pair of blue driving gloves from the bottom drawer. 

“Mo!” Miss Lana shrieked from the kitchen. “Don’t open my bottom drawer!” 

“Too late,” I shouted as a note drifted to the floor. For Mo When She’s Ready. 

“Ready for what?” I murmured, uncovering a large white box. I touched a sticky spot where the note used to be as Miss Lana skidded through the door. The Colonel eased in behind her, his bottle-brush gray hair dented on one side, the plaid robe I gave him in first grade cinched at his thin waist. 

“What’s in here?” I asked, hoisting the box. “Can I open it? I feel ready.” 

“No,” Miss Lana said, grabbing it. She looked at the Colonel and gave him a soft nod. He nodded back. “Tonight, sugar. When we have time to talk,” she said, her voice going tinny. 

Weird. Miss Lana’s a theater professional. Her voice never goes tinny. 

“But it has my name on it now.”

“It’s waited almost twelve years,” the Colonel said. “It can wait until the end of something as rare as a snow day.” 

Our snow day! 

“Come on,” Dale said, pounding for the door. 

We grabbed our bikes and blasted down the blacktop, into tiny Tupelo Landing. But with every pump of my pedals, my curiosity tapped at the lid of that mysterious box. 

What’s in it, in it, in it? 

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "The Law of Finders Keepers"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Sheila Turnage.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Young Readers Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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