The Silver Box: An Enchantment Lake Mystery

by Margi Preus

Overview

In the final Enchantment Lake mystery, Francie’s search for the truth about her mother—and herself—plunges her into danger during a North Woods winter

When she wakes in her aunts’ cold cabin on the shore of Enchantment Lake, Francie remembers: everything about her life has changed. Or is about to. Or just might. Everything depends on the small, engraved silver box that she now possesses—if only she can follow its cryptic clues to the whereabouts of her missing mother and understand, finally, just maybe, the truth about who she really is. 

Francie, it turns out, has a lot to learn, and this time the lessons could be deadly. Her search for answers takes her and her best friends Raven and Jay as far afield as an abandoned ranch in Arizona and as close to home as a sketchy plant collector’s conservatory and a musty old museum where shadows lurk around every display case. At the heart of it all is a crime that touches her own adopted North Woods: thieves dig up fragile lady’s slippers, peel bark from birches, strip moss off trees, cut down entire forests of saplings to sell for home décor. But Francie is up against no ordinary plant theft. One ominous clue after another reveal that she possesses something so rare and so valuable that some people are willing to do anything to get it. When Francie’s investigation leads her into the treacherously cold and snowy North Woods, she finds out  that she too is being pursued.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781517909680
Publisher:	University of Minnesota Press
Publication date:	10/06/2020
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.10(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Margi Preus is a New York Times bestselling author of books for young readers, including the Newbery Honor-winning Heart of a Samurai. Among her other novels are Village of Scoundrels, Shadow on the Mountain, West of the Moon, and The Bamboo Sword, as well as the previous two books in the Enchantment Lake series, Enchantment Lake and The Clue in the Trees, which were published by the University of Minnesota Press and received the Midwest Book Award and the Midwest Booksellers Choice Award. She lives in Duluth.

Table of Contents

Contents

1. The Wolf

2. The Puzzle Box

3. Snowshoeing

4. The Cabin

5. Strange Lodgings

6. The Apartment

7. At School

8. At the Museum

9. Granddad Interferes

10. School, Then Birch Grove

11. Hiding the Box

12. The Minneapolis Institute of Art

13. Como Park Conservatory

14. A Bit of Down

15. Trouble

16. The Stake-Out

17. More Trouble

18. A Suspicious Death

19. Arizona

20. The Ranch House

21. An Acting Gig

22. Birch Grove

23. The Red Fishhouse

24. Killing of Time

25. A Little Interlude

26. Community Service

27. Loretta’s Cabin

28. Out on the Lake

29. Christmas Evening

Author’s Note

Editorial Reviews

2020-08-18
Plucky 17-year-old investigator Francie is back for the concluding episode of a trilogy set in Minnesota.

Francie has discovered a small silver box that is somehow connected to her mother’s mysterious disappearance 13 years earlier. The additional discovery of a mysterious abandoned cabin in the woods awakens vague memories of when her mother went away, all clues to opening the tricky puzzle box and locating a vital (but forgetful) elderly woman in a nursing home. Aided by her pal Raven and Jay, another classmate, Francie follows clues she hopes will lead to her mother. Although a few red herrings add uncertainty, the villains remain largely hidden from readers, leaving the mystery mostly unsolvable even to clever armchair sleuths until the evildoers eventually reveal themselves. Brief environmental messages crop up frequently and are only mildly didactic. Although the mystery and its resolution rely on sometimes improbably convenient happenstance, Francie’s plausibly intrepid nature (and remarkable lack of reliance on adults) keeps the plot moving at an engaging pace, and the wintry Northwoods setting provides an appealing backdrop. Although the mostly White characters are only sparingly depicted, Raven talks about biased treatment and double standards she experiences as an Ojibwe person.

A modern Nancy Drew replacement grounded in current technology but largely reliant on brain power and courage. (Mystery. 11-16)

Kirkus Reviews

"Margi Preus shows her deep knowledge of and appreciation for Minnesota while telling an engaging story with puzzles and action and heart. The Silver Box is truly a celebration of our state—from its North Woods to its Twin Cities landmarks."—Kurtis Scaletta, author of Lukezilla Beats the Game

"This is a great end to what was a really enjoyable YA adventure/mystery series. A fun, entertaining read."—The Book Lover’s Boudoir

"A modern Nancy Drew replacement grounded in current technology but largely reliant on brain power and courage."—Kirkus Reviews

"I think mystery lovers will definitely enjoy the pacing of this book as well as its unforgettable characters and charming Northwoods setting. It’s an excellent series to get lost in if you’re looking for an engrossing story or something to distract from reality."—The Story Sanctuary

"Francie continues to get herself and others into precarious situations. However, in this book she comes across more consequences to her choices than in the previous books. More details are unraveled and the reader gets to know the characters on deeper levels. That being said, there are still twists and turns all along the way up to the end of the book. As with the other books in the series, this is for mystery lovers and young sleuths. However, this is also more of a coming of age and self-discovery book."—Compass Book Ratings

"As always, Margi’s engaging prose carries the story."—Lake Superior Magazine

"Filled with humor and suspense, The Silver Box is the final book in the Enchantment Lake Mystery trilogy."—Northern Wilds

"This is a great mystery series for middle schoolers: the characters are interesting. the action moves at a great, page-turning pace, and the Northwoods setting is just perfect for a mystery."—Mom Read It

From the Publisher