By: Jamie Steinberg
Michael D. Beil has done it again! He’s written another captivating mystery solved from the perspective of twelve-year-old heroine Lark Heron-Finch. With a writer’s conference in town beginning, Lark finds herself working as a page for one of her favorite authors. Unfortunately, the saying “never meet your idols” holds up as Lark is quick to stumble into the middle of a murder of the author’s assistant. Once more Lark tasks herself with determining the guilty party and finding justice for the life lost. The Swallowtail Legacy: Betrayed by the Book is a fabulous young adult story that will have readers turning pages to once more play detective with Lark.
Lark is excited about the writer’s conference being held in town as she will serve as a page for one of her favorite authors – Ann E. Keyheart. It sounds like fun, but from the moment that curmudgeon Keyheart arrives on Swallowtail Island with her frustrated and sweet assistant Didi Ferrer things begin to go south. Didi has written a book that Keyheart had promised to share with her editor, but when Didi hears no response she decides to take matters into her own hands by sending some chapters to the author’s previous editor – one with whom Keyheart no longer shares a warm relationship (one of many in the industry, may I add). When Didi winds up murdered Lark refuses to let it be written off as an accident as she is sure someone meant to target Keyheart. Adding to Lark’s plate is the fact that Didi has a history with Swallowtail Island. Her grandmother used to reside there and seems to have had a bird and book of her own. How did both birds and books wind up on Swallowtail?
Beil does a wonderful job at investing the reader in Lark’s adventures. You feel like a voyeur watching over her shoulder as she goes to great lengths to make sure Didi gets the justice and recognition she deserves. Lark wouldn’t appreciate the comparison to Nancy Drew, but she really is a modern day version and Beil has written a standout who-done-it that will keep you turning pages until the very end. Plus, readers will revel in Didi’s memories of Lark’s mom and desperately want answers about how these two birds and books made their way onto the island. Add in a dash of Pip and the boys and you’ve got yourself truly invested.
Did one of Keyheart’s enemies come after her and Didi became collateral damage? You will need to read The Swallowtail Legacy: Betrayed by the Book to find out. It is certainly a must read for fans of a good mystery and I do hope that Beil has already begun writing his next Lark adventure as she is a character worth following for years to come.