Allie Carter is one of my favorite YA authors. Her stories are exciting, smart, and fun. Her first middle grade book is no exception. April possesses all the characteristics of a great heroine: empathy, strength, mysterious background, and a mismatched cohort of friends, when she is taken in by Isabella Nelson she is just glad to be out of yet another foster home. She never questions why she was taken in. When she finds Gabriel, who is supposed to be dead, in the basement, hiding from his family, her first thoughts are to help,him. What comes next is an adventure .that she and the other foster kids pursue with skills no child should have! I can only hope there is more to this story! April has some unanswered questions.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a DRC of this title for review purposes. All opinions are my own.

This was a FANTASTIC middle grade novel. I thoroughly enjoyed this and could not put it down once I got it started. The characters were charming, the storyline was fun and fast-paced, and the ending wrapped up this storyline and left TONS of room for the rest of the series. Highly recommend. This is a first purchase for collections that serve middle grade readers (I'd suggest grades 4-7 on this one). It is a solid mystery/thriller for this age range that is completely appropriate and not really scary.

April is different from the other kids she knows in the foster care system because her mom is coming back for her. The note her mom left with April, along with the key she wears around her neck, says so. April has been waiting 12 years for her mom to come back, and she isn't about to give up now. Especially when she realizes that the key she wears every day has the same crest as the infamous Winterborne's, a family full of tragedy and intrigue. There was one remaining heir to the Winterborne fortune, and he mysteriously disappeared 10 years ago. The Winterborne home is now being used as a home for 5 orphan children, cared for by the foundation. April joins four other orphans, all with their own tragic stories, and moves in to the mansion. Once there, April begins to realize that there might be more to the story of the missing Winterborne heir, and that not only does the Winterborne family have a fortune, it also has a legacy. And the kids are now a part of it.

Highly recommend!

I’ve always loved Carter’s YA books and I was pleasantly surprised that this book was no different. This book combined all the elements of her previous work that I love- suspense, cons, and a reclusive billionaire and created a new story with a Batman esq twist that I absolutely loved!!

A genuinely fun romp of a YA novel (likely series) that combines mystery with action/adventure. It's a very speedy read and the playful narrative style continually draws one in. I'm looking forward to what I very much hope will be the second part of the series.