Published by Scholastic Graphix

Summary:  Gabby and her family have always spent their summer vacation at the family’s lakeside cabin.  But this year is different.  At the beginning of the week, her father announces that he’s being transferred, but doesn’t know where yet.  And there’s a new family staying next door with two obnoxious kids the same age as Gabby and her younger brother.  The parents insist that the kids hang out together, and they find themselves breaking into a mysterious mansion that’s been abandoned for years.  The house fires up Gabby’s imagination, and she begins writing a mystery about it.  When new girl Paige finds out, they start collaborating, using clues they’ve found in the house.  Things get a little too real as they begin to find evidence of foul play, possibly involving their kind old neighbor.  By the time the week ends, bookworm Gabby has realized that there’s plenty of adventure to be found in real life, and when the family finds out where they’re moving, she’s ready for a new chapter to unfold.  256 pages; grades 3-7.

Pros:  Scholastic Graphix hasn’t disappointed me yet, and this fun summer graphic novel is sure to find many, many fans among the Telgemeier-Holm-Jamieson crowd.  The mystery is fun, and family and friendship issues feel real, yet wrap up reassuringly.

Cons:  I’d love to see another story about Gabby and/or Paige, but as near as I can tell there are no plans for a series.

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