Samantha Spinner is one of my new favorite mystery series for middle grade. It's fun and engaging and it's going to be a lot of fun for many people who look for a little more adventure and mystery. The characters are fun and engaging.

An action packed, improbable adventure, complete with ninjas and secret, around the world transport tunnels. Not great, but fun. This will appeal to 3rd-4th grade readers. Review based on an advanced readers copy provided by the publisher.

Such an amazing book! I loved how creative the author was with clues and how they found out about things. I thought the characters could have had a little more attention brought to them but even without that it was a great read. I read it pretty quickly because I couldn't put it down. Loved seeing where the plot went next and cannot wait to see the next book.

What's not to like about this tried and true concept of kids who are smarter than your average kid/adult making their way through puzzles as they travel and dodge danger? Kid thought it was fun.

I didn't read this book - couldn't upload it. Wish I could have read it!

This wasn't the book for me. The sister was over the top, and the ninjas were pretty silly. This book was intended for a younger audience than I usually read for. I thought it was middle grade, but it read younger than that.

Lots of adventure and travel in this quirky book of siblings on the hunt for their missing uncle. This reminded me of The Genius Files series with the travel and landmarks. Fun references to rare artifacts. Kids will enjoy the fast pace of this story. I have found other books, though, that execute this sort of adventure in a way I found more satisfying. I did not find a connection with the characters, which makes all the difference for me as a reader.

Fun middle grade story that will appeal to fans of Escape From Mr. Lemoncello’s Library. Full of puzzl s and secret passageways, and even smelly ninjas!

Something between a comedy and a quirky adventure. Silly elements plus a little bit of puzzle solving.

Samantha Spinner is depressed. Her uncle has gone missing. He used to make her and her little brother Nipper and her older sister Buffy strawberry waffles every morning before school. He was eccentric, wearing his green plaid pajamas and orange flip-flops every day, but he loved to talk about art and architecture, and he taught Samantha to say "please" and "thank you" and "what's the tallest building in the city?" in eleven different languages. 

And then he disappeared. 

Samantha's parents called the police, but they weren't very helpful. They said they would fill out an Unexplained Vanishing Person Form, but Samantha didn't think it would do any good. Uncle Paul was missing, and no one was looking for him. 

But then her parents found the letter. Uncle Paul explained that he was actually very rich but had to leave for awhile. He left Buffy $2.4 billion dollars for her to shop with. He left Nipper Yankee Stadium, along with the New York Yankees. And for Samantha, he left an old, worn red umbrella with a note: Watch out for the RAIN. 

Samantha mopes for several days, until a chance accident with a magnifying glass (aka hand lens) shows her that what she has isn't just any average umbrella. It's a map of some kind, that includes landmarks from all over the world, including Seattle, Washington, where Samantha lives. Following the map on the umbrella takes Samantha and Nipper on an adventure all over the world as they search for their uncle, try to figure out why there is a map on an old umbrella, dodge smelly ninjas, look for treasure, and learn to see beyond the obvious to what's real. 

Samantha Spinner and the Super-Secret Plans is the most fun I've had with a book in quite awhile. Nothing is what it seems in this super-fun, puzzling, world-jumping, ninja-fighting, treasure-hunting middle grade novel. Packed with secret codes and puzzles and lots of interesting information, this book is the start of a new series and an adventure that young readers will love. Or older readers who are still young at heart. I absolutely loved this book, and I already can't wait for the next one in the series. 



Galleys for Samantha Spinner and the Super-Secret Plans were provided by Delacorte Books for Young Readers through NetGalley, with many, many, many thanks.

Samantha Spinner and the Super-Secret Plans, a Delacorte book for young readers is recommended for children in grades 3 to 7. The age range is 8 to 12 years old. This is the first book in a new series with more adventures to come.

The book’s main character Samantha shows a range of emotions in this book. She feels sad because their disappearing grandfather left her siblings expensive presents while she only received an old umbrella. When Samantha discovers her gift held a secret that might help her find him, she is excited at the prospect of getting started on the search. The umbrella sends Samantha along with her younger brother on a adventure filled with discovery and even bad guys. The book also contains some fun facts that are definitely worth some research to find out more.

I’m sure children in this age group, who like to read fun, adventure-filled stories will enjoy this.

This is a cute adventure but the pacing of the writing felt off. It didn't hold my interest.

It was an interesting premise, but I didn't like the way it was written. It felt like a really bad spinoff of the 39 Clues series (in the sense of rich relative leaving kids with a legacy to travel the world), but it wasn't written anywhere near as well. It felt way more juvenile and unrealistic.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Samantha Spinner and the Super-Secret Plans is an amazing adventure tale. Samantha and her brother start in Seattle and end up traveling all over the globe via a secret transportation system while they search for their missing uncle. They have to fight of ninjas, evil rings, and hunger. This story introduces young readers to famous sites around the world, well known art, other countries as well as some well known rare collector's items. This tale is a wonderful mix of humor, sibling relationships, and of course thrilling escapades. And to add to it all there are several puzzles as part of the book. Samantha Spinner is a great read for young and old who are looking for a new adventure.

Unfortunately I had a really difficult time getting into this story. I read a good deal in but just didn’t find myself liking the characters. There wasn’t much of a background to go on with them and right off the bat there were these outlandish gifts being given to them. I may try and pick this is up again in the future but I like characters with some sustenance to them.

Very loose plot, tries too hard to be hilarious, too much.