This is the third book in the Quinnie Boyd mystery series for middle grade readers, but it was the first one I read and I didn’t feel like I was missing any major plot points. (I’m excited to check out The Maypop Kidnapping and Vampires on the Run, the first two books in the series.)

With middle grade mysteries, you’re always walking kind of a fine line, I think: You want action and adventure, but you don’t want terrible things that keep you up at night to pop up at the end of every chapter. A Side of Sabotage is safely in the mild camp, but it has enough suspense to keep you hooked without too much kids-in-peril action. Set in coastal Maine, the detective-in-resident is the 14-year-old daughter of the town sheriff and the owner of Gusty’s, the town’s hot-spot coffee shop. Her dad’s cafe is getting some competition this summer, thanks to a hipster chef from Boston who has set up a swanky eatery down the road. When weird things start happening at Gusty’s, Quinnie immediately suspects the new restaurant in town and makes up her mind to figure out what’s really going on.

I love a mystery with meddling kids, and this one definitely fits the bill. The detective work is more nuanced than, say, Nancy Drew and more action-packed than, say, Encyclopedia Brown — there are clues that you can follow along with Quinnie and her friends. A middle grades mystery usually depends at least a little on parents being absent or unconvinced there’s a problem, and there’s definitely some of that here, but it doesn’t read as particularly neglectful. Quinnie’s parents are busy, and there’s no real reason to suspect that the problems at Gusty’s are more than unfortunate coincidences. Quinnie and her friends are nice, normal kids who enjoy hanging out together, and they don’t feel like generic “types,” which is one of my middle grade detective novel pet peeves. All in all, I found this charming, and it made me want to go back to Maine this summer.

I had the opportunity to read a digital ARC of this middle grade mystery novel courtesy of NetGalley. A few years ago, I read the Maypop Mystery, and really enjoyed it. This is the third installment of the Quinnie Boyd mystery series, and it is fun to see the characters I like getting a little bit older. Fourteen year old Quinnie is enjoying the summer in Maiden Rock, Maine with her friends. Dominic is a little bit more than just a friend, but he’s getting ready to move away. Quinnie’s childhood BFF, Zoe, is returning to Maiden Rock after spending over a year in Scotland with her parents.

In the midst of adjusting to Zoe’s return, preparing to say goodbye to her boyfriend, and helping out at her father’s restaurant, there is something sinister happening in Maiden Rock. A fancy new restaurant has opened in town, and is threatening to take away Gusty’s customers. When a friendly food competition between the two restaurants begins, suddenly all sorts of misfortune falls upon Gusty’s. Each new problem threatens to ruin her father’s business, and Quinnie is pretty sure the owner of the new restaurant is behind all of the trouble. But in order to find proof, Quinnie and her friends will need to dust off their detective caps.

I like that this mystery has enough adventure and tension to make it a compelling read. But like its predecessors, it’s not too scary or violent for middle grade readers. I kind of wish Quinnie would trust her mother to help her more when she finds clues or discovers new evidence. Quinnie’s mom is also Maiden Rock’s sheriff. And while Quinnie wants to solve things on her own, she frequently compromises evidence or creates new problems that only complicate efforts to find the culprit in the restaurant mischief. That frustrates the grownup in me, but I’m sure this book will be a popular mystery among young readers.

This book will be released March 1.