An error with the download made me unable to view this title through NetGalley. I did have the chance to grab this from my library after publication, and I enjoyed the title.

I appreciate NetGalley and publishers providing titles for reviewers to access.

I didn't know that this was part of a series when I first requested it but luckily it was perfectly fine as a standalone read. It's a young adult adventure novel, but I definitely got the feeling that it was aimed at younger young adults than myself. The main character is 12-year-old Dylan Maples, so I assume the target audience is around that pre-teen age, too.

Dylan's father often moves around for his work, which is as a lawyer. They're now moving to Cobalt, in north Canada. "Hicksville", as Dylan calls it. It's only for a few months, but Dylan is dreading leaving his friends behind. Cobalt is bound to be so boring. How will he ever survive?

But of course, Dylan finds adventure in this seemingly sleepy town. As usual, I won't tell too much of the plot, but I will say that Dylan finds himself in the middle of the law suit his dad is working on.

Dylan makes a friend in Cobalt, too - Wynona. He meets her almost immediately, though they don't become acquainted until a little later on. Their relationship remains platonic, though it is fairly obvious that there are some deeper emotions.

Personally, I found this to be quite a young book. It included a huge amount of similes and metaphors and what I'd consider 'simplistic' writing. It wasn't bad, it just felt like it was a bit too young for me to enjoy.

For a younger audience I could see this as being quite interesting, though I found it a little slow at times. 3 stars.

I received an ARC copy from netgalley for my honest review, so thank you netgalley and publishers for offering me this book! ♡
Just when Dylan Maples is settling down after last summer's trip to Ireland's Eye, the parental units are at it again—planning another family adventure. Only this time, it's not a summer vacation, but an extended trip way up north to Cobalt, Ontario, in the middle of a bitter winter. Once a thriving silver mining community, all that's left of the town's rich history are the long abandoned mines.
A Toronto millionaire has hired Dylan's dad to retrieve a fortune in silver allegedly stolen from his grandfather back in the early part of the twentieth century. But was the fortune really stolen? And if so, where has it been hidden? The answers to these questions reside with one man—Theobald T. Larocque, Cobalt's oldest citizen. But no one has seen him in years. And no one seems at all eager to help Dylan's dad locate him—except, of course, his devoted son Dylan, and Dylan's newfound friend and accomplice, Wynona Dixon.
The cover and title is what originally drew me to this book.
This is my first book by this author. It was alltogether an easy read. ♡ I give this book a
3.5 star rating!

Wonderful mystery book for young readers. Very easy to follow and strong plot development that keeps readers engaged!

Thirteen-year-old Dylan Maples' lawyer dad has been hired by a wealthy client to recover silver worth a quarter of a million dollars, stolen, the client claims, in the early 1900s by a man named Theodore Larocque. Now the Maples family is moving from Toronto to Cobalt, a small town in Northern Ontario to find Laroque or, more likely, his heirs and recover the silver no matter how long this takes. None of the family is happy about it but Dylan is especially unhappy - he is leaving his friends and, worst of all, his hockey team behind and figures they are moving to hicksville full of nothing but hicks. Still, he signs up for hockey and is pleased to see the abilities of the other players.Then they play another team that's even better thanks to one player in particular. To Dylan's surprise, this player is a girl, Wynona Dixon. Dylan and Wynona become friends but when he explains why they are in Cobalt, it turns out Theo Laroque is her great-grandfather and, although, she has never met him, she is sure that he never stole the silver. Laroque is still alive surprisingly and is living in a huge and creepy old house at the top of a hill but no one has seen him for years - Dylan's dad has tried repeatedly to speak to him but has had no luck. Wynona decides that she and Dylan will visit him and find out the truth about what happened to the silver, a quest that will put the pair in real danger.

The Secret of the Silver Mines by author Shane Peacock is the second in the Dylan Maples Adventure series and is a clever and entertaining mystery for young adult readers. Dylan and Wynona are interesting characters as is Theo Laroque and there is plenty of action to keep a young reader engrossed . However, for an adult like me, the best part of the book was the actual history Peacock has written into the story, the silver rush of the early 20th c., the conditions under which the miners worked and the class divisions that developed as speculators, bankers, con artists, and entrepreneurs arrived in the town. There was also some fascinating history about the early days of hockey. As Cobalt grew rich thanks to the silver rush, their home team, the Cobalt Silver Kings played teams from all over including, once, the Montreal Canadiens. A fun snowy day read for a Middle grade reader.

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Nimbus Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review</i>

Dylan Maples is being brought to the small town of Cobalt, Ontario by his lawyer father while he works on a case. While there, Dylan becomes invested in the mystery of what happened to the missing silver.
I really enjoyed this book. I realize that this is probably aimed at middle and high school kids, but I loved it. Growing up just east of the Ontario/New York border, I go to Canada a few times a year and watch a LOT of hockey. I learned a bit about the history of the NHL, which was cool, and I was engrossed in the story that Theo had to tell Dylan and Wyn. Seriously, I was sucked into this story and I know that my middle school self would have shoved it into all of my friends’ hands and tell them to read it. I’d highly recommend this book, especially if you like mystery, middle grade fiction, hockey, or stories about the past.

OOoO!
An interesting, fast-paced mystery. This was way better than I thought it would be.
Im looking forward to reading more! :D