The Thief Knot is the perfect combination of Nancy Drew and Scooby-Doo (minus the actual Scooby-Doo). It perfectly balances the serious and humorous elements of the story. I love that it emphasizes the importance of teamwork - no one character could have solved the mystery and they relied on one another's talents and knowledge to save the day. I also appreciated that the adults were not made out to be clueless, as so often happens in books for this age group. I would have liked a couple short chapters or scenes to show what Nialla is doing when she has to separate from the group - I did feel bad for her at the end when she had to miss out on all the action. Other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to teachers and librarians. I had not read the previous books in the series, but that did not keep me from easily getting swept up in this story. I hope to have more books featuring the Thief Knot team!

Set within the fictional town of Nagspeake, The Thief Knot, is part mystery, part adventure. A group of oddly matched kids, pit their wits against a kidnapper. While not the first book in the Greenglass House series, readers can fully enjoy the story without having read the previous books (I recommend them, but don't miss out on this delightful book if the others are not readily at hand).

Nagspeake itself is a town of mystery; inhabitants have psuedonyms to hide their identities (and possibly past tangles with the law). When a local teen goes missing, the adults who have been under the radar are forced to take action. As the daughter of a somewhat notorious couple, Marzana gets included in the search. But she doesn't just want to help, she wants to solve the case with the help of her best friend and a few others included for the skills they can offer.

The teens' adventures take them all throughout the city (above and underground). They learn things about their town that teachers and parents have been hiding. Full of imaginitive escapades, secret tunnels and villains willing to stop at nothing, this book offers a heart-pounding tale that middle grade audiences will love.

If you enjoyed Trenton Lee Stewart's "Mysterious Benedict Society" series or Lemony Snicket's "All the Wrong Questions" series, then you'll love Mitford's "Greenglass House" books!

Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of The Thief Knot from NetGalley for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received.

Set in the world of her other Greenglass House books, The Thief Knot takes place in the Liberty of Gammerbund..
Milford once again has excellent world-building, fascinating characters, and a twisty mystery that will keep you turning the pages.

I can't express how excited I was for another Greenglass House book. Kate Milford writes such smart stories. She does not dumb things down just because she is writing for children. These books are clever and make the reader think. Not everything is solved (like the tea room!) which I love. It gives me hope that future books will delve into those mysteries.

This story takes place in Nagspeake and stars Marzana who we met in Ghosts of Greenglass House. Marzana overhears her parents talking about a politician's daughter who was kidnapped and who they think has been brought into the Liberty of Gammerbund. She teams up with some friends to help solve the mystery of the kidnapping and find poor Peony. The group becomes the Thief Knot because every group with more than five members needs a name. The group consists of three girls, two boys and a ghost and together they make their way into the underground of Liberty to figure out who kidnapped Peony and where she is being kept.

I loved this story and it made me want to reread the other Greenglass House books. I will admit to not remembering Ghosts as well as I should. I loved all the new characters and the new hints of just how interesting Nagspeake really is. I hope Milford keeps writing these books for a long time!

I love how the author continues to combine characters from multiple story lines into new, stand alone novels. Many of these characters were introduced in The Ghosts of Greenglass House. This tale takes them on another adventure, exploring the intricacies of a nearby walled city and it's tied to the larger town "Down Hill". Excellent read. Can't wait for more. I may actually just go read them all again.

Kate Milford’s Nagspeake books just keep getting better. The world-building that began in Greenglass House continues with this latest entry featuring characters introduced in The Ghosts of Greenglass House last year. Marzana and her parents are back, as are Lucky and Emmett, in this case living a peaceful (if boring) life in The Liberty of Gammerbund. Marzana chafes at the ordinariness of her life, not understanding why her parents keep her from fully understanding their old lives as smugglers. She and her friend Nialla long for adventure, and an opportunity for it drops in Marzana’s lap when Emmett visits to ask her parents for help finding a young girl kidnapped from Nagspeake. Marzana decides to put together a crew of her own and attempt to find the girl and return her to safety.

As the story picks up steam, Marzana finds herself making friends and taking charge, two things that have been difficult for her. Milford often includes a character who struggles with some sort of issue. For Milo in the Greenglass books, it’s anger. For Marzana, it’s shyness and anxiety that takes the form of a bear gnawing away at her insides. Milford wraps bibliotherapy into a cracking good story, which will keep kids reading at the same time it makes them feel better about themselves. Well done.