Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in return for an honest review. I have not read any of the other books in this series, but this was really good. Some parts were hard to follow, probably because I haven't read the other books, so that's my fault.

I really enjoy Margi Preus's books, and I have also read Clue in the Woods (Book #2). Like other mysteries (similar to Nancy Drew), you don't need to read these books in order. Francesca Frye, known as Francie to her friends, now lives alone with long distance supervision. In her memories, Francie has always associated her mother with a silver box, though she isn’t sure why or how. In the beginning of this book, she finds herself in possession of the box. Her search for answers takes her and her best friends Raven and Jay as far afield as an abandoned ranch in Arizona and as close to home as a sketchy plant collector’s conservatory and a musty old museum where shadows lurk around every display case.

It's a fun book that I recommend frequently to middle school students.

It wasn’t much different that the first one in the series. It was ok, sorta all over the place and everything seemed very surface level with very little substance. I do think this series would have done better if targeted for a younger audience.

Let me tell you what I didn’t know going into The Silver Box: This is a sequel! And a lot happened in the previous two books! And the book doesn’t have time to slow down so you can catch up — things are happening fast! If you’re intrigued by this book, I’m going to recommend that you start with Enchantment Lake so that you, unlike me, don’t have to spend half your reading time trying to piece together what happened in the previous books.

Nonetheless, this book is delightful, and it reads like a 21st century Nancy Drew story. Francie has, at great peril, found a silver puzzle box that may hold the clue to her mother’s disappearance when Francie was just a kid. As Francie puts together the clues and probes the foggy corners of her own memories, she follows a trail through museums, ranches, conservatories, and wilderness that ultimately leads her to a villain with a goal he’ll do anything to win, putting Francie and her friends in grave danger — again.

Old-fashioned mysteries like this — where you follow the clues, pursued by bad guys — are definitely my sweet spot, and this one was a fun read, even though I had no idea what was going on for the first third of the book. I liked it so much I ordered my own copy — of the full trilogy. :)

When I started reading this I felt like I had stepped into the middle of an incredibly adventurous story and then I found out it's because, I did! This is the final installment of the Enchantment Lake mystery series and it was great! There were some spots that were hard to follow but that could have been because I haven't read the previous books so I didn't fault it for that. This was definitely a modern day Nancy Drew type mystery, which I love because I read all the old novels and even a few of the newer ones. Francie's relentless search for her mom leads her down an adventurous road where she meets some great characters. Loretta "the witch" is an awesome addition to all the strong females in this book. I will definitely be going back to read the previous books in this series to get all the background and previous exploits of Francie, Raven, Theo, & Jay. This book is a definite 4 out of 5 for me just because I was lost at times but overall a must read for fans of Nancy Drew and Theodore Boone.

This review will be available on my blog and Instagram 10.21.20.

I appreciate having had an opportunity to read and review this book. The appeal of this particular book was not evident to me, and if I cannot file a generally positive review I prefer simply to advise the publisher to that effect and file no review at all.

Absolutely charming story of mystery, magic and the Midwest US. I chose this on a whim and did not know it was a series. This was very easy to engage with and follow. I loved the naturalistic focus and the surprise twists. A very charming read for any age.

I really wanted to love this book but I found this book slow and it wasn't to my taste. It was heavy on descriptions and just didn't flow. Couldn't get into it.

I love this book! It’s fun, entertaining and spooky! This is a new author to me and I’ll be sure to reading more. MC Francie is searching for the truth about her mother. Francie lives with her aunt on the shores of Enchantment Lake. She’s in possession of a small, engraved silver box that holds plenty of clues. This is a coming of age story and so we are on this journey with Francie. Thank you to NetGalley, University of Minnesota Press, and Margi Preus for an ebook ARC. This is my honest review.

I will post on goodreads. youtube, instagram on the book's release date (10/6/20). I will update my feedback at that time. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.

I didn't have the pleasure of reading the first two books in this series so I took a bit of time to familiarize myself with the story and the basic outline of characters before I read this one.

The characters and plotline were easy to follow and I think that I would have very much enjoyed this book as a child. It was a fast, pleasant read. The story moved forward almost frantically but I think it worked well because I was able to empathize with the main character and how she must be viewing things. It read very well as a standalone though was much better understood when added to the end of a trilogy.

I loved the author's use of descriptions and the character Raven reminded me of my own best friend!