The Maypop Kidnapping is the 1st book in the Quinnie Boyd Mystery series for Middlegrade readers. The books are set in a very small coastal Maine village, called Maiden Rock. When the summer people leave, there are so few year round residents that Quinn's mom is the Sheriff, Postmaster and Real Estate Agent. The book opens with Quinn upset that her best friend and neighbour Zoe has moved away for the year with her dad and there will be an author and his daughter renting their house. Quinn heads over to Gusty's, the local eatery that is owned by her father to meet up with her teacher/tutor Ms. Stillwell to try and cheer up. They talk about the upcoming week and school starting for them. On the first day set for school, Ms. Stillwell doesn't show up and Quinn heads to her house. What she sees there leads her to believe that she has been kidnapped. She tells her mom, who doesn't take her seriously until she has been missing for several days. This leads Quinn on a hunt for her friend, mentor and teacher, with her new friend Ella, and Ben, the only other kid in the village. Will they find Ms. Stillwell without putting themselves in danger?

This is a great mystery for middlegraders, but I will admit that I enjoyed it as well. Still Rock is a community where everyone knows each other and their business. There are several quirky characters, such as Sister Rosie and Sister Ethel who are known by their bad habits. Quinn is a precocious thirteen year old, who doesn't always do what her mother asks, she stretches it a bit, thus getting herself into some sticky situations. Everyone pitches in to help in the search, but it doesn't mean that Quinn doesn't think a few of them could be the kidnapper. Ella's father is a mystery writer, so she has a lot of advice for Quinn, which she doesn't want to take, until she realizes that it makes sense, but is it too late? There is some danger to the girls, but nothing too serious. The clues Quinn puts together lead her in several directions, but eventually she figures it out. I really liked the relationships between Quinn and her parents as well as Quinn and Ms. Stillwell. The title comes from the reason for the kidnapping, so you will have to read this one to see how it fits. I am going to look for this trilogy as I think my granddaughter would enjoy Quinn's adventures.

Quinnie's favorite teacher is missing and she's convinced it's a kidnapping case, but her mom, the local sheriff, isn't convinced. What follows is a action-packed, super-sleuthing time as Quinnie searches for clues to find her teacher meeting a quirky cast of characters along the way.

A cute story designated for "middle schoolers" although with my experience as a teacher I would say younger than that. I found it quite long and in some parts of the book my interest waned but the mystery did eventually move forward and my interest was renewed somewhat.

What happens when you live on a tiny island all your life, are homeschooled and your teacher disappears, maybe she's even been kidnapped? This is the tale that is woven in the Maypop Landing.

Great for kids who love a good mystery. I purchased this for my public library.