Premeditated Myrtle (A Myrtle Hardcastle Mystery)

Premeditated Myrtle is A Myrtle Hardcastle Mystery, that takes place in England 1892.

Four years after Jack the Ripper stalked the streets of England, young Myrtle is more intelligent than most female children. She has a telescope for viewing stars, birds, and other forms of nature, but instead she uses it for spying on her neighbor, a bitter old lady called Mrs. Wodehouse. Myrtle has been studying Mrs. Wodehouse’s garden for a while and knows her gardener’s schedule, but on the eventful day, the gardener isn’t there. More events unfold, and Myrtle watches Mrs. Wodehouse’s maid peek out the door looking extremely worried. Myrtle decides to investigate. Not telling anyone where she is going, she enters her neighbors house and discovers a most frightful scene: Mrs. Wodehouse dead in her bath tub. The police arrive, and they suspect Mrs. Wodehouse died of a heart attack, though Myrtle suspects otherwise. Along with her governess Mrs. Judson and Mrs. Wodehouse’s old cat Peony, Myrtle starts to uncover the truth about Mrs. Wodehouse’s death.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. It’s frightfully intense and exciting with lots of twists and turns throughout the plot, and the ending really surprised me. Though the book has no illustrations, the author uses words that make the story vivid and easy to imagine. I recommend Premeditated Myrtle for ages 10 and up.