Imagine a time without TV, fast food, or the Internet. Imagine a Coke costing a nickel but you don’t even have a penny. Imagine a time in America’s history when only a few families owned a car and you weren’t one of them. If you can imagine such a time, you have just stepped into the Great Depression of the 1930s, a time when the dreams and hopes of Americans turned upside down and most lost their farms and their livelihoods.
The four books of the Maggie and Em Mystery series take you back in time, where the eleven-year-old Brandenburg twins make their own “fun” on their aunt’s sprawling farm in rural Ohio. Oh, and they solve mysteries in their spare time. Middle grade fiction for ages 8-12.
Book One – The Secret of the Madonna
BOOK 1 – Times are tough for eleven-year-old Maggie Brandenburg and her identical twin, Em (short for “M,” Mary) living during the Great Depression of the 1930s. But there’s a glimmer of hope. Spending the summer with Aunt Sophie, the twins might be able to help save the family farm, which would guarantee a brighter future. But a big “if” stands in their way. If Maggie and Em can unlock the secret of the legendary, lost Brandenburg treasure. If Maggie can overcome her fears while they search scary places. Can she summon up the courage to make her dreams come true? Or will Em’s impetuous, daring ways bring their hopes crashing to the ground? Read an excerpt ➡️
Book Two – A Maze of Secrets
BOOK 2 – Maggie and her twin sister, Em, are back for another adventure! Just when Maggie thinks everything is perfect in their new “forever home,” a series of unexpected houseguests turns the twins’ lives topsy-turvy. Their young cousins are pests. A new girl at school accuses Maggie of trying to find her treasure. Worst of all, Maggie has lost the ten silver dollars she won in a contest, money she must soon turn over for a project. Where did it go? Who took it? When Maggie learns about the legend of the Magruder Maze, more problems crop up. Who is after a lost cache of gold coins? Then Maggie hears cackling laughter and clinking coins. What can it all mean? What secrets lie behind the hidden doors and windows of this mysterious maze? Can Maggie solve the mystery before it is too late? Read an excerpt ➡️
Book Three – Secrets in the Cellar
In Secrets in the Cellar, the twins travel to Cincinnati to visit Aunt Flora and Uncle Ben for Thanksgiving. Right after the feast, tragedy strikes. The girls must stay to help the family run their brand-new restaurant. It isn’t easy, especially when their cousin Clark tells the girls their home is “haunted.” While Maggie and Em don’t believe in ghosts, they soon realize Clark is far from wrong. A dirty kitchen cleaned at night by someone or something unknown. Mysterious footprints coming up from the cellar. The sound of distant children’s voices and an eerie whining noise. Who or what is hiding in the cellar? Maggie and Em must find out before it’s too late.
Mysteries, Westerns, & More 