The Secret Key: Book 1 (Agatha Oddly)

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First of all, mystery has always been something that I love and I was so eager to read this series. A 13 year old detective, named after my favorite mystery's author, Agatha Christie? Never going to miss that. The Secret Key is the very first novel in a brand new series by Lena Jones revolving around the adventures of Agatha Oddlow, a thirteen-year-old girl who's addicted to crime novels and wishes nothing more than to become a detective. And, she kind of is, already!

Was dann natürlich auf gar keinen Fall unerwähnt bleiben darf, ist die zauberhafte Innengestaltung. Größere Illustrationen gibt es zwar leider wieder keine, aber dafür viele kleine wundervolle schwarz-weiß Zeichnungen von Max Meinzold. Mir hat die Aufmachung erneut total gut gefallen! I know,’ I say, ‘but I was hoping to talk to you.’ It’s strange how much less confident I feel, now that I’m faced with the professor. She has a big presence for such a small, neat person, and it’s hard not to be... intimidated. ‘ With a scholarship to the prestigious St Regis School, a cottage in the middle of Hyde Park, a room full of beloved sleuthing novels, and a secret key that gives her access to a whole hidden side of London, Agatha is perfectly poised to solve the mystery of what’s going on. But just who can she trust when no one is quite who they seem… Once again I found the plot overall to be well paced and interesting. The title is perhaps a little misleading as although the murder at the museum is what first comes to Agatha’s attention very little of the book is actually spent investigating the murder. Instead we follow Agatha as she investigates underground tunnels, and eventually manages to tie everything together in the dramatic climax to the story!Agatha is the kind of girl that keeps an eye colour chart on the wall of her bedroom (to help with identification, of course!) and has been known to sneak a listening device into the school staff room! Jeder Mensch ist ein Rätsel, Agatha. Jeder da draußen auf der Straße hat eine eigene Geschichte, eigene Gründe dafür, warum er so ist, wie er ist, eigene Geheimnisse. Das sind die wirklich wichtigen Rätsel. Meet thirteen-year-old Agatha Oddly - a bold, determined heroine who has been a detective for as long as she can remember. All she needs is to break a first big case. And this stylish detective will stop at NOTHING. And in book 3, an assistant at the National Gallery has gone missing, but something bigger than anything she could ever have imagined takes her travelling throughout London.

Agatha is perfectly poised to solve the mystery of what’s going on — not least because she has a secret key that gives her access to a whole hidden side of London! I especially didn’t like how the main character Agatha had a ‘I’m not like other girls’ attitude which is something I really despise and I hate this trope in books. To have this shown in a middle grade book is just even more frustrating as it’s so harmful. This puts girl/women down and pits them against each other. It also perpetuates the notion that because some girls like to wear make up or enjoying shopping and doing their hair etc... they’re less than. What’s wrong with liking these things? Thinking ‘I’m not like other girls’ is associating the qualities you hate with girls/women.Agatha Oddlow is on the case with yet another adventure! An assistant at the National Gallery has gone missing, but when Agatha begins investigating, she uncovers a plot bigger than she could ever have imagined. Join Agatha as she travels throughout London and into the very heart of the mystery.... But she said Agatha should think about real puzzles, not just word searches and numbers. She had said: ‘Everybody is a puzzle, Agatha. Everyone in the street has their own story, their own reasons for being the way they are, their own secrets. Those are the really important puzzles.’

The Secret Key: Meet thirteen-year-old Agatha Oddly – a bold, determined heroine, and the star of a stylish new detective series.Agatha Oddlow has been a detective for as long as she can remember – she’s just been waiting for her first big case.

Win!

Two – you tried to miss lessons by convincing the groundskeeper that you were an apprentice tree surgeon who needed to scale a tree near the boundary wall… and just so you could get out of school…” The Silver Serpent: A third mystery for thirteen-year-old Agatha Oddly – a bold, determined heroine, and the star of this stylish new detective series.

Have a seat.’ She gestures to one of the curved wooden chairs in front of her desk, and I sit down. Agatha’s late mother named her after Agatha Christie. She got Agatha to read the complete works of Agatha Christie – the mysteries of Poirot, Miss Marple, and Tommy and Tuppence – because Agatha liked solving puzzles. Obwohl es bei mir nun tatsächlich schon wieder deutlich über ein halbes Jahr her ist, dass ich den ersten Band gelesen habe, hatte ich hier überhaupt keine Einstiegsprobleme. Da die Fortsetzung allerdings ziemlich zeitnah an den Vorgänger anschließt und auch sehr auf ihn aufbaut, rate ich bei dieser Reihe sehr, mit dem Auftakt zu beginnen. Ich bin mir nicht sicher, ob man dem Geschehen im zweiten Band problemlos folgen kann, wenn man nicht das Wissen aus dem ersten Teil hat. There were a couple of points where I felt that the narrative over explained some aspects, but then I reminded myself that I am an adult reading a MG book and it’s understandable, at the other end of the spectrum the story contains some quite big words, I’m not sure I would have known what effervescent meant as an eight year old… I’m not sure if that is perhaps a symptom of the way this book is written, by a TV style writers room rather than a single author. I don’t think it would detract from the enjoyment of the book, just expect a few questions from your little ones about what one or two of the words mean. A member of staff has been stabbed to death shortly after closing time this evening at the British Museum. Police have yet to release the name of the staff member, who is believed to have disturbed an intruder. A museum exhibit is said to be missing from a display case.Agatha Oddlow löst für ihr Leben gerne Rätsel. Zusammen mit ihrem besten Freund hat sie sogar eine eigene Detektei gegründet. Nur leider bleiben die Fälle aus. Das liegt vielleicht daran, dass ihr Umfeld sie für seltsam hält – ODDLY eben. Nur ihr Vater vergöttert sie. Ihre Mutter kam bei einem tragischen Unfall ums Leben, den selbst Agatha nie aufklären konnte. The Secret Key follows the ambition of Agatha Oddly; a thirteen year old girl who loves solving mysteries; she has even started her own Detective Agency with her best friend, Liam – but her big break comes when she sees an old woman run down by a biker – and find a tattoo of a key on her arm. Soon London discovers that their water supply has been contaminated and that sets her, and she brings along her best friend, Liam, on her adventure. Dr Hargrave stands up, brushing invisible crumbs from his suit. “Yes. I’d better get going.” He glances around, as though looking for the exit. “As for you, Agatha, I would advise you to think about… um… everything I’ve said.” In a cottage next to Hyde Park. Agatha lives with her Dad ( Rufus), who’s been a Royal Park warden since he left school at sixteen. He’s worked his way up to the position of head warden of Hyde Park. They live in Groundskeeper’s Cottage.