Sammy Keyes and the Runaway Elf

Description

Review Praise for the Sammy Keyes series: “Van Draanen offers such an explosive combination of high-stakes sleuthing, hilarity, and breathlessly paced action that it’s impossible to turn the pages fast enough.” —Kirkus Reviews “There’s no stopping Sammy.”—Publishers Weekly“An intelligent, gutsy, flawed, and utterly likable heroine.”—Booklist"Move over, Nancy Drew—a new sleuth is on the scene.”—Girls’ Life"Think a combination of Carl Hiaasen’s Flush and Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum books and you’ll be right on target.” —School Library Journal“A high-quality, high-amp mystery series.” —The Horn Book “This funny, clever series is NOT for kids only. I challenge the most seasoned mystery reader to guess ‘who done it.’” —Cozies, Capers, and Crimes “Sammy Keyes comes armed with attitude.” —Orlando Sentinel“Sammy doesn’t find mysteries to solve—they find her.” —Arizona Republic“Humor, romance and adventure; this story is an absolute blast.” —Chicago Tribune “If you haven’t met Sammy Keyes yet, now is the time.” —Children’s Literature Read more From the Inside Flap And this new adventure is Wendelin Van Draanen's most complex and compelling yet! It's Christmastime in Sammy's hometown of Santa Martina, but some people are being very, very naughty. Pranksters dressed as wise men sabotage the Christmas Parade. In the ensuing chaos, some thugs dognap a prize Pomeranian. Then the Pom's owner blackmails Sammy into finding the dog so she won't have to pay the ransom. Sammy doesn't have to check her list twice to know that these people belong in the naughty column! But in the course of her search for the doggone dog, Sammy also comes across some characters who are harder to figure: a runaway elf, an embittered old biddy, a puffed-up policeman, and a sneaky Secret Santa. Still, someone's got that dog and whoever it is had better watch out--'cause Sammy Keyes is nosing around...and she's willing to be pretty naughty herself to make sure the bad guys pay. "From the Hardcover edition. Read more About the Author WENDELIN VAN DRAANEN was a classroom teacher for many years before becoming a full-time writer. The books in the Sammy Keyes mystery series have been embraced by critics and readers alike, with Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief receiving the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best children’s mystery. Wendelin is also the author of many award-winning novels, including Flipped, The Running Dream, Runaway, Confessions of a Serial Kisser, Swear to Howdy, The Secret Life of Lincoln Jones, and Wild Bird. You can find her online at WendelinVanDraanen.com and @WendelinVanD, and you can follow Sammy Keyes on Facebook. Read more