Brightwood

Eleven-year-old Daisy Fitzjohn and her mum Caroline live in beautiful but overgrown Brightwood Hall. Overprotective Caroline lost her family in a yachting accident when she was a child, and since then has hoarded keepsakes, filling Brightwood with catalogued boxes of clutter. She vowed never to lose anything "ever again," and to that end, she has kept Daisy a secret from the outside world. Daisy has never been beyond the estate's boundaries, though she finds company in her pet rat Tar (who talks, but only to her) and a topiary horse. When Caroline fails to return home one day, Daisy is left alone at the labyrinthine estate--until a stranger appears. Daisy sees something greedy and deceitful in him and uses her unparalleled knowledge of Brightwood to defend against his interference. Daisy's bravery is tested as she scrambles to save her home, her mother, and herself; she is aided by the ghost of a young adventurer and uses Caroline's collection of hoarded memories for clues. Although the novel features few characters and even fewer locations, it is nonetheless filled with action and intrigue. Brightwood itself is described in marvelous detail, with hiding places and secret passages setting up the reader for adventure. What starts as a spirited mystery with fantasy overtones turns into a frantic and violent conflict in which the heroine finds herself in dire peril. The battle for the estate is shaded by Daisy's dawning understanding of her mother's phobias and obsessions, as well as her discovery that not all the Fitzjohns were as brave as she'd believed. This suspenseful story will keep intrepid readers transfixed until the well-earned happy ending. sarah berman

Eleven-year-old Daisy has never been beyond the boundaries of the labyrinthine Brightwood Hall estate, where she lives with her hoarder mother. When Mum fails to return home one day, Daisy is left alone (with her pet rat)--until a stranger appears. Daisy's bravery is tested as she scrambles to save her home, her mother, and herself. This suspenseful story will keep readers transfixed.