For fans of The Swifts and The Strangers comes an exciting mystery filled with cryptic clues and wonderful word puzzles as Bea and her cousin Celine must locate their grandmother’s precious painting and the mysterious individual leading them from clue to clue.
THE HOUSE OF FOUND OBJECTS
(Bea Bellerose, Book 1)
by Jo Beckett-King
Simon & Schuster BYR, August 2025
(via DeFiore and Company)
THE HOUSE OF FOUND OBJECTS introduces a great new middle-grade detective, in the tradition of Enola Holmes and Flavia DeLuce but entirely contemporary.
Twelve-year-old Bea is visiting family in Paris for the summer when her grandmother’s most precious heirloom—a drawing by Henri Matisse—goes missing. After a clue arrives on Bea’s doorstep suggesting its whereabouts, Bea is determined to pursue the lead. From the first page, readers are immersed in the quaint and cozy Parisian setting and her grandmother’s quirky antique store.
Without the French skills to navigate her way around the landmarks of Paris, she teams up with her cousin, Céline, whose clear-eyed French directness makes her a perfect partner for curious, problem-solving Bea. The girls embark on a city-wide search, deciphering riddles, solving puzzles, and cracking codes as they try to locate the Matisse and catch a thief.
In Book Two, the cousins will reunite in New York to catch a thief whose celebrity jewel heist has cast suspicion on the girls’ aunt Juliette.
Originally from the North East of England, Jo Beckett-King studied Art History at the University of York before moving to Paris, where she worked for several years, honing her skills as a translator. Her writing for children and adults has been longlisted for the Bath Children’s Novel Award and the Bristol Short Story Prize, and shortlisted for the Bridport Prize. She currently lives in San Francisco.
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