Three Times Lucky

Turnage, Sheila. Three Times Lucky. Dial Books for Young Readers, New York, 2012. 312 pages.  Tr. $16.99 ISBN 9780803736702

Plot Description:

Mo LoBeau lives in the Small town of Tupelo Landing, North Carolina, where she washed ashore eleven years earlier in the wake of a hurricane.  Mo’s summer is all set, fishing and karate with her best friend Dale, timing Lavender (Dale’s brother and Mo’s future husband) at the racetrack, and helping Miss Lana and the Colonel run the café.  Mo’s plans change when Mr. Jesse, a regular at the café, turns up murder and more surprising Dale is the prime suspect.  Mr. Jesse’s murder brings a big city detective, Joe Starr, to town to investigate.  Mo and Dale also set out to find the killer and clear Dale’s name and in the process uncover old secrets and a mystery that runs deeper than Mr. Jesse’s murder.

Review:

Three Times Lucky is a stunning debut to children’s literate for author Shelia Turnage.  Turnage weaves an entertaining and intriguing mystery.  She brings the small town of Tupelo Landing to life with well-developed and original characters that readers will find themselves caring for.  As the plot thickens readers will find Three Times Lucky difficult to put down.  This is truly a gem of a book and hopefully is just the first of money more great books to come from Turnage.

Genre:

Realistic Fiction

Mystery

Reading Level/Interest Level:

Grades 4-7

Similar Books:

The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron

Awards/Honors:

ALA Notable Book 2012

Newberry Honor Book 2012

Author’s Website:

http://www.sheilaturnage.com/SheilaTurnage/Sheila_Turnage,_Author.html

Book Talk:
https://soundcloud.com/jennifer-renz-1/three-times-lucky