Contemporary Brooklyn is home to a diverse group of characters voiced by Nikki Massoud in this middle-grade mystery with a slight fantasy twist. In this second installment, amateur sleuths Roya and Amin are approached by their neighbor and fellow classmate, 12-year-old Thea, to find the treasure left in their building by her estranged grandfather. Showcasing her skills, Massoud interweaves vibrant characters and periodic Iranian words. Roya and Amin are given energetic and confident voices, while Thea's breathy voice portrays a more reserved and introverted personality. Massoud captures three generations of characters ranging from tired parents and grandparents to boisterous children.
(Mystery. 9-13)Pub Date: 2025
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217157068
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Cousins Avery and Jax don't have much in common, including their feelings about a summer at their family's crumbling island vacation home. She thinks it's a great adventure, and he'd rather be anywhere else. Narrator Kate Coventry embodies Avery's open, exuberant, and sometimes thoughtless behavior, while Pete Cross makes clear to listeners how much quiet Jax is impacted by his father's overbearing nature. As they help clean the place up to sell it, they find pages torn from a diary that may uncover what drove their parents away from the island and each other years before. Cassandra Morris's brief narration of the mysterious diarist is compelling in its simplicity. Narrators Kate Coventry and Pete Cross provide vivacity to this exploration of family history and regrets.
(Mystery. 9-12)Pub Date: 2025
Duration: 5 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798225027049
Publisher: Scholastic Audiobooks
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Thirteen-year-old pickpocket Tom Morgan is dedicated to helping his fellow orphans who are imprisoned amid the unspeakable conditions of a Dickensian workhouse. Zac Lowe-McAlley breathes life into every ghastly situation and character--with Tom a standout. When a mysterious but compassionate recruiter from the School for Deception Arts encounters Tom, he recognizes the boy's talent and encourages him to attend the school. Even though he's been told that failure there is fatal, Tom accepts, hoping to spring his incarcerated friends. At the school, the haughtily rendered international elites disdain him, but his fearlessness confounds them. As audio showcases Lowe-McAlley's infectious vibrancy, the moving story and breathtaking conclusion prove irresistible.
(Adventure. 10-14)Pub Date: 2025
Duration: 8 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781668147078
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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