Two Great Mysteries by Penny Warner

Mystery of the Haunted Cave  

Publisher:  Meadowbrook Press

Pages:  102

Source:  Review copy from publisher

Genre:  Middle Grade Mystery

From Goodreads:

Thirteen-year-old Becca and her friends Sierra, CJ, and Jonnie are determined to win the gold medal for Troop 13 at the Gold Rush Jamboee. But they face stiff competition from the other troops -- especially Troop 7, whose members love to pull pranks on them. When a mysterious clue hints at treasure buried in Camp Miwok's Haunted Caves, Becca and her friends are determined to get their hands on that, too -- even if it means sneaking from camp, hanging out with bats, and being threatened by robbers...

Mystery of the Missing Mustangs

Publisher:  Meadowbrook Press

Pages: 112

Source:  Review copy from publisher

Genre:  Middle Grade Mystery

From Goodreads:

The four fearless scouts from Troop 13 are back again for another wild adventure, this time at a dude ranch in the western plains of Nevada. While learning how to care for horses, thirteen-year-old Sierra and her three best friends CJ, Becca, and Jonnie learn about the mysterious disappearance of government-protected wild horses, one of which was supposed to be adopted by their new friend Devyn. When the four friends decide to help Devyn find her horse, they discover it won’t be easy, not with a suspicious rodeo owner standing in the scouts’ way and leading them to believe someone is stealing the horses and using them for illegal purposes....

My Thoughts:

 I have to say I really loved these books.  They reminded me of reading The Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew when I was a child.  I loved how much knowledge about the area or subject was put into  each story.  In The Mystery of Haunted Cave the girls not only had to earn their badges, but they had to search for a treasure they weren’t sure existed.  They had to rappel, solve a puzzle while making their way through caves and then set a trap that would not harm the animal they caught.  Readers get an insight into scouting and mining.

In The Mystery of the Missing Mustangs the girls are taken to a Dude Ranch.  They learn all about taking care of horses.  They learn from the bottom up.  They must learn to muck out stalls, feed and care for their horses, then learn to ride.  It is while they are there they meet Devyn the Ranch owner’s niece. She is adopting a wild mustang.  There is a problem, Silver Star the horse she is adopting has gone missing along with several other mustangs.  The girls must do their best to help solve this mystery.

If you are looking for clean, fun, reads then this is an author you need to check out.  The mysteries are fulfilling, not too hard.  I liked learning about mining and wild mustangs and how they are protected.  These are books that will definitely find a place on my shelves at school.