Great Teen Mystery Novels
City of Orphans by Avi (MS) – also great for history lovers
In 1893 New York, thirteen-year-old Maks, a newsboy, teams up with Willa, a homeless girl, to clear
his older sister, Emma, from charges that she stole from the brand new Waldorf Hotel, where she
works.
The Secret Prophecy by Herbie Brennan (MS)
Faced with the death of his father and a growing international scandal, Em Governton must uncover
the secrets behind the Knights of Themis before it's too late.
Heist Society by Ally Carter (MS)
A group of teenagers uses their combined talents to re-steal several priceless paintings and save
fifteen-year-old Kat Bishop's father, himself an international art thief, from a vengeful collector. Book 1
in the Heist Society series.
Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements (MS) – also great for sci-fi lovers
When fifteen-year-old Bobby wakes up and finds himself invisible, he and his parents and his new
blind friend Alicia try to find out what caused his condition and how to reverse it.
Shelter by Harlan Coben (HS) – also great for those who love basketball
After tragic events tear Mickey Bolitar away from his parents, he is forced to live with his estranged
Uncle Myron and switch high schools, where he finds both friends and enemies, but when his new
girlfriend, Ashley, vanishes, he follows her trail into a seedy underworld that reveals she is not what
she seems to be. First book in the Mickey Bolitar series.
The Reluctant Assassin by Eoin Colfer (MS) – also great for sci-fi lovers
In Victorian London, Albert Garrick, an assassin-for-hire, and his reluctant teenaged apprentice, Riley,
are transported via wormhole to modern London, where Riley teams up with a young FBI agent to
stop Garrick from returning to his own time and using his newly acquired scientific knowledge and
power to change the world forever. Book 1 in W.A.R.P. series.
Double Eagle by Sneed B. Collard. (MS) -- great for those who love action/adventure
In 1973, Michael and Kyle's discovery of a rare Confederate coin near an old Civil War fort turns into
a race against time as the boys try to find more coins before a hurricane hits Alabama's Gulf coast.
The Rag and Bone Shop by Robert Cormier (HS)
Trent, an ace interrogator from Vermont, works to procure a confession from an introverted twelveyear-old accused of murdering his seven-year-old friend in Monument, Massachusetts.
A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly (HS) – great for history lovers
In 1906, sixteen-year-old Mattie, determined to attend college and be a writer against the wishes of
her father and fiancé, takes a job at a summer inn where she discovers the truth about the death of a
guest. Based on a true story.
The Devil’s Breath by David Gilman (MS) -- great for those who love action/adventure
When fifteen-year-old Max Gordon's environmentalist-adventurer father goes missing while working in
Namibia and Max becomes the target of a would-be assassin at his school in England, he decides he
must follow his father to Africa and find him before they both are killed. Book 1 in the Danger Zone
series.
Clarity by Kim Harrington (HS) -- Sixteen-year-old Clare Fern, a member of a family of psychics,
helps the mayor and a skeptical detective solve a murder in a Cape Cod town during the height of
tourist season--with her brother a prime suspect.
Silverfin by Charlie Higson (MS) -- great for those who love history & action/adventure
This prequel to the adventures of James Bond, 007, introduces us to the young James when he's just
started boarding school in England and is about to become involved in his first adventure. Book 1 in
the Young Bond series.
The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson (HS)
Rory, of Benouville, Louisiana, is spending a year at a London boarding school when she witnesses a
murder by a Jack the Ripper copycat and becomes involved with the very unusual investigation. Book
1 in The Shades of London series.
Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy. (MS) – also great for fantasy lovers
When twelve-year-old Stephanie inherits her weird uncle's estate, she must join forces with
Skulduggery Pleasant, a skeleton detective, to save the world from the Faceless Ones. Book 1 in the
Skulduggery Pleasant series.
Death Cloud by Andy Lane (MS) – great for those who love history & action/adventure
In 1868, with his army officer father suddenly posted to India, and his mother mysteriously "unwell,"
fourteen-year-old Sherlock Holmes is sent to stay with his eccentric uncle and aunt in their vast house
in Hampshire, where he uncovers his first murder and a diabolical villain. Book 1 in the Sherlock
Holmes, the Legend begins series.
Hero by Mike Lupica (MS) – great for those who love action/adventure
Fourteen-year-old Zach learns he has the same special abilities as his father, who was the
President's globe-trotting troubleshooter until "the Bads" killed him, and now Zach must decide
whether to use his powers in the same way at the risk of his own life.
Sylo by D. J. MacHale (MS) – great for dystopian lovers
When everyone is quarantined on a once-peaceful island off the coast of Maine, Tucker questions a
secret branch of the military claiming that residents have been infected by a deadly virus. Book 1 in
the Sylo Chronicles.
Colin Fischer by Ashley Edward Miller (MS)
A boy with Asperger’s Syndrome teams up with the high school bully to get to the bottom of a
cafeteria crime.
The Body of Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci (HS)
Torey Adams, a high school junior with a seemingly perfect life, struggles with doubts and questions
surrounding the mysterious disappearance of the class outcast.
Caged Graves by Dianne K. Salerni. (HS) – also great for history lovers
Returning to her hometown of Catawissa, Pennsylvania, in 1867 to marry a man she has never met,
seventeen-year-old Verity Boone gets caught up in the mystery surrounding the graves of her mother
and aunt and a dangerous hunt for Revolutionary War gold.
The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman (MS) – also great for fantasy lovers
New York high school student Elizabeth gets an after-school job as a page at the "New-York
Circulating Material Repository," and when she gains coveted access to its Grimm Collection of
magical objects, she and the other pages are drawn into a series of frightening adventures involving
mythical creatures and stolen goods. Companion book: The Wells Bequest.
Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey (HS) In small-town Australia, teens Jasper and Charlie form an unlikely
friendship when one asks the other to help him cover up a murder until they can prove who is
responsible.
Double Helix by Nancy Werlin (HS) – also great for sci-fi lovers
Eighteen-year-old Eli discovers a shocking secret about his life and his family while working for a
Nobel Prize-winning scientist whose specialty is genetic engineering.
In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters (HS) – also great for history lovers
In San Diego in 1918, as deadly influenza and World War I take their toll, sixteen-year-old Mary
Shelley Black watches desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort and,
despite her scientific leanings, must consider if ghosts are real when her first love, killed in battle,
returns.
I am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (HS)
After capturing a bank robber, nineteen-year-old cab driver Ed Kennedy begins receiving mysterious
messages that direct him to addresses where people need help, and he begins getting over his
lifelong feeling of worthlessness.
Other great mystery authors:
Jennifer Allison – Gilda Joyce, Psychic Investigator series -- realistic mysteries
for MS
Josh Berk – realistic mysteries for MS & HS
Caroline B. Cooney – realistic and science fiction suspense for MS & HS
John Feinstein – realistic sports mysteries for MS
April Henry – realistic mystery and suspense for HS
Carl Hiaasen – realistic environmental mysteries for MS
Sara Shepard – realistic mysteries for HS
Barrie Summy – modern day mysteries for MS
Wendelin Van Draanen – Sammy Keyes series -- realistic mysteries for MS