The Mystery of the Radcliffe Riddle by Taryn Souders
In The Mystery of the Radcliffe Riddle, Grady and his dad are shocked when Eudora “Kooky” Klinch, leaves something behind for them in her will. They weren’t sure what to expect but a 300-year-old tapestry definitely wasn’t it.
Attached to it is a note stating the tapestry is actually a treasure map! But who would believe the town oddball? Not Grady’s dad, who dismisses the note. When Grady finds out he may lose his home and have to move away from his friends, he decides it’s worth a shot.
But Grady thinks someone else knows about the treasure map when someone attempts to break into his home.
Can Grady find the treasure map first? And can he do it without endangering himself or his friends helping him?
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LJR’s Thoughts for The Mystery of the Radcliffe Riddle
Taryn Souders had me from the first line. “Eudora Klinch is dead.” It was engaging and mysterious from the first page. And my Nancy-Drew-obsessed kiddo is sure to love it. If you have a mystery-loving kid, you’ll want to pick this one up.
This may be a fun read-aloud for homeschooling families learning about American History (Shh! I’ve already said too much), particularly if you’re a Classical Conversations family going into Cycle 3. It’s not great for younger or sensitive kiddos though since there is mention of people dying, especially parents and children. All discussion of violence is mild. Some peril for the main characters but almost all of the deaths are people the reader doesn’t connect with much.
It’s clean without any agenda or romance. Though it’s not specifically mentioning Christ, there is mention of the pastor and church and Grady’s dad does struggle with his faith but the book ends on an encouraging note here. It would lead to great conversation, particularly with the recommended age.
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Christian Morals/Values: 4 out of 5
Story: 5 out of 5
Read-Aloud Value: 4 out of 5
Discussion Value: 5 out of 5
Recommended Post: Jack Zulu and the Waylander’s Key by S.D. Smith & J.C. Smith
Considerations for The Mystery of the Radcliffe Riddle
In our usual LJR fashion, we try to find anything that Christian families may want to know about ahead of time to address, skip, or dig deeper into. Take a look at what we found below. Our take on Discipleship Opportunities is at the bottom of the review.
- Positive Behavior: Characters confess the things they did (like sneaking out once)
- Negative Behavior: Kids sneak out one night,
- Language: Character “inwardly cussed” but no curse words mentioned, one character uses the names of famous architects in place of curse words, “oh crap”, “sucks” more than once, “Holy Greek Revival”,
- Violence/Intense Scenes: Mention of man getting ear cut off in battle, Several mentions of people dying (including the parent of a major character), a minor (but loved) character dies, mention of ghosts, discussion of depression, Major character in peril
- Religion/Spirituality: a character asks if something is a voodoo doll, mention of religious persecution against Catholics
- Racism/Discrimination: none
- Romance/Sexuality: none
- Substance Usage: none
Discipleship Opportunities
- Discussion of honoring your parents as well as not stealing or coveting. A basic run-down of the Ten Commandments would be great. Exodus 20
- One character is struggling with his faith due to the death of a loved one and it’s a small thread throughout. This situation does end hopeful by the story’s end.
- With the mention of death and loved ones, you’ll want to discuss grief and loss from a biblical perspective. Psalm 34:18; Psalm 147:3; 1 Thessolonians 4:13-14
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