Disclosure: I was sent copies of all the books in this series in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Today I get to share with you the Enchantment Lake series by Margi Preus. This book is part of the blog tour for the third book, The Silver Box. Before I get into this book, though let me talk about the first two. The first book is Enchantment Lake and the second book is The Clue in the Trees.
In the first book we meet Francie or Frenchy Frye. She is a high school student who is orphaned and lives by herself with her grandfather overseeing her life. She gets a worrisome call from her two great aunts requesting she come help them. She returns to Enchantment Lake in Minnesota where she spent many summers of her childhood. Her quirky aunts have convinced everyone that Frenchy is a New York City detective because she played one on television for a very short time. There are murders happening along the lake and her great aunts are sure she can solve the mystery and save them. Thus is the first book. Francie and her friends are slowly introduced to us in the first book. There is adventure, mystery and love.
In the second book Francie's story continues. She has decided to finish high school in Minnesota. We meet her new best friends. A Native American girl and a white boy. Both are part of the drama club and pull Francie into it. This book also has the first appearance of Francie's mysterious brother. Unfortunately right around his appearance the murder happens. Could Theo be the murderer? Francie hasn't seen him in a few years. Francie has to solve this mystery to figure it out but this time she has her best friends by her side--well at least most of the time.
In the final Enchantment Lake mystery, Francie’s search for the truth about her mother—and herself—plunges her into danger during a North Woods winter.
When she wakes in her aunts’ cold cabin on the shore of Enchantment Lake, Francie remembers: everything about her life has changed. Or is about to. Or just might. Everything depends on the small, engraved silver box that she now possesses—if only she can follow its cryptic clues to the whereabouts of her missing mother and understand, finally, just maybe, the truth about who she really is.
Francie, it turns out, has a lot to learn, and this time the lessons could be deadly. Her search for answers takes her and her best friends Raven and Jay as far afield as an abandoned ranch in Arizona and as close to home as a sketchy plant collector’s conservatory and a musty old museum where shadows lurk around every display case. At the heart of it all is a crime that touches her own adopted North Woods: thieves dig up fragile lady’s slippers, peel bark from birches, strip moss off trees, cut down entire forests of saplings to sell for home décor. But Francie is up against no ordinary plant theft. One ominous clue after another reveal that she possesses something so rare and so valuable that some people are willing to do anything to get it. When Francie’s investigation leads her into the treacherously cold and snowy North Woods, she finds out that she too is being pursued.
Print Length: 216 Pages
Genre: Middle Grade Fiction
ISBN-10: 1517909680
ISBN-13: 9781517909680
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press
The Silver Box is available to purchase at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, and Thrift Books. You can also add this to your reading list on GoodReads.com.
Margi Preus is the author of the Newbery Honor book Heart of a Samurai and other books for young readers, including the Minnesota Book Award winning West of the Moon, and the Midwest Booksellers Choice Award book The Clue in the Trees. Her books have won multiple awards, landed on the New York Times bestseller list, been honored as ALA/ALSC Notables, selected as an NPR Backseat Book Club pick, chosen for community reads, and translated into several languages. New titles in 2020 include Village of Scoundrels, The Littlest Voyageur, and The Silver Box, part of the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
Back when such things were done, Margi enjoyed traveling, speaking, and visiting schools all over the world. Now mostly at home in Duluth, she likes to ski, hike, canoe, or sit quietly with a book in her lap.
You can follow her online at: https://www.margipreus.com/
Twitter: @MargiPreus
Instagram: @MargiPreus
The Silver Box Summary
In the final Enchantment Lake mystery, Francie’s search for the truth about her mother—and herself—plunges her into danger during a North Woods winter.
When she wakes in her aunts’ cold cabin on the shore of Enchantment Lake, Francie remembers: everything about her life has changed. Or is about to. Or just might. Everything depends on the small, engraved silver box that she now possesses—if only she can follow its cryptic clues to the whereabouts of her missing mother and understand, finally, just maybe, the truth about who she really is.
Francie, it turns out, has a lot to learn, and this time the lessons could be deadly. Her search for answers takes her and her best friends Raven and Jay as far afield as an abandoned ranch in Arizona and as close to home as a sketchy plant collector’s conservatory and a musty old museum where shadows lurk around every display case. At the heart of it all is a crime that touches her own adopted North Woods: thieves dig up fragile lady’s slippers, peel bark from birches, strip moss off trees, cut down entire forests of saplings to sell for home décor. But Francie is up against no ordinary plant theft. One ominous clue after another reveal that she possesses something so rare and so valuable that some people are willing to do anything to get it. When Francie’s investigation leads her into the treacherously cold and snowy North Woods, she finds out that she too is being pursued.
Print Length: 216 Pages
Genre: Middle Grade Fiction
ISBN-10: 1517909680
ISBN-13: 9781517909680
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press
The Silver Box is available to purchase at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, and Thrift Books. You can also add this to your reading list on GoodReads.com.
About the Author Margi Preus
Margi Preus is the author of the Newbery Honor book Heart of a Samurai and other books for young readers, including the Minnesota Book Award winning West of the Moon, and the Midwest Booksellers Choice Award book The Clue in the Trees. Her books have won multiple awards, landed on the New York Times bestseller list, been honored as ALA/ALSC Notables, selected as an NPR Backseat Book Club pick, chosen for community reads, and translated into several languages. New titles in 2020 include Village of Scoundrels, The Littlest Voyageur, and The Silver Box, part of the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
Back when such things were done, Margi enjoyed traveling, speaking, and visiting schools all over the world. Now mostly at home in Duluth, she likes to ski, hike, canoe, or sit quietly with a book in her lap.
You can follow her online at: https://www.margipreus.com/
Twitter: @MargiPreus
Instagram: @MargiPreus
My Review of the Series
I have to say I love a good mystery book. All three of these are good mysteries by themselves but together they develop the characters and enlighten the reader in other ways. I love that each book has other issues that are introduced. There are dinosaur bones discovered in the lake area. Raven brings in a Native American point of view with both the racial part as well as the proposed pipelines and the issues with them. Then there is the smuggling that has been happening for a long time. Plus there is an introduction to the stealing of nature/plants from public and private lands.
The stories themselves are interesting and pull you in. The mysteries take different turns throughout each book and are not always easy to guess--the makings of great mysteries! The character development is wonderful and has you pulling for each of them. Francie's lifestyle is different than most in our society and that is even discussed in the books. Throughout the books there are underlying mysteries about Francie's parents and their deaths. She does not remember much about her mother and no one seems to want to tell her about her mother's death. She feels if she can solve the mystery of her mother's death she will be more confident and understand her life better. This mystery is revealed in the books as well.
I really enjoyed these books. The truth is I couldn't wait to start the next one after finishing each one. Some of it seems very unrealistic but none of it is magical or fantasy. It is just hard to believe that a high school senior could live the way she does but it is not completely unbelievable. Other than that I love the books and am guessing middle grade readers will as well.
October 12th @ WOW! Women on Writing
What goes better in the morning than a muffin? Stop by WOW's blog The Muffin and join us as we celebrate the launch of Margi Preus's book The Silver Box. Enter to win a copy of her entire Enchantment Lake Mystery series.
https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/
October 13th @ Mindy McGinnis
Join Mindy McGinnis as she interviews author Margi Preus about how she came up with the idea of The Silver Box and the Enchantment Lake Mystery series.
https://www.mindymcginnis.com/
October 14th @ Bring on Lemons
Visit Crystal's blog today and read her review of Margi Presu book The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series.
http://bringonlemons.blogspot.com/
October 14th @ Reviews and Interviews
Join Lisa as she interviews Margi Preus and finds out more about this incredible author!
http://lisahaseltonsreviewsandinterviews.blogspot.com/
October 15th @ Karen Brown Tyson's Blog
Join author Karen Brown Tyson as she interviews author Margi Preus about her book The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
https://karenbrowntyson.com/blog/
October 16th @ The Frugalista Mom
Visit Rozelyn's blog today and read her review of The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series. You can also enter to win a copy of the entire series!
https://thefrugalistamom.com/
October 17th @ Carrie Sorens' Blog
Visit Carrie's blog and read author Margi Preus' guest post about raising big questions for readers to ponder (that don't always have an answer).
https://www.cksorens.com/blog
October 18th @ Fiona Ingram's Blog
Visit Fiona's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about her writing house.
http://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com/
October 20th @ The Faerie Review
Join Lily as she reviews The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
http://www.thefaeriereview.com/
October 20th @ Susan Uhlig
Join us today as Susan reviews The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
https://susanuhlig.com/
October 21st @ Lady Unemployed
Visit Nicole's blog today where you can read Margi Preus' guest post about how all writing is political and how to weave local or national issues into storytelling.
https://ladyunemployed.com
October 21st @ The Frugalista Mom
Rozelyn goes live on Facebook with author Margi Preus. Join them as the author talks about her wonderful middle-grade mystery series.
https://www.facebook.com/AllergyFriendlyHome/
October 22nd @ The Knotty Needle
Visit Judy's blog today and read her review of The Silver Box, part of the Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
https://knottyneedle.blogspot.com
October 24th @ Carrie Sorens' Blog
Join Carrie again where you can read her review of The Silver Box, part of the Enchantment Lake middle-grade series. You can also win a copy of the series too!
https://www.cksorens.com/blog
October 26th @ Bev. A Baird's Blog
Visit Bev's blog today where she shares Margi Preus' guest post about creating a fictional place from an amalgam of places. A must-read if you are working on your story setting today!
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com
October 28th @ Kathleen Pooler's Blog
Join us at Kathleen's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about what she learned from her dog about writing.
https://krpooler.com
October 29th @ It's Alanna Jean
Stop by Alanna's blog today where she shares Margi Preus' guest post about finding inspiration out the window.
http://itsalannajean.com/
October 30th @ Lori Duff Writes
Join Lori Duff as she reviews Margi Preus' book The Silver Box, the third book in the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://www.loriduffwrites.com/blog/
November 1st @ Author Anthony Avina's Blog
Visit Anthony's blog today and read his review of The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series.
https://authoranthonyavinablog.com/
November 2nd @ World of My Imagination
Join Nicole as she reviews The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series. Also, you can enter to win a copy of the whole series.
https://worldofmyimagination.com
November 3rd @ Jill Sheets' Blog
Visit Jill's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about how not writing is probably still writing.
http://jillsheets.blogspot.com/
November 4th @ Author Anthony Avina's Blog
Join Anthony's blog again today and you can read his interview with author Margi Preus.
https://authoranthonyavinablog.com/
November 4th @ Crafty Moms Share
Join Carrie as she reviews The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, the third book in the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://www.craftymomsshare.com/
November 5th @ Bev. A Baird's Blog
Join Bev as she reviews The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, the third book in the Enchantment Lake mystery series. Don't miss her review of this charming middle-grade fiction series!
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com
November 7th @ BookMama789
Join us over at Jean's Instagram page as she reads and reviews The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, part of the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://www.instagram.com/bookmama789/
November 8th @ Shoe's Stories
Join Linda at her blog today and read her review of The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, part of the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://lschuelerca.wordpress.com/
November 9th @ Always in the Middle
Visit Greg's blog today and read his review of The Silver Box by author Margi Preus. You'll love hearing about this middle-grade mystery series.
https://gpattridge.com/
November 10th @ Deborah-Zenha Adam's Blog
Visit Deborah's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about the magic ball of yarn and using folk and fairy tales as a guide in story writing.
http://www.deborah-adams.com/dzas-blog/
November 11th @ Bookapotamus
Join Kate as she reviews The Enchantment Lake mystery series, part of The Silver Box blog tour. You'll love hearing about this middle-grade mystery!
https://bookapotamusblog.wordpress.com/
November 13th @ Choices
Visit Madeline's blog today and read author Margi Preus guest post about how research can be a cure for writer's block.
http://madelinesharples.com/
November 14th @ Reading in the Wildwood
Visit Megan's blog today she reviews The Enchantment Lake mystery series, part of The Silver Box blog tour. You'll love hearing about this middle-grade mystery!
https://readinginthewildwood.com/
November 15th @ Shoe's Stories
Visit Linda's blog again today where she shares author Margi Preus' guest post about whether or not you should know the ending before you start writing.
https://lschuelerca.wordpress.com/
Blog Tour Dates
October 12th @ WOW! Women on Writing
What goes better in the morning than a muffin? Stop by WOW's blog The Muffin and join us as we celebrate the launch of Margi Preus's book The Silver Box. Enter to win a copy of her entire Enchantment Lake Mystery series.
https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/
October 13th @ Mindy McGinnis
Join Mindy McGinnis as she interviews author Margi Preus about how she came up with the idea of The Silver Box and the Enchantment Lake Mystery series.
https://www.mindymcginnis.com/
October 14th @ Bring on Lemons
Visit Crystal's blog today and read her review of Margi Presu book The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series.
http://bringonlemons.blogspot.com/
October 14th @ Reviews and Interviews
Join Lisa as she interviews Margi Preus and finds out more about this incredible author!
http://lisahaseltonsreviewsandinterviews.blogspot.com/
October 15th @ Karen Brown Tyson's Blog
Join author Karen Brown Tyson as she interviews author Margi Preus about her book The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
https://karenbrowntyson.com/blog/
October 16th @ The Frugalista Mom
Visit Rozelyn's blog today and read her review of The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series. You can also enter to win a copy of the entire series!
https://thefrugalistamom.com/
October 17th @ Carrie Sorens' Blog
Visit Carrie's blog and read author Margi Preus' guest post about raising big questions for readers to ponder (that don't always have an answer).
https://www.cksorens.com/blog
October 18th @ Fiona Ingram's Blog
Visit Fiona's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about her writing house.
http://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com/
October 20th @ The Faerie Review
Join Lily as she reviews The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
http://www.thefaeriereview.com/
October 20th @ Susan Uhlig
Join us today as Susan reviews The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
https://susanuhlig.com/
October 21st @ Lady Unemployed
Visit Nicole's blog today where you can read Margi Preus' guest post about how all writing is political and how to weave local or national issues into storytelling.
https://ladyunemployed.com
October 21st @ The Frugalista Mom
Rozelyn goes live on Facebook with author Margi Preus. Join them as the author talks about her wonderful middle-grade mystery series.
https://www.facebook.com/AllergyFriendlyHome/
October 22nd @ The Knotty Needle
Visit Judy's blog today and read her review of The Silver Box, part of the Enchantment Lake middle-grade series.
https://knottyneedle.blogspot.com
October 24th @ Carrie Sorens' Blog
Join Carrie again where you can read her review of The Silver Box, part of the Enchantment Lake middle-grade series. You can also win a copy of the series too!
https://www.cksorens.com/blog
October 26th @ Bev. A Baird's Blog
Visit Bev's blog today where she shares Margi Preus' guest post about creating a fictional place from an amalgam of places. A must-read if you are working on your story setting today!
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com
October 28th @ Kathleen Pooler's Blog
Join us at Kathleen's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about what she learned from her dog about writing.
https://krpooler.com
October 29th @ It's Alanna Jean
Stop by Alanna's blog today where she shares Margi Preus' guest post about finding inspiration out the window.
http://itsalannajean.com/
October 30th @ Lori Duff Writes
Join Lori Duff as she reviews Margi Preus' book The Silver Box, the third book in the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://www.loriduffwrites.com/blog/
November 1st @ Author Anthony Avina's Blog
Visit Anthony's blog today and read his review of The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series.
https://authoranthonyavinablog.com/
November 2nd @ World of My Imagination
Join Nicole as she reviews The Silver Box, book three in The Enchantment Lake series. Also, you can enter to win a copy of the whole series.
https://worldofmyimagination.com
November 3rd @ Jill Sheets' Blog
Visit Jill's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about how not writing is probably still writing.
http://jillsheets.blogspot.com/
November 4th @ Author Anthony Avina's Blog
Join Anthony's blog again today and you can read his interview with author Margi Preus.
https://authoranthonyavinablog.com/
November 4th @ Crafty Moms Share
Join Carrie as she reviews The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, the third book in the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://www.craftymomsshare.com/
November 5th @ Bev. A Baird's Blog
Join Bev as she reviews The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, the third book in the Enchantment Lake mystery series. Don't miss her review of this charming middle-grade fiction series!
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com
November 7th @ BookMama789
Join us over at Jean's Instagram page as she reads and reviews The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, part of the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://www.instagram.com/bookmama789/
November 8th @ Shoe's Stories
Join Linda at her blog today and read her review of The Silver Box by author Margi Preus, part of the Enchantment Lake mystery series.
https://lschuelerca.wordpress.com/
November 9th @ Always in the Middle
Visit Greg's blog today and read his review of The Silver Box by author Margi Preus. You'll love hearing about this middle-grade mystery series.
https://gpattridge.com/
November 10th @ Deborah-Zenha Adam's Blog
Visit Deborah's blog today and read author Margi Preus' guest post about the magic ball of yarn and using folk and fairy tales as a guide in story writing.
http://www.deborah-adams.com/dzas-blog/
November 11th @ Bookapotamus
Join Kate as she reviews The Enchantment Lake mystery series, part of The Silver Box blog tour. You'll love hearing about this middle-grade mystery!
https://bookapotamusblog.wordpress.com/
November 13th @ Choices
Visit Madeline's blog today and read author Margi Preus guest post about how research can be a cure for writer's block.
http://madelinesharples.com/
November 14th @ Reading in the Wildwood
Visit Megan's blog today she reviews The Enchantment Lake mystery series, part of The Silver Box blog tour. You'll love hearing about this middle-grade mystery!
https://readinginthewildwood.com/
November 15th @ Shoe's Stories
Visit Linda's blog again today where she shares author Margi Preus' guest post about whether or not you should know the ending before you start writing.
https://lschuelerca.wordpress.com/
