Elizabeth C Bunce

When twelve-year-old aspiring detective Myrtle Hardcastle learns her neighor in quiet Swinburne, England, a breeder of rare flowers, has died she is certain it was murder and that she must find the killer.--

Myrtle Hardcastle would rather stay at home to keep close tabs on criminals and murder trials than go on a relaxing vacation with her aunt Helena. Once on board the luxurious private railway coach, Myrtle is thrilled to meet Mrs. Bloom, a professional insurance investigator who is tasked with protecting the priceless Northern Lights tiara. But before the train reaches its destination, both the tiara and Mrs. Bloom vanish. Then a dead body is discovered...

Upon the death of her father, seventeen-year-old Charlotte struggles to keep the family's woolen mill running in the face of an overwhelming mortgage and what the local villagers believe is a curse, but when a man capable of spinning straw into gold appears on the scene she must decide if his help is worth the price.

In a kingdom dominated by religious intolerance, sixteen-year-old Digger, a street thief, has always avoided attention, but when she learns that her friends are plotting against the throne she must decide whether to join them or turn them in.