I have been banging the drum for YA mysteries for a long (LONG) time and have pretty much given up all hope of finding any that don't include heaping amounts of romance or vampires (or, sadly, both). When I saw the CHLOE & LEVESQUE titles by Norah McClintock in the new Kane Mill catalog I was cautiously optimistic. They sounded good but I've been burned a thousand times before by mysteries with teen protagonists that are formulaic or rely too heavily upon adult characters. Having read both OVER THE EDGE and DOUBLE CROSS (the first two books in series) I can happily say that they succeed on all counts and actually surprised me more than once.

Chloe Yan (her father is Chinese) has been moved to the sticks by her stepfather's new job (he's the Chief of Police in small town East Hastings). She's not happy about leaving Montreal behind but finds herself embroiled in a different kind of high school drama when a classmate is found dead from an apparent suicide. Even though Chloe barely knew him, she keeps uncovering a variety of clues which suggest his death was not as it appeared - and there are several other questions that arise about other classmates as well. Soon enough she's on the school paper, friends with the editor, dating a jock, hanging with the cool kids and asking a lot of questions that no one wants answered. But Chloe's not the kind of kid to take "no" for an answer and with the occasional conversation with her stepdad (the "Levesque" of the series title) to spur her along she figures out what really happened to Peter Flosnick and just who was involved.

And that's just the first book.

In DOUBLE CROSS, Chloe finds herself tutoring a classmate with some serious anger management issues who is determined to prove that his imprisoned father is not a murderer and he did not kill Jonah's mother. Jonah seems to be a first class jerk but when he gets involved in a First Amendment issue with the city council Chloe (and her editor pal) can't resist helping him in his quest. They start asking questions, finding unsettling answers, and uncovering a cover up that might include Jonah's mom. What this means about her death is still uncertain but clearly all is not as it appears.

There is a lot to enjoy in these books, but mostly I love the fact that only a teenager would be able to solve the mysteries. These are crimes that directly involve Chloe's world and adults miss a lot of the things she notices. This is one of the key reasons why I've been told again and again that teen mysteries are hard to craft; because most crimes don't involve teens. (You need to be a cop or PI or Miss Marple-esque.) In the CHLOE & LEVESQUE titles these are crimes that involve adults but the nuances of the teen world are critical to uncovering the truth. It's entirely believable that a teen would work out what happened in both cases and even better that Chloe doesn't have to be brilliant or super powered (or magical) to do it.

Plus she's snippy and a wee bit rude and I really love that in a protagonist. Plus they are set in Canada! And there is much love for Montreal! And I just know that there will be a hockey mystery at some point. There has to be, right? (Please?!) (I should note these books are reissues so I don't know if McClintock is going to write more or not. I hope she does.)

My only question is why these books are marketed as ages nine and up. They are perfect for the YA crowd and certainly seem plenty teen enough for me so why they had to be aimed down to MG is unclear. (Unless the pub thought that as MG they would be more appealing as mysteries???) I'll be reviewing them more thoroughly in my November or December column but for now, just be on the lookout Chloe's adventures when the first book is released in September.

(Oh - and they are mass market size so only $5.99!) (Copies provided by the pub, in case you were wondering....)