Excellently fun middle grade mystery!

Always a good choice and will be much loved in the classroom!

I kept putting this book off. I know, I know. But, originally, my plan was to take part in this year’s Believathon, a readathon that focuses on middle grade books. But, my NetGalley TBR was getting out of hand so I decided to skip it and put this (and the sequel, which I also have) on the back burner. Then, my library’s audiobook app had this and I hit request so fast! Which is strange as BorrowBox has this on audiobook but not Audible. Go figure.

At her cousin, Sam’s, Mehndi party, Zaiba gets her first mystery: who is the mystery VIP staying at the same hotel. With the help of her best friend, Poppy, and her little brother, Ali, Zaiba puts her sleuthing skills to the test. But when the celebrity’s dog goes missing, along with its priceless diamond collar, it’s up to the trio to save the day. But are they up to the task?

This is a middle grade mystery (probably on the younger side of middle-grade) but this was an utter joy to read. It was so much fun! I devoured this in one day and just loved it. It gave me strong vibes of Murder Most Unladylike meets The Worst Witch (I have no idea why my brain combined the two and went “That’s what this is!”).

This is a fun crime mystery with action, adventure, friendship and huge rep as most of the characters in this book are British Pakistani. Nothing violent or scary and might be a bit easy/on-the-nose for older middle-grade readers, but this is such fun and cute and I loved it!

Quick note about the illustrations as I mostly audobooked this but I looked my eProof and the illustrations by Daniela Sosa are just as lovely and cute.

I had such fun reading this and I can’t wait to find time and read the sequel, The Poison Plot!

In this book we follow Zaiba, an eleven year old obsessed with crime. She spends most of her days reading the Eden Lockett Mysteries and training to be a secret detective much like her Aunt Fouzia who runs a detective agency back in Karachi. In this book, Zaiba is at the Grand Royal Star Hotel with her family to attend a Mehndi party when a famous actresses Italian Greyhound goes missing. With the help of her best friend and brother, the young detective tries to find the dog but she realises that there is a bigger plot at play.

This was such a fun story, middle grade mystery is my favourite sub-genre and this was a fantastic read within that. Zaiba and her family were such amazing people to follow and it was really nice getting some of the family back story throughout this. The writing was a bit young for me but I can imagine it's a great book for children just starting to read chapter books.

I was lucky to get a Netgalley Arc of a new Middle Grade mystery series called Agent Zaiba Investigates written by Annabelle Sami and with the wonderful illustrations by Daniela Sosa this book was a very good debut for a new series. We find Zaiba, her brother Ali, and best friend Poppy staying at Hotel for her cousin's Mehndi and wedding where some diamonds go missing and this is the first case for Zaiba and her friends. I found this book very action packed and loved how the friends interacted with each other and how they worked as a team. I also love the message that this book conveys that even though Zaiba, Poppy and Ali are not only kids but they are clever detectives too. I have got the 2nd book in the series to review but I also have ordered a physical copy as I do love a mystery and this series in my view is going to be very successful. For this reason I am giving 4 stars

AGENT ZAIBA INVESTIGATES: THE MISSING DIAMONDS, by Annabelle Sami and illustrated by Daniela Sosa, is the first book in a new series and introduces Zaiba, an aspiring detective, and her two sidekicks: her best friend Poppy and younger (half) brother Ali.

The story all takes place in the Royal Star Hotel where Zaiba’s cousin Sam and fiancé Tanvir are having their Mehndi party.

Zaiba, in the best tradition of her hero Eden Lockett - a successful writer of detective stories based on events in her own life – is tasked with identifying the mysterious celebrity who is staying at the hotel. The female celebrity is staying with a small dog who has an expensively bejewelled collar. When first the dog goes missing and then the collar, it is up to Zaiba and her team to find both, solve the mystery and save the day!

I really enjoyed this book. There’s lots of action and use of initiative. All the characters have their individual strengths though Zaiba is on a bit of a learning curve to take notice of her friends’ suggestions at times. Alongside the text there are full-page and incidental illustrations dotted throughout.

Zaiba gets on well with her step-mum Jessica whom she calls mum but there is a mystery about the loss of her birth mum which I hope is revealed over the series. Zaiba feels close to her mum via the Eden Lockett books which she inherited as her mum had written little notes in the margins.

The second book is out in July and I look forward to it.

I really enjoyed this one and it’s been very popular at the shop already. It’s a joyful, sweet mystery that’s just right for younger readers looking for detective tales.

No pirates in this story but it is so full of other adventures that doesn’t seem to matter too much. Zaiba and her family are all at a big, posh hotel to celebrate one of her favourite cousin’s pre-wedding Mehndi party. Although she loves her cousin Samirah (much more then she does her other cousin, mean Mariam) she would rather be reading her favourite book – Eden Lockett’s Detective Handbook. She would love to be a real detective like both the fictional Eden Lockett and her Aunt Fouzia but opportunities like that don’t turn up too often. Or do they? Every other good hotel in the area has suffered some kind of disaster so The Grand Royal Star hotel is hosting not only the Mehndi but also an event for a famous pop star – when the star’s little dog (and its diamond-laden collar) goes missing Zaiba leaps into action aided by her best friend Polly and her annoying but brilliantly clever younger brother Ali. Does she have what it takes to solve the mystery?

An excellent book for youngsters who love working out who-dunnit – those who regularly attend Mehndi parties will enjoy seeing themselves in the story and those who don’t will be keen to give one a go.

This is a book for the young ones, but if you love a good mystery, I am sure that no matter your age you’ll love this book!

I loved the idea of a young girl British Pakistani. I am so glad that the young ones can start reading about different cultures on their books and that the main character is not always a boy! I loved mysteries when I was young, but the main character was always a boy and quite old compared to me, this is perfect for the ones that are starting to read!

This is a complex and interesting story, with some clues for the little readers to discover the mystery before Zaiba knows who stole the missing diamonds! But this story is much more than a simple mystery, is an insight to a Mehndi party, a pre-wedding celebration in Hindu and Sikh culture where the bride has the red-orange Mehndi “stain” applied to her palms, back of hands, and feet. The three friends Zaiba, Poppy and Ali (Zaiba’s little brother) will investigate this case as true detectives overtaking their worst fears and facing the consequences when they know they behaved badly.

There’s also some mystery with Zaiba’s mother, how did she die? Was she also a detective? This will make any little one eager to know more about it and search for the new story of Zaiba, which I really hope we will not have to wait much! And of course, the illustrations created by Daniela Sosa will make the story more real.

There are some activities at the end of the book, to keep the waiting less painful and the little readers understand more the story.

I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

Finally a middle grade mystery not set in the 20s-40s! Excellent! Plus this was so lovely and fun. I adored Zaiba’s detective work, with her team of fab helpers! Her attention to detail was awesome!

Plus I loved how it blended Pakistani tradition into the story.

The mystery itself was the right mix of possible to solve (especially for a kid!) and intriguing, and I liked the motivation behind it.

I will definitely be on the look out for the sequel to this :)

This book was a recommended to me by a good friend on twitter back in December and I got to know it was up for request on netgalley. My request got accepted and I started the book in the month of Feb. I have been reading diverse books since quite a while and this book is Muslim rep and instantly piqued my interest.

I also love reading middle grade books but I have a never read middle grade with a mystery solving story. Agent Zaiba Investigates: The missing diamonds is now in my "one of the best middle grade" books list.

These kids Zaiba, Ali and Poppy are such geniuses. I was amazed at their detective skills. I loved the graphics in this book. Literally, graphics are my weakness🤭😆. The mystery was mind-blowing by the way and the minute details that these kids noticed ... AHH all of it kept me on edge.

Anyways, other than these 3, I loved the characters of Zaiba's parents, her Aunt fouzia who's a detective and has her own agency. Also her daughter Sam. The fact that this whole story takes place in the course of 1 day was just awesome. The edden locket books mentioned in this story sound so intriguing. Am definitely gonna read those.

Thank you so much to the author for writing this wonderful middle grade mystery. Can't wait for more books by you.

Agent Zaiba is about aspiring sleuth Zaiba, who admires her Aunty Fouzia, a professional detective, and wants to follow in her footsteps. When a celebrity's dog goes missing, followed by some diamonds disappearing, at her cousin's pre-wedding party in an exclusive hotel, she has the chance to save the day, along with her best friend Poppy and brother Ali.

There are SO MANY great MG mystery series out there (Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens is my absolute favourite, Katherine Woodfine's books are glorious, and there's dozens more) that it can feel hard for a new one to stand out, but the writer/illustrator team of Annabelle Sami and Daniela Sosa definitely make this one do so. Sosa's full-page illustrations certainly have a real impact here - she's a stunning talented artist who I'm eager to see more from. And she makes a perfect pairing with a fabulous debut author who's created an excellent central character in the brave, resourceful, and determined Zaiba.

It's great to see such strong representation of British-Asian characters here; I loved Zaiba's family - in particular her detective aunt, who's wonderfully supportive of her! Add in a beautifully-described Mehndi party - a setting which I've never seen before - a host of interesting supporting characters as suspects, and a clever plot which kept me guessing at the eventual solution, and this ranks up there with High Rise Mystery by Sharna Jackson as one of the top MG series starters of recent years. I especially loved the climactic scene, which is a standard going back to the Golden Age of detective stories, and is brilliantly handled here.

Massively recommended, and I'm really excited for The Poison Plot, second in the series, coming this summmer!

This charming story follows Zaiba who is a keen private detective, due to family history and her obsession with the book series Eden Lockett Mysteries. Her friend Poppy is almost as passionate and brother Ali prefers not to miss out on an investigation.

What's good about it
Zaiba, is a plucky protagonist, who is always observing what’s going on around her, noting down clues and making deductions, this character trait doesn’t stop whilst she enjoying an extended family party in a country hotel. Celebrating at the Mehndi (a pre-wedding party) turns out to be a perfect opportunity to study the comings and goings of family, staff, and guests and see a mystery as it starts to happen. Zaiba notices something untoward and so begins the search for the missing dog of a minor celebrity.
What I liked most after the characters was that the plot was actually interesting as well as realistic. The adventure occurred in an evening and all the characters were true to life. This is a family party the expectation is there would be some leeway for the trio to disappear. But they weren’t mysteriously gone for hours getting up to all sorts without being missed or observed by an adult.

What's great about it
The Missing Diamonds was an engaging mystery, which avoided being one dimensional with great writing, and an appreciation (but not blinkered focus) on the target audience. Pitched at the right level and not too many dangerous situations. Moreover, it highlighted the contribution of all the children in solving the whodunnit. It was clear to see the children’s different abilities were pivotal in bringing the story to a satisfactory conclusion.

It shouldn’t have to be said, but I’ll say it anyway; it was fantastic to see a person of colour as a lead in the book, in a position of authority and being listened to. No tired stereotypes here, they were real meaningful personalities, not know it all obnoxious children and the insight into Pakistani life and customs added depth to the tale.

The illustrations even on my kindle version reflected the text in making it evident that there were different cultures and races represented in the story. The characters looked appreciably different. The artwork was frequent throughout and always seemed to show a must-see moment - perfectly timed with fab facial expressions too.

Verdict
I would highly recommend it to middle-grade children who may or may not be interested in private investigating or mysteries. Either way, they will enjoy the well-written story, daring exploits, and funny situations. Plus, the bonus material at the end (quiz, info, etc.), kept me reading on long after the book itself had finished.

My thanks to NetGalley, Little Tiger Group and Stripes Publishing for an advance copy of this book in exchange for a candid review

4 Stars - Really Liked

What really drew me to this book was Agent Zaiba herself - a young Pakistani protagonist whose passion for mystery and crime is what connects her to her cultural roots.

The shocking statistics of the lack of BAME characters in children's books was enough for to want to put the brilliant Agent Zaiba and her investigations into the hands and hearts of every child. So refreshingly timely is this book that I found myself immediately absorbed into the story of a dynamic trio of detectives and their mission to solve the case of the missing diamonds.

Led by determined Zaiba, and joined by her little brother Ali and sidekick and best friend Poppy, Annabelle Sami has created three wildly intelligent and unique characters who when combined make one superb team. Highlighting the importance of teamwork, courage and encouragement, young readers will enjoy navigating hidden staircases and mysterious mazes in this well crafted narrative.

“Agents assemble!”

I have always loved girl detective books so when I learned of Zaiba’s existence I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to go sleuthing with her. This book is absolutely adorable and even though I’ve only just finished reading about her first case I’m ready to help her solve the next one.

Zaiba is attending her favourite cousin’s pre-wedding Mehndi party at the Royal Star Hotel. Samirah (Sam) will be marrying Tanvir and Zaiba’s family are celebrating together, with food, music and dancing. Zaiba’s best friend, Poppy, is enjoying the fashion and free food and Zaiba’s cousin/nemesis, Mariam, is no doubt scheming up some trouble.

Zaiba longs to be a detective and uses her favourite book, ‘Eden Lockett’s Detective Handbook’, as a training manual. Solving mysteries runs in her family; Aunt Fouzia runs the Snow Leopard Detective Agency in Pakistan and was the one who introduced Zaiba to the Eden Lockett mystery books. It isn’t long before Zaiba, Poppy and Zaiba’s younger half-brother, Ali, are investigating their own case.

While I appreciated Zaiba’s determination and attention to detail, it was Ali I wanted to learn more about. Rather than simply being the cliché little brother tagging along on an adventure, Ali holds his own, using his incredible memory for facts and penchant for maths to shine a light on clues that others may overlook.

“All good detectives make notes.”

I always enjoy searching for clues myself as I read detective stories and I found myself highlighting key words and sentences as I peeked over Zaiba’s shoulder. There are clues which will help readers solve the mystery themselves if they pay attention to the details.

I want to learn more about Aunt Fouzia and Zaiba’s mother during future investigations. Mariam also intrigues me; she has the potential for an interesting character arc, one I hope will see her become an integral part of the team (fingers crossed). I’m keen to discover the true identity of Eden Lockett; I have my suspicions but will keep those to myself for now.

I loved Daniela Sosa’s illustrations and had trouble choosing a favourite, so I’ve chosen two. Zaiba, Poppy and Ali chasing a dog down the stairs captures the spirit of adventure and the determination of the trio solving the mystery, while the illustration showing Zaiba’s family dancing reminded me of how much fun I had reading and the book’s positive messages.

“You can be anything you want to be.”

This book highlights the importance of teamwork and how the support and encouragement of family and friends can give a child the courage they need to follow their dreams and face their fears.

“A good agent always ensures the safety of her friends.”

Once Upon a Nitpick: Sorry if you’ve already heard me whinge about this in other reviews but one of my pet peeves is when illustrations don’t line up with the descriptions in the text. I didn’t notice a lot of inconsistencies in this book and as I’ve already said, I loved the illustrations, but one inconsistency in particular stood out to me. Mr Ainsley is described as having a moustache but this was not included in any of the illustrations. Also, the woman in one illustration was described as sitting on a stool. Granted, her chair does look a lot more comfortable than a stool.

I know these minor details don’t matter to most people. It’s just something I can’t help noticing and, while it doesn’t impact on my enjoyment of the book, it is a niggle I can’t unsee.

There are some fun bonuses at the end of the book, including an extract from one of Eden’s books and some handy tips for detectives in training. I really enjoyed learning more about Mehndi parties and deciphering the coded messages. I’m currently preparing my membership application for the Snow Leopard Detective Agency.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Stripes Publishing, an imprint of Little Tiger Group, for the opportunity to read this book.

First of all let me just say that it’s so refreshing to see a middle grade novel with a very obvious desi lead. Look at little Zaiba in that cute shalwaar khamis! SO. CUTE. I wish I had had something like this is a kid, especially because for a long time I really did want to be a spy!

I read this during exam season so even though normally I would have devoured this book within a day, this took a very long time. This doesn’t change the fact that I enjoyed every single moment of this book. Zaiba is so enthusiastic and likes to take charge (ha, relatable!). Her little notebook where she writes down information and hunts for clues is super cute and I love the interactive style that this book had. It wasn’t like Dora where questions were posed for the reader, but the way the mystery was laid out and the notes were written added a fun element that I know young readers would definitely enjoy!

Of course, the mystery was really cute and intriguing, but I really enjoyed getting to see Zaiba with her brother and her friend. I loved how she encourages them to also find clues and learns from them too. It was also really nice to see that Zaiba loved the Eden Lockett mystery novels because of her mom (and the books also bring her closer to her aunt).

The art in the book was also really cute and fun! I loved the chapter borders and all the art featuring the characters as they solved the mystery.

I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of a lighthearted mystery, very enthusiastic fangirls, secret staircases, mazes, dancing at weddings, and very enthusiastic adorable dogs! It was like Cam Jansen meets Scooby Doo! This has great desi rep and I loved the bits of desi culture interspersed throughout the book!

A lovely story than can be appreciated by both younger and older reader.
It's an engrossing and enjoyable read and I love the well crafted plot and the cast of characters.
I'd like to read other works by this author.
highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This story is about Zaiba a young Secret Agent who uncovers the identity and theft of a VIP guest, whilst attending her cousin's pre-wedding party in a hotel. Her best friend Poppy and her younger half-brother Ali help her.
I like the relatable characters, how it's written, the dialogues, the descriptions and there are pictures. I also like the content with having a young Pakistani girl as being the lead, which would be great for young female readers, possibly Year 3 +.
The Kindle version that I got wasn't a good copy as I wasn't able to read it properly and for that reason I would've given less stars but I was able to download the PDF version, which is much better.

As a 29 year old reader, I really got into this book and read it all during a long train journey. It would be even more perfect for an audience aged 8-13 though!
The story is well written with twists in the plot, loveable (and some not so loveable) characters, and an exciting, pacy storyline. Our heroine Zaiba is a budding detective and readers will want to hear more about her adventures. This one features a traditional Indian wedding, a famous popstar, a clever little brother, a troublesome cousin, secret passageways and a very naughty little dog!
There is endless potential for a whole series of novels featuring Agent Zaiba and her aunt!

A great read about Zaiba, her best friend and little brother and their quest to solve mysteries and a theft.
Zaiba dreams of being a detective like the heroine in her books, Eden Lockett as well as her Auntie Fouzia who runs her own detective agency. All the family are at a posh hotel to celebrate her cousins Mehndi but a celebrity is arriving due to problems at the hotel their champagne reception was meant to be at. Things start to go wrong and it looks like the mehndi is ruined thanks to a run away pooch then on top of that, the diamond and lucky charm collar is stolen.
It is down to Zaiba, Poppy and Ali to find the clues and solve the mysteries.
I really enjoyed the descriptions of the clothing, traditions and events that happen at a mehndi as i’ve never heard of what or been to one.
It has all the elements a spy/detective story needs including hidden stair cases, daring escapes and red herrings re suspects.
The book also has lovely illustrations dotted throughout.
All in all a great read.

An adorable middle-grade detective story. The three main characters - Zaiba, Poppy and Ali - are all wildly different and intelligent in their own ways that combine to create an interesting team dynamic. The highlighted multicultural family is a great addition, as well as the overly pure enjoyment of supporting your family with their dreams. The actual mystery was simple but entertaining, following the same beats of the usual detective story - just with the additions of curfews!