What can possibly happen when a crime happens under the very noses of a group of very savvy eighth graders at St. BeSillius’ Catholic School on St. Frederick’s Island? When the money they raised to buy toys for children in homeless shelters in near-by NYC is stolen, the Buccaneers, as they call themselves are outraged. Despite warnings from Father Felix and Sr. Jo, Sprocket, the leader of the Buccaneers, and her determined buddies set out to follow the clues, run down the thief, and get those toys for the homeless kids. When their clubhouse is burned down, and a threatening letter is sent to the local newspaper, The Foghorn, owned and operated by Sprocket’s mother, the Buccaneers are even more determined to unravel the plot against them. A mysterious island once owned by the pirate, Jon Buccleigh and a labyrinthine cave serve as the setting for this skullduggery. A Native American healer, her community, and a group of the beach people conspire with the Buccaneers to get that money back.You will be laughing at some of the Buccaneers’ antics and gasping at what those brave eight-graders face to solve the mystery.

I really wanted to love this story more as I found the concept and characters engaging, I definitely was getting nostalgic Goonies vibes, but for me the overall execution and writing style of the story was poor and as a result just detracted from the whole plot.

I found the writing clunky and lacking flair which made reading it a slog. Kudos on the effort, but more refinement of the actual writing would have made this story that bit more enjoyable.

Entertaining and compelling, it reminded me of the mysteries I read when I was a child.
I think it can be appreciated by children and adults.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Not my normal type of read.But a very well written suspense novel.Would recommend to anyone who likes the famous five stories.A great storyline kept me guessing trying to work out the clues.

This was good middle grade mystery story set on an island outside of New York in the years after World War II. I purchased it for my granddaughter because she lives in a different world and this story was a good way to discover what the world used to be. I particularly liked the introduction, and encouraged her to read it first. The "heroine" has all the daring, organized, determined qualities we would like for all of our children.