The older I get, the more joy I get from life’s little pleasures. Younger, more selfish, me was very much into things – the process of spending money and acquiring material goods – whereas now, as long as I have a good book on the go and limitless tea, I am far more content than I ever was growing up.

Now onto its third title, The Travelling School Mysteries is a series that is most definitely one of life’s pleasures – one that has given a great deal of enjoyment not just to me but to lots of young readers and quite a few older ones too. These gentle stories that effortlessly transport you away from life’s woes and envelop you with the cosiest feeling, as you accompany Libby and best friend Connie on their adventures, are an absolute delight – full of excitement and action and perfectly pitched for young readers.

Following her outings in France and Scotland, we rejoin Libby as the plane on which she has been flying touches down in New York. Together with Connie and the school’s headmistress – Libby’s aunt, Miss Mousedale – Libby makes her way through baggage reclaim and out into the airport to be surprised by their being met by Connie’s godmother, glamorous actress Eloise, who has decided to collect them in her limousine.

The group are soon joined by Eloise’s friend Count Alvarez and are given an impromptu sightseeing tour of the city before dropping off the count at his office. Once at the building that is to serve as both their home and school for the next term, Libby and Connie are joined in their dormitory by new girl Anastasia, irritating Libby who had hoped to have Connie all to herself.

As the girls settle in and are allowed out to see some of the city under the watchful eye of new teacher Miss Khatun, they become involved in helping Eloise in her plans for a large charity auction but when Count Alvarez vanishes Libby determines to solve the mystery of his disappearance. Before long, Libby and Connie find themselves at the heart of another puzzle – one that will take all of their ingenuity to solve.

Libby is such a fun character. Full of life, bright and fiercely loyal to those she loves, here she finds that jealousy raises its ugly head with the arrival of Anastasia. Where Connie welcomes her and is friendly towards her, Libby immediately takes against her and reveals a much more insecure side to herself as she worries about Connie being taken away from her by the new girl. For young readers, seeing this more vulnerable side of our heroine makes her all the more credible – and actually more likeable – because she is not perfect, and those young readers who recognise the situation in which she finds herself will empathise with her hugely.

As in the books which precede this one, Jo Clarke has really done her homework on the setting and here familiar landmarks blend seamlessly with some of the secret places that New York has hidden away to create a city that children will enjoy investigating as they progress through the story. For those perhaps less familiar with what the Big Apple looks like, illustrator Becka Moor’s plentiful pictures will help to bring the pages to life in her trademark style and will also entice readers to pick up this book, which at just over 200 pages is perfect not just for those in lower KS2 but also those in Years 5 and 6 who are in need of a shortish read.

A simply gorgeous story, this would work as a standalone title but I really would suggest you read Books 1 and 2 ahead of this one – not just to familiarise yourself with what has already happened but because they are wonderful stories.

Enormous thanks go, of course, to publisher Firefly Press and to Net Galley for my advance virtual read. Libby and the Manhattan Mystery publishes 4th January.