Jacaranda Street: Gravestone Image (The Botanic Hill Detectives Mysteries)

WINNER of the 2024 Edgar Allan Poe Saturday "Visiter" Award in the "Original Work Inspired by Poe" Category!

Lenore Valentine Kirby’s cryptic gravestone in a derelict cemetery beckons across centuries.

The four Botanic Hill Detectives—Lanny, Lexi, Moki, and Rani—stumble upon a mystery revealed by the deceased woman’s descendant, Mr. Nigel Kirby. Can the teens decipher Lenore Kirby's gravestone image and messages? Their unusual, present-day case, incorporating the life and works of Gothic horror writer Edgar Allan Poe, takes the four out to Ravenswood, the Kirby family’s Victorian home. But one solution leads to more puzzles! Will the detectives successfully decode all the special instructions they discover to help restore Mr. Poe’s reputation, damaged by a real-life enemy, and reveal to the world a priceless treasure? Come lend the squad a hand!

Sherrill Joseph was a shy kid whose BFF was Nancy Drew. From her, the author learned to seek adventures, be kind and fair, and help others everywhere. Convinced early on that she was an architect in a former life, Sherrill was receptive to the magic of her San Diego neighborhood's historic houses. To this day, she dramatizes those old "castles," filling them with mysteries, extraordinary staircases, and exaggerated occurrences. Once retired in 2013 from teaching kids for thirty-five years, the child in Sherrill created the award-winning series the Botanic Hill Detectives Mysteries with a twist of history so her grandkids and all kids can forever gallop with her and her four sleuths in their standalone cases after clues to nab the baddies.