SEARCH FOR THE SUNKEN STATUE

Lark’s aunt Abigail arrives on Swallowtail Island and starts making waves—but Lark isn’t about to let her dreams be capsized.

The third book in the Swallowtail Legacy series finds 12-year-old Lark settling into island life. She enjoys school and the soccer team. She still misses her late mother but feels better about her blended family, who were cued as white in earlier entries. Lark and her younger sister, Pip, are happy that their inheritance from their mother provides a home for them all. So when Aunt Abigail, Mom’s estranged sister, arrives on the island and says that half the house and property is hers, Lark is outraged—and suspicious. Aunt Abigail has a reputation for shady deals, especially in her role as an art gallery owner. And the inheritance isn’t the only reason she’s on the island; an explorer invited her to authenticate a bronze statue worth millions that was salvaged from Lake Erie. After it’s stolen, Lark is sure Aunt Abigail will benefit from the insurance claim. Beil has created an appealing protagonist in spirited Lark, who, as series fans will expect, follows her hunches and uncovers clues the adults around her miss, even though she’s distracted by offers from two exclusive soccer programs. Supported by family and friends, Lark gets to the bottom of the entertaining shenanigans, then charts a course for her own future.

An enjoyable caper.