The Dark Stairs (Herculeah Jones Mystery) - Hardcover

Grade 5-7-Move over Nancy Drew, Herculeah Jones has arrived! Strong and agile, she lives up to her name and seems capable of solving any case that comes her way; with a private investigator mother and a police detective father, she has a natural interest in mysterious situations. In this first volume of what is sure to be a popular series, Herculeah becomes fascinated with a forbidding estate and a frightening-looking client of her mother's. She capitalizes on her contact in the police department (her father) and listens to her mother's recorded interviews with her client; by refusing to follow rules set by her parents when she is driven to get closer to the truth, she succeeds in closing a case. She escapes after being locked in a dark and musty basement and discovers a hidden staircase, at the bottom of which lays the long-missing, dead owner of Dead Oaks. Byars has created a likable cast of main characters. Herculeah's friend Meat serves as the perfect comic foil for her intensity; he seems as if he could be a first cousin to Bingo Brown. There is plenty to laugh at in this book, including classic chapter headings guaranteed to cause shivers for the uninitiated; practiced mystery readers may feel that they are in on a bit of a joke and appreciate the hint of parody. This is a page-turner that is sure to entice the most reluctant readers.
Ellen Fader, Oregon State Library, Salem
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A versatile standby (1971 Newbery) brings her usual brisk aplomb to a projected series about a self-reliant early teen whose first adventure is closer in spirit, despite her name, to the Nancy Drews recalled by its jacket than to the exploits of Indiana Jones. Neither of Herculeah Jones's divorced parents- -Dad's a cop, Mom's a PI--welcomes her participation in discovering the role played by the hulking ``Moloch'' in an apparent death ten years ago in the empty old mansion known as Dead Oaks. Still, the girl and her sidekick, Meat, explore the house, where someone traps Herculeah; fortunately, she's able to burst open the nailed-shut door. Finding out that the Moloch is Mrs. Jones's client, they eavesdrop on a tape of an interview between the two and learn his identity. In the end, Herculeah not only deduces what happened years ago but locates a missing body by inadvertently tumbling down a secret stairway. For sophisticated readers, it might have been more fun if Byars had chosen to parody the genre; instead, she plays it almost straight, although there are occasional touches of wit in the pert dialogue and descriptions. Meanwhile, she establishes characters with a sure touch and provides enough spooky atmosphere to bring readers back for more. A promising start for a series that could easily become a popular alternative to mass-market mysteries. (Fiction. 8-12) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.