The Mystery of the Missing Will

Lori McLeod is a librarian with the Toronto Public Library.

Fifteen-year-old Meredith Taylor reluctantly agrees to explore the
spooky, decaying St. Vincent mansion with her best friend, Samantha
Evans. A ghostly figure appears briefly and Meredith hears the words
“Find my will.” Through some research at the library, the girls
discover that Elizabeth St. Vincent’s will was stolen from her
lawyer’s office shortly after her death; consequently, a decision
regarding the inheritance of her $10 million estate has been placed in
the hands of the courts. While it is rumored that a second copy of the
will exists, no one knows its whereabouts. Meredith and Samantha set out
to find the second copy of the will and to solve the mystery of its
stolen predecessor.

Although there is enough suspense and action to sustain interest in the
plot, the reader may be frustrated at times by Meredith and Samantha’s
slowness in responding to clues: most readers will probably decipher the
note with the riddle that leads to the will long before our two amateur
sleuths. Nevertheless, this is an entertaining, fast read for children
aged 11 to 13.