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The Stolen Songbird

Book Synopsis

From the author of The Accidental Stowaway, it’s 1950s London and Caro Monday and her friends have become embroiled in a dangerous art heist!

When Caro Monday’s mother disappears on one of her jaunts, she has no choice but to go and stay with a miserable woman that she’s never met. Not only that but she’s told that her beloved rabbit, His Nibs, is not allowed to go with her.

Luckily, Caro’s not one for following rules. With her rabbit in hiding, and her wild behaviour getting her into trouble as soon as she walks through the door, Caro is only going to find herself in deeper water. In the lining of her suitcase is a small but extraordinary painting of a thrush . . . a painting that some dangerous art thieves are hunting down!

Can Caro and her friends solve the mystery of the stolen songbird and find its owners before it’s too late?

Here ensues an exciting dash across London, with twists and turns as plentiful as the cobbled streets which Caro and her friends must navigate!

Our Review Panel says...

Caro lives with her two mothers in 1950s London, but when one disappears whilst on a global whistling tour and the other has to leave to care for a sick relative, Caro is left to stay with the intimidating Gam (Great Aunt Mary). However, whilst packing to go to Gam’s house, Caro finds a small, beautifully painted picture of a small bird, hidden away in a pocket of her mum’s old suitcase. A painting which, unknown to Caro, is being hunted by a gang of dangerous art thieves – The Snakes – who will stop at nothing to get it. With the help of an old friend, Horace, a new friend, Albie, and her faithful companion, His Nibs, can Caro solve the mystery of the painting, make sense of the secrets in her family’s past (Where did the painting come from, why does Gam hate rabbits so much and exactly who is the homeless man who keeps helping her?) and be reunited with her mothers?

An exciting adventure in post-war London with layers of mystery to be solved and a cast of well-written, complex and likeable characters. Beautifully written and will appeal to adventure- and mystery lovers.