• Age: 9 to 12
• Grade: 4 to 7
• Reading age: 9 to 12

Clay would much rather work as a lifeguard at the beach than at Safari Splash, the new water park in town.

Clay is certain the summer will drag along, despite his position at the Boa, the park's fastest slide. The summer job starts to get interesting when he learns that someone has been wandering the park in a lynx costume, scaring the staff. When forty thousand dollars is stolen from the till, and his friends are under suspicion for the theft, boring is starting to look good. But Clay is certain that the mask and the thefts are connected, and he's determined to solve the crime.

This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!

Scottish-born and mystery-minded, Melanie Jackson is the author of Orca's Dinah Galloway Mystery Series for eight-to-11-year-olds, and young-adult suspensers such as The Big Dip and High Wire. Melanie, who lives in Vancouver with her husband Bart, is a business/advertising writer and editor. She's a member of the Vancouver Sun's Book Club, which reviews current novels in print and online. Melanie likes hiking, piano, English/Scottish history—and continually learning from the kids she works with as a writing mentor with the Vancouver School Board.

Melanie teaches a mystery unit to Grades 8 and 9 at two Vancouver secondary schools. She welcomes schools’ inquiries about her presentations for intermediate and secondary classes. For more information, e-mail Melanie or visit her blog.

Melanie Jackson's profile page

• Commended, Resource Links "The Year's Best"
• Commended, Resource Links, The Year's Best Books

"A delightful mystery that offers readers sympathetic characters that are relatable and realistic...This story will thrill its readers with its twists and unexpected ending."

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