Elizabeth "Lizbeth" Landers is spending the summer with her aunt, uncle, and sister in a small North Carolina town. While she was certainly looking forward to the visit, she could not have expected what the summer held in store. Not long after her arrival, there was an accident on a nearby bridge - but what looked like an accident to everyone at the scene looked a bit more suspicious to Lizbeth, especially when she learned that the driver was holding a rare penny in his hand when he was pulled from the water. As an avid collector of rare pennies herself, Lizbeth sets out on the case - often passively so - to track down the missing penny and the truth about that fateful evening on the bridge.

I tend to be a bit particular about mysteries when I read them. I prefer not to have a strong idea of the outcome of the story until closer to the end because otherwise why spend the time reading it. And I feel like Treva Hall Melvin has achieved that here. While I definitely found myself having suspicions throughout the book, they shifted enough over time and there were enough twists and turns that the ending hit me right before it happened. And the characters and interactions that are secondary to the mystery are also just enough to truly build out the world (and sometimes distract from the whodunnit plot) without getting in the way of the main story.

Disclaimer: I received a free advance reviewer copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. ( )

MR. SAMUEL’S PENNY by Treva Hall Melvin
This young adult book is a cross-over for adults, perfect for Parent-Child Book Groups.
New Yorker Lizbeth, 14, is spending the summer with her small town North Carolina aunt and uncle. On her very first day in Ahoskie a murder occurs that intrigues her because of the special penny the deceased is clutching in his hand. Determined to discover both the penny and the murderer, Lizbeth discovers the slowness of small town life along with prejudice, compassion, violence, love, greed and generous neighborliness among the residents and relatives she encounters.
Realistic characters and situations carry the slow moving plot along. 1972 in the South is clearly presented. Watching Lizbeth grow in maturity and change over the summer is a pleasant foil to the murder mystery. The importance of family and respect, the keeping and telling of secrets and the surprising revelations are all good topics for discussion.
5 of 5 stars ( )

Entertaining young adult mystery with a delightful main character. Fourteen year old Elizabeth Landers and her sister are spending the summer of 1972 with their relatives in a small town in North Carolina. Soon after their arrival from New York, a car drives off a local bridge, drowning a man and his young daughter. Later, Elizabeth learns that there were bullet holes on the bridge and the dead man was clutching a rare penny, which was later stolen from the coroner's office. Given her interest in collecting unusual pennies, Elizabeth is determined to find the missing coin but her search leads to discoveries she never expected and danger she never anticipated.

Bright, inquisitive Elizabeth can be quick to judge, but she's also kind-hearted and willing to help. Part mystery, part character study, this is a well-written and very entertaining read.

Note: this review is based on an ARC received from the publisher ( )

On the surface this young adult book is the story of a man who crashes his car with his small child in it off a bridge. They are both killed and his body is found clutching a rare 1909 penny. When the penny goes missing a young girl visiting from New York takes it upon herself to find out what really happened that night. and there was much more than what met the eye. The plot is not the most important thing about this book - it is the values we see in some of the characters. There is much more than meets the eye with them too. ( )

Book Review & Giveaway: Treva Hall Melvin always wanted to be a writer but somehow ended up becoming a criminal attorney instead. Still, she never forgot her childhood dream and has now written Mr. Samuel’s Penny, which is based on events in her own childhood and is also her homage to To Kill a Mockingbird. This historical mystery takes us back to 1972, when civil rights laws were fairly new and people of all colors were still feeling their way in this new era, especially in the South. It’s also a fish-out-of-water story, a story about family, and a story about eyes being opened to what the world is really like (the good, the bad, and the ugly). Sound interesting? Oh, and I’m delighted that the publisher has provided us with a copy that someone will win in our pay-it-forward giveaway! ( )