Some of the books listed in this section are historical fiction books as well as mysteries, which is why they are listed separately from the others.
Individual Books
Baby-Sitting Is a Dangerous Job (1987)
A girl is kidnapped along with the three children she is babysitting.
The Callender Papers (1983)
Jean is an orphan in the 19th century, living at a school for girls, when she gets a job offer from a mysterious artist and uncovers the secrets of a prominent family and her own past. By Cynthia Voigt.
The Curse of the Egyptian Mummy (1983)
A group of scouts camping near a boarding house get involved in a mystery concerning a stolen Egyptian relic. By Pat Hutchins.
The Girl in the Window (1988)
Kiley Culver thinks that she spots a girl who mysteriously disappeared in her small town, but no one believes her.
The Haunted Hotel (1989)
Laura and Bill are visiting their Uncle Joe, who is the caretaker of a large hotel in New Hampshire. The hotel is closed for the winter, but the children investigate the ghost who supposedly haunts it and may have their uncle under her spell. By Janet Adele Bloss.
The Haunting of Cabin 13 (1987)
When Laurie’s family rents a cabin by a lake during the summer, it seems like the cabin is haunted by the ghost of a girl who died there the year before, who keeps leaving mysterious notes for Laurie.
The Mona Lisa Mystery (1981)
A humorous adventure story where a group of British school children track down a famous stolen painting. By Pat Hutchins.
Mystery at Camp Triumph (1986)
A girl who has recently lost her vision struggles to find the people who are sabotaging the camp for disabled children where she has been learning to cope with her new blindness.
Mystery Madness (1982)
Murray thinks that his older sister may have shot their housekeeper and a friend is helping her cover it up, but he may have gotten the wrong idea. A private investigator helps him to figure out what’s really going on and solve a genuine crime. By Otto Coontz.
The Mystery of Drear House (1987)
Although some of the mysteries of the Drear house were uncovered in the previous book, The House of Dies Drear, the house still holds many secrets. This is the second book in a two-book series.
The Mystery of Sara Beth (1981)
When a new girl named Sara Beth joins their class, Becky and her friends go out of their way to make her feel welcome. However, Sara Beth barely acknowledges their attempts to make friends with her.
The Mystery of the Haunted Trail (1989)
When Brian visits his pen pal in Hawaii for the summer, he confronts a ghostly mystery based on Hawaiian legends. By Janet Lorimer.
Once Upon a Dark November (1989)
When a disagreeable old woman is murdered in her neighborhood, Katie finds herself the target of a killer who thinks that she knows too much. By Carol Beach York.
The One Hundredth Thing About Caroline (1983)
Caroline comes to believe that the new man in her apartment building, who seems interested in her mother, may actually be a murderer.
Secrets in the Attic (1986)
After her father’s death, Jodie returns to their old home for Christmas, trying to clear her father’s name because he is still suspected of theft. By Carol Beach York.
The Twenty-Four Hour Lipstick Mystery (1989)
A girl takes a part-time job helping a woman move into an old house where mysterious things are happening.
Who Stole Kathy Young? (1980)
A young deaf girl is kidnapped for ransom. Her best friend searches for her while she struggles to leave clues to help her friend learn her kidnapper’s identity.
Who Stole the Wizard of Oz? (1981)
When a rare book is stolen from the local library and Becky falls under suspicion, she and her twin brother Toby investigate to learn the truth. By Avi.
Series
A boy inventor solves mysteries with his sister and friend. By Clifford B. Hicks. 1962-2009.
An anteater solves mysteries for her animal friends.
Bessledorf Mysteries (aka Bernie Magruder Mysteries)
Eleven-year-old Bernie Magruder and his family live in the Bessledorf Hotel in the small town of Middleburg because his father is the hotel manager, and he solves mysteries with the help of his friends. By Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. 1983-2003.
Two pairs of fraternal twins have adventures and solve mysteries. Early books were more adventure/general fiction than mystery, but the series evolved over time. Books in this series are public domain and are available on Project Gutenberg. A Stratemeyer Syndicate series. 1904-1992.
A young girl with a photographic memory solves mysteries by using details that she remembers from her mental pictures. By David A. Adler. 1980-2014.
A boy genius who is the son of a police chief helps his father solve mysteries in their town and also solves mysteries for the neighborhood kids with the help of his friend, Sally. 1963-2012.
Flee Jay and Clarice Mysteries
About a girl who wants to be a detective and her genius younger sister. By Carol Farley. 1986-1991.
Hardy Boys Mysteries
Two brothers, Frank and Joe Hardy, solve mysteries in their East Coast town of Bayport and around the world. By Franklin W. Dixon, A Stratemeyer Syndicate series. 1927-Present.
Kay Tracey is a teenage detective who solves mysteries with her friends. A Stratemeyer Syndicate series. 1934-1942, Reissued 1951-1984.
A pair of teenage cousins solve mysteries. 1966-1986.
Sixteen-year-old Linda Craig is an orphan who lives with her brother and grandparents on a ranch, the Rancho del Sol, in California. By Ann Sheldon, A Stratemeyer Syndicate series. 1962-1984.
About three siblings who solve mysteries together. Many of them are treasure hunts. By Peggy Parish. 1966-1986.
The series is about a couple of kids who like magic tricks, Kate and Max. Kate is the one who considers herself a detective, and Max is the main magician with Kate as his assistant. Together, they use magic tricks and concepts in magic to solve their mysteries. By Elizabeth Levy. 1988-1991.
Mary Rose and Jo-Beth Mysteries
About a pair of sisters who live in Indiana and have adventures on road trips with their father. Written by Eth Clifford. 1979-1993.
A ten-year-old boy detective forms a detective agency called the with his neighborhood friends.
Meg Mackintosh is a girl who likes to solve mysteries. The interesting thing about this series is that the books are designed so that the readers can attempt to solve the mysteries along with Meg, using the pictures provided and other clues. By Lucinda Landon. 1986-2013.
J. Huntley English is a boy genius who also happens to believe in monsters and wants to find real ones. With his friends, he investigates strange phenomena and odd people in their small town in Pennsylvania. 1984-1988.
Nancy Drew Mysteries
Nancy Drew encounters and solves mysteries with her friends in her hometown of River Heights and around the world. By Carolyn Keene, A Stratemeyer Syndicate series. 1930-Present.
Nate the great is a boy detective who solves cases for other children, especially friends who live in the neighborhood. 1972-Present.
Olivia Sharp, Agent for Secrets
Olivia Sharp uses her wits and her family’s money to help her friends to solve their secret problems. 1989-1991.
A series of mysteries with The Kids of the Polk Street School. Dawn uses her Polka Dot Private Eye detective kit to solve mysteries with her friends and classmates. By Patricia Reilly Giff. 1987-1990.
Four neighborhood friends, who call themselves by the nicknames Wizard, Skinny, Tubby, and Snitch, have their own private detective club. By Crosby Bonsall. 1963-1980.
Sam and Dave Bean are a pair of twin boys who solve mysteries with their friends. Most of their mysteries center around people they know from school. 1984-1989.
Thirteen-year-old Sebastian solves mysteries with his friends in their small college town, Pembroke.
The Sherlock Street Detectives are a group of neighborhood friends who live on Sherlock Street and like to solve mysteries. The stories are educational, and the kids use basic scientific concepts to solve their mysteries. By Mary Blount Christian. 1989-1991.
“Queer” as in strange, weird, mysterious. No other sense of the word! Two friends, Gwen and Jill, solve mysteries with the help of Jill’s dog, Fletcher, who loves salami. By Elizabeth Levy. 1973-2003.
The Stanleys are a blended family, and the children solve mysteries, sometimes with a spooky theme. By Zilpha Keatley Snyder. 1971-1989.
An African American girl in Northern California solves mysteries with her friends. By Patricia Elmore. 1980-1992.
A group of friends who live in a seaside town solve mysteries together. 1982-1983.
A group of third graders investigates strange phenomena and possible ghosts, including one at their school. By Grace Maccarone. 1984-1990.
The Three Investigators Series
Three friends form a detective business, using a trailer in a salvage yard as their headquarters. 1964-1987, re-released 1990s.
A classic mystery series featuring a girl and her group of friends who solve mysteries and support good causes. Created by Julie Campbell and continued by other authors. 1948-1986.
Ryan and Chris Taylor are a pair of thirteen-year-old fraternal twins who solve mysteries. They can sense each other’s thoughts. By Adam Mills. 1988-1989.
Historical Mystery Books
Peppermints in the Parlor (1980)
An orphan girl arrives at her aunt and uncle’s house only to learn that it has been taken over by a cruel woman and turned into a retirement home that is cruel to the occupants. Her aunt is treated as a virtual slave and her uncle has mysteriously disappeared. By Barbara Brooks Wallace.
Historical Mystery Series
A historical mystery series with Christian themes that takes place in turn-of-the-century South Carolina. Amanda Shaw is an orphan with a mysterious past but who finds a new life with relatives she had never met. By Lois Gladys Leppard. 1983-2004.
Jestress's Forgotten Books and Stories 