Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Mrs. Murray's Hidden Treasure

Middle Grade Fantasy
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Emily-Jane Hills Orford will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 

See below to sign up for the GIVEAWAY



There is a hidden treasure in the grand old mansion on Piccadilly Street, in a place called London, but not the real London of English fame. There’s also a lot of mystery and a murder that’s been unsolved for decades. But it’s the treasure that captures Mary’s interest. Mary lives in this house along with her family, her Brownie friends and a ghost. When the ghost reveals her secret about the hidden treasure, there’s no stopping Mary, her Brownie friends, or her enemies from searching for this treasure. Why the intrigue? Apparently there’s a little bit of magic connected to this treasure. And so the adventure begins. Who will find the treasure first?

My Review

What a fun book for young readers. While it contains some of the difficult feelings we all went through as we grew up, it does so in the kind of fantasy we love to read. I was so pleased to read such a fun, light book that mixed everyday problems, being new to school, hoping to fit in, looking for a friend, with magical people and a witch and a ghost. Sort of a getaway that all of us, children too, need to read about now and then.
I noticed this is Book 2 of a series titled Piccadilly Street and have not read Book 1. It seems to me this book can be read as a stand alone just fine although it was fun enough that I would like to read the first book.

Emily-Jane Hills Orford has many books published. This series is for the middle grade reader. All the author’s books seem to have good reviews. 


Read an excerpt...

But this treasure alluded her. She knew it was here, in this house, somewhere. The question was, where? And Mrs. Murray wasn’t being any help. Not one bit.

Mary let out a deeply pent up sigh. “You must remember something! When was the last time you held the jewellery in your hands? Did you ever wear the ring? Or the necklace? Or both?”

“Oh yes!” Mrs. Murray beamed, if a ghost could beam through its shimmering effervescence. Even her eyes glistened, sparkled really, as the memories started to wash over her. “I wore it as a teenager. Only briefly. My grandmother gave it to me when I turned sixteen. She said it was very special, full of magic. I didn’t believe her then. I didn’t believe in magic. You see, I hadn’t met Brunny and Pelly yet. They were connected to my grandmother until she died, which was only days after she gave me the jewels. Very sad. She was so strong and healthy. It was as if some horrible curse took her away. That’s what Brunny said when he first appeared to me. Both my grandmother and Brunny insisted I take special care of the jewels. And certainly not wear them around for the world to see. Such a shame, really. They are beautiful. Were beautiful. Are beautiful. I don’t know which, past or present. Do they even still exist? I don’t remember the last time I saw the necklace. It must have been before I left Scotland. Perhaps it is still there. Perhaps I misplaced it. I don’t really know. But the ring is here. Somewhere. If it still exists.”

“Oh, it exists all right.” Mary dropped her legs over the side of the bed. “Maybe if we wander the house together, you might remember and I might sense something.”

“What if we wake your family?”

“I’ll pretend I’m sleepwalking,” Mary chuckled softly. “I do that enough anyway. They’ll believe it. Besides. Everyone’s exhausted. They’re out for the night. Like Dad will say in the morning, sleeping like a log.”

“If you insist.”

“I do.”

“Where are the Brownies? I hope Elizabeth hasn’t poisoned them again.”

“In which case, we shall be extra vigilant as she may be watching our every move.” Mary didn’t say it out loud, but she had decided it might be best to just sense a location of the treasure and then go looking for it in daylight, at a time when she was sure Elizabeth wasn’t snooping.




AUTHOR Bio and Links:


An avid gardener, artist, musician and writer, Emily-Jane Hills Orford has fond memories and lots of stories that evolved from a childhood growing up in a haunted Victorian mansion. Told she had a ‘vivid imagination’, the author used this talent to create stories in her head to pass tedious hours while sick, waiting in a doctor’s office, listening to a teacher drone on about something she already knew, or enduring the long, stuffy family car rides. The author lived her stories in her head, allowing her imagination to lead her into a different world, one of her own making. As the author grew up, these stories, imaginings and fantasies took to the written form and, over the years, she developed a reputation for telling a good story. Emily-Jane can now boast that she is an award-winning author of several books, including Mrs. Murray’s Ghost (Telltale Publishing 2018), Mrs. Murray’s Hidden Treasure (Telltale Publishing 2019), Queen Mary’s Daughter (Clean Reads 2018), Gerlinda (CFA 2016) which received an Honorable Mention in the 2016 Readers’ Favorite Book Awards, To Be a Duke (CFA 2014) which was named Finalist and Silver Medalist in the 2015 Next Generation Indie Book Awards and received an Honorable Mention in the 2015 Readers’ Favorite Book Awards and several other books. A retired teacher of music and creative writing, she writes about the extra-ordinary in life and the fantasies of dreams combined with memories. For more information on the author, check out her website at: http://emilyjanebooks.ca


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8 comments:

  1. Thanks for hosting me and my book, "Mrs. Murray's Hidden Treasure", and for the wonderful review.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hello! Thanks so much for sharing your book with us. Always fun reading about another book to enjoy.

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    Replies
    1. I hope you enjoy reading it. I certainly had a lot of fun writing this book.

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  3. How many books have you written so far? Congrats on the release.

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    Replies
    1. 23 so far. And I have another book being released next month: "King Henry's Choice". http://emilyjanebooks.ca

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  4. Congrats on the release. I hope that your book is a success,

    ReplyDelete

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