Books like Ellen Raskin

A mysterious letter leads twelve-year-old Candice to an old injustice, an unfinished puzzle, and a fortune promised to whoever can decode a sequence of clues. Johnson gives the reader genuine work to do: names, books, local history, and apparent coincidences all acquire new meanings as Candice and Brandon investigate.

Like Raskin, he treats puzzle-solving as a moral act. The mystery exposes assumptions about who deserves attention and whose stories a community preserves. This Coretta Scott King Honor novel is both an ingenious page-turner and a moving account of friendship, courage, and historical memory—the rare successor that understands why the game must matter after the answer is found.

This sly adult mystery is assembled entirely from emails, messages, letters, and other documents concerning a small-town theater group. Two law students have been handed the correspondence and asked to determine what really happened—but Hallett also hands the case to you. Every awkward phrase, missing reply, social slight, and shift in tone may be evidence.

The pleasure is intensely Westing-like: a crowded cast of vain, generous, secretive, and frequently hilarious people; clues hiding in plain sight; and revelations that make earlier pages look different. A word-of-mouth bestseller, The Appeal has inspired devoted readers to compare notes and reread the evidence. If you enjoyed trying to beat Sam Westing at his own game, this is your next dossier.

During a snowy holiday at his parents’ remote inn, Milo expects peace. Instead, a peculiar collection of guests arrives, each carrying a story—and perhaps a reason for being there. With his new friend Meddy, Milo begins investigating thefts, secrets, and the house’s past through clues and an imaginative role-playing game.

Milford’s Edgar Award–winning novel matches Raskin’s unusual blend of clockwork mystery and emotional warmth. Its pleasure lies not only in discovering what the guests conceal, but in watching Milo reconsider the stories people tell about themselves, including his own. The wintry atmosphere is irresistible, the construction rewards close attention, and the ending gives earlier details fresh resonance.