Alissa and the Castle Ghost

The second Stardust Classics: Alissa adventure sends Princess Alissa and her lady-in-waiting Lia on a castle mystery sparked by a portrait no one has ever noticed before. The ghost-behind-the-painting setup is exactly the right level of spooky for the 7-to-10 crowd — mysterious enough to be exciting, gentle enough for bedtime. The strong female protagonist, colorful full illustrations throughout, and a satisfying resolution that involves righting a long-ago wrong all work in the book's favor. The honest caveat: readers who haven't met Alissa in book one may feel they've stepped into the middle of something, and the critical record is thin enough that it's hard to gauge how much depth the characterization carries. For its target audience, though, it looks like a clean, fun adventure.