• Age: 9 to 12
• Grade: 4 to 8
• Reading age: 9 to 12

Izzy and Julia have been on the same soccer team for years.

Izzy is frustrated that Julia spends too much time cherry-picking and getting all the credit when they score. But when someone starts threatening the team and their home field is sabotaged, the friends must work together to find the answers. Why would someone threaten their star player? And what is the connection to a century-old train robbery and the rumor of buried treasure? Trying to solve the mystery and keep the team in the playoff race, Izzy and Julia find themselves in deeper than they thought, and in more danger than they imagined.

This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!

Michele Martin Bossley was born in Boston, Massachusetts, but grew up in Calgary, Alberta. Her sixth grade teacher encouraged her to write down the stories she enjoyed creating, but it wasn't until high school that Michele really began to consider writing as a career. She graduated from the University of Calgary in 1991, and began working seriously on writing children's books.

Michele is the author of eighteen novels for young people. Ten of her books have been chosen by the Canadian Children's Book Centre for the Our Choice list. Others have been nominated for the Manitoba and Alberta Reader's Choice Award, and she was runner-up for the 1997 Writer's Guild of Alberta R. Ross Annett Children's Literature award.

Many of Michele's books focus on different sports. As a former athlete, she was involved in synchronized swimming in her teens and competitive swimming in university. She has also coached young swimmers, in addition to coaching her twin sons' soccer and hockey teams, and draws on much of that experience for her books.

A frequent speaker at writing conferences and schools, Michele divides her time between writing and parenting her four sons. She lives in Calgary, Alberta.

Michele Martin Bossley's profile page

• Commended, CCBC Best Books for Kids & Teens

"A very interesting read...offers something for the sports-minded with a little intrigue and suspense thrown in. Highly Recommended."

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

"The combination of sports drama and unique mystery story [is] very compelling...an engaging read."

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