When detective Rick Montoya returns to the city to try to clear his name after being accused of taking a bribe, he discovers someone is living in his apartment.

Before he can find out who it is, the apartment house goes up in flames. Rick watches covertly as the police remove two bodies. Was the firebombing meant for him? Who exactly was killed in the fire? And why? What was his landlady Cheryl doing at home in the middle of the afternoon? And why is her daughter Susanna acting strangely? Then his estranged wife arrives at the scene of the fire. The questions mount up, along with the suspects.

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

Medora Sale is the author of the acclaimed John Sanders/Harriet Jeffries mystery series, set in contemporary Toronto, and under the name Caroline Roe, of The Isaac Chronicles, a series of historical mysteries. Born in Windsor, Ontario, Sale’s interest in criminal justice was roused by her father, a lawyer and engineer involved in weaponry and criminal justice, who served as an official in the court system. Sale is a graduate of the Centre for Mediaeval Studies at the University of Toronto, is a past president of Sisters in Crime and Crime Writers of Canada, and won the Arthur Ellis Award for best first novel for Murder on the Run, the first title in the John Sanders/Harriet Jeffries mystery series.

Medora Sale's profile page

"A great story with all the traditional and exciting elements of mystery held within a smaller package…This book will hold your attention to a satisfying close."

Read and Blog website

"A well-written and exciting novel. The time frame is condensed, and there are no flashbacks to confuse the action. The language is simple and the sentences short…The Spider Bites is one of the first entries in what may well become a large and popular series of easy-read novels. Highly recommended."

CM Magazine

"Simple language and short sentences make this a perfect who-done-it for the Hi-Lo middle school reader. Well-written and engaging story about a suspended cop named Rick Montoya who becomes entangled in a twisted tale of set-ups, fires, missing people and death. He is desperate to clear up his name and get back on the force, but it will take some super smarts to figure out this mess!"

Puget Sound Council for Reviewing Children's Media