The Shadow Cipher

Three kids try to solve a centuries-old cipher in an attempt to stop a wealthy real estate developer from evicting their building in an alternate history New York. With the child-centric Big Apple adventure of From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, delightful crazy constructions worthy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and the mystery solving and fabulous language of Chasing Vermeer, this is a new middle grade read you won't want to miss. It's just the first book in Laura Ruby's York series.