An attempt to create fractal art using brain waves goes awry and thirteen year old Minerva Clark receives an electrical jolt that puts her in the hospital. As she recovers over the next few days she finds herself transformed. Gone are the insecurities typical of young girls her age. The Minerva that emerges is more self-confident with a more mature appreciation of her uniqueness and a stronger sense of self-worth.

Almost immediately this “new” Miranda sets out to solve two mysteries. Miranda’s popular cousin—Jordan—is mistakenly arrested as a consequence of identity theft. Miranda believes the identify theft is part of a plan to deprive Jordan of a scholarship to Stanford University and she is determined to identify the guilty party. The next day the bookstore clerk Jordan was talking with just before she was arrested is murdered. The police are convinced that the murderer is a homeless man whose hangout was in front of the bookstore. Miranda is certain the homeless man is innocent.

Despite the appealing premise Miranda’s deductive reasoning ability does not rival that of most contemporary sleuths. For example, Karen Karbo relies of a “cheat” in place of a convincing example of Miranda’s deductive powers. Miranda concludes that the homeless man is innocent based on observable evidence that would be apparent to the rankest of rookie police officers.

Nevertheless, Karbo’s humorous, affectionate view of the silliness and insecurity of adolescents just moving into the teen-age years results in a delightful story. Miranda’s escapades are not so interesting that they could carry the story by themselves, but throw in her three eccentric older brothers and the teenage acquaintances that populate the book and readers are in for a fun ride. ( )

A murder mystery with a thirteen year old protagonist that has a pet ferret and three older brothers that raise her in lieu of her parents. ( )

A thirteen-year-old girl in Portland, Oregon, loses all self-doubt when she is zapped by lightning and uses her newfound courage to solve a murder mystery.