Books like The Whispers in the Walls — picked by fans

This is an oldie but a goodie, first published in 2007.

It is a standalone mystery narrated by Ted, a neurodiverse boy who thinks differently from other children. Ted's unique skills include noticing patterns, paying close attention to detail, and seeing what others overlook. All qualities that make him the perfect detective.

Ted and his sister, Kat, watch their cousin Salim board the London Eye. But when the ride ends, Salim does not get off. So begins the mystery: What has happened to Salim?

I would recommend this great page turner for readers aged 11 to 14.

I have recently discovered this series and are thoroughly enjoying Plum and Woo and the Suspicious Scarf. It’s a middle-grade mystery series featuring two memorable protagonists: Hannah Plum and Patti Woo, who spend holidays together because their parents are “dating.”

Plum and Woo are an unlikely pair with very different personalities, and those contrasting traits make them both relatable. At the same time, their shared age and experiences help their friendship feel genuine as the story unfolds.

Set largely in a chalet surrounded by a snowy forest, the girls follow clues, face moments of danger, and work through the ups and downs of their friendship while also navigating the complexities of their parents’ relationship.

I recommend this series for readers aged 9 to 12. There are three books in the series, written by an Australian author.

This is a fast-paced and entertaining spy thriller.

It forms part of a series featuring Ruby, a thirteen-year-old genius code-cracker who is confident, brave, and sassy. When Ruby is recruited by a secret spy organisation, she is drawn into an adventure full of cryptic codes, puzzles, and unexpected twists.

Although the story is told in the third person, Lauren Child uses italics to capture Ruby’s inner thoughts and observations. Ruby’s inner monologue is funny, sharp, and highly relatable for the intended age group. Lauren Child does an excellent job of getting into the mind of a thirteen-year-old.

This is a substantial, thick book, and at times the plot becomes complex, with lots of turns. I recommend it for readers aged 10 to 14.

This is the second book in this detective series, which focuses on the adventures of Friday Barnes, an eleven-year-old girl detective.

Friday is on a scholarship at the prestigious boarding school, Highcrest Academy, but school is anything but easy. She has a brain wired like a computer and is considered by many of her peers to be a daggy nerd. Friday’s trademark “terrible brown cardigan and green beret” doesn’t help!

In the second book, Friday is once again solving mysteries, but this time, she becomes intrigued by the behaviour of a strange, but charming, new boy.

This book is very readable, at times funny, and all about sleuthing and solving clues. Middle graders will love the boarding school setting, mysteries, and following the adventures of an unlikely hero, Friday Barnes, whose sleuthing skills outsmart her peers, her teachers, and, at times, even the police.

The author is Australian. I would… show more.

This book kept me guessing. 

A three-year-old disappears during her wealthy father’s fiftieth birthday celebration. Is it a case of stranger abduction, or something more complicated? Don’t ask the police; they’re clueless—literally. The mystery hooked me from the start, and the characters (absolute jerks, most of them) were so real, I could almost smell their boozy breath. I never did guess the shocking “darkest secret,” but that’s for the best. Correctly predicting a plot twist might be satisfying in the moment, but I’m more impressed when an author surprises me.  

This slim novel is actually the second in McGuire’s Wayward Children series, which I wholeheartedly recommend in its entirety. The premise: a school for teenagers who once found secret, magical doors to other worlds when they were younger—and who, for various reasons, are sent back from those worlds to ours again. I particularly loved Jack, the burgeoning mad scientist sister in Down Among the Sticks and Bones, as well as her complicated relationship with her sister, Jill. I’m also a big fan of unique worlds and high-concept premises, and McGuire’s series absolutely checks both of those boxes!

To me, Twins is an instant middle grade classic. It explores the relationship between two twin girls who are starting to be interested in different things after having spent years being on the same exact page.

I love that this book shows how people can approach creativity and life in different ways, most notably through a school campaign the two twins find themselves running in against each other. I think it’s a good reminder that we’re always changing and evolving, and while it can be scary, it’s ultimately worth embracing those changes. 

I loved reading this book to my kids, who were immediately drawn into the heartbreaking story of Judith, a girl with Down Syndrome, who was separated from her twin sister, Joyce, and institutionalized for many years. This separation led to great pain for both sisters, until decades later, when Joyce brought Judith home, and enrolled her in an art program for differently-abled people. Slowly, Judith flourished, going on to become an artist of renown, with work displayed in museums and galleries around the world. 

This tremendous story, of the bond between sisters, the therapeutic value of the creative process, and the potential for creating meaning and joy through artistic expression, helped my very young children develop empathy for and a deeper understanding of differently-abled people.

The Dragonlance series is rightly regarded as a classic of fantasy fiction, but I feel the main trilogy doesn’t hold up quite as well these days as the Legends trilogy that begins with Time of the Twins.

This book has slightly more grown-up writing than other books in the series, and I think the two main characters, Raistlin, the sickly mage, and his physically powerful brother, Caramon, are two of the best ever created.

The plot over the trilogy is really exciting and draws the reader in, with some unexpectedly emotional events and lots of character development. I wanted to be Caramon when I was a youngster, and, actually, I still do!

If my previous selections showed up for me at a time of profound shift and helped reignite my creativity, I was already an established author by the time I discovered The Alchemyst.

What I was looking for in those days was a compelling story, and what attracted me to this one was its blend of magic and mythology played out in a contemporary setting and involving a real-life historical figure. I love what I guess you’d call fictional biography, and the Nicholas Flamel series must be the most creative example of the genre I have ever come across. 

At the same time, Michael Scott’s imaginative use of the historical Nicholas Flamel inspired me to borrow real-life personages for my other (non-fantasy) fiction series.