Amy M. Reade
USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling mystery author
SARA SIMS, GHOST FINDER
The Hidden Key (2025)
An eerie old mansion, a stolen jewelry box, and a girl who vanishes into thin air. A page-turning ghost story perfect for middle graders.
Sara Sims has always been drawn to the supernatural. She's not spooked by the ghost stories and sightings that haunt her small seaside town.
But all that changes one summer vacation when Sara and her two best friends find a key at the mansion that doesn't seem to unlock anything. As the kids find themselves being drawn deeper and deeper into the mystery surrounding the key, they soon discover that they're not the only ones interested in it.
​
A century-old ghost with piercing eyes and a malevolent spirit wants that key, too, and will stop at nothing to get it.
​
Maybe the three kids should leave the investigation of all the weird happenings to the adults. But Sara is determined to find the answer.
Can she and her friends escape the sinister presence that threatens to destroy everything?
​
About Carole
Carole Grandy Sick is a former elementary school teacher and librarian. She lives in Cape May City, New Jersey, with her husband, George, and her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Riley.
​
So far, she has not found any ghosts in her house, but who can say when one may show up? It is, after all, a small town rumored to have ghosts lurking everywhere!
​
Her two grown sons and their families live in Virginia. Her two granddaughters inspire her writing.
​
Some of her favorite pasttimes are reading, walking along the beach and, of course, writing.
​
Fall and winter are her favorite seasons. On the chilly evenings, don't be surprised to find her curled up in a cozy chair by the fireplace reading a favorite novel … or maybe a Newberry winner.
​
This is Carole's first book. She was excited to work with co-author Amy Reade.​​​​
About Amy
