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Sophie Cleverly's The Curse in the Candlelight is the fifth Scarlet and Ivy mystery for 10 year olds, and it begins with the twins' worst birthday ever.
Scarlet and Ivy have just turned fourteen at their father's house. Their stepmother gives her own boys the biggest breakfasts and the twins the burnt scraps. She even keeps the presents their aunt sent them. Socks from Father are all they get!
So going back to Rookwood School feels almost like a treat, which says a lot. The school has a new headmistress and a new head of house. Their friend Ariadne turns up with her usual convoy of suitcases. And there's someone nobody has seen before.
Ebony McCloud walks into the first assembly late, in pointed black boots, and doesn't even blink. In art she draws a castle with bats and graves instead of the bowl of fruit. She won't pick a sport. And the teachers just let her. As one of the girls says, it's like she's got them under a spell.
Meanwhile Ariadne is sharing a room with the girl who bullied her at her old school. Muriel says she's turned over a new leaf. Has she? Ariadne isn't convinced (she faints when she hears the name).
The chapters swap between the twins, so you hear both sides. Scarlet is fiery and kicks doors. Ivy is quieter and worries more. It's lovely having them both in your head, especially when they don't agree.
The stepmother is properly nasty, which is worth knowing. She slaps Scarlet across the face and locks the twins in their bedroom. It's early on and they're soon away from her, but it might upset a reader who's had a tricky time at home.
A few things said here give away what happened in the earlier books. So if you're new to the twins, start with The Lost Twin and work your way up.
If they've already raced through the series and want another girls' school mystery, try Murder Most Unladylike. Hazel and Daisy run a secret detective society at Deepdean, and their first real case starts with a teacher's body that vanishes.
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