Broach, Elise. Treasure on Superstition Mountain.

Broach, Elise.    Treasure on Superstition Mountain.  Holt  2012  280p  $15.99  ISBN 978-0-8050-7763-6        elm/ms      Mystery/Detective   E-BN     

It is only a few weeks after the end of the action that took place in the first title, Missing on Superstition Mountain, and the protagonists, the three Barker boys and Delilah, are diving headlong into more adventures.  While doing research in the library, they find a photograph of the first Julia Thomas, who looks strikingly like the current Julia Thomas, who is the librarian and president of the Historical Society.  The boys explore a nearby ghost town and recover the hotel ledger from it, which provides evidence that Julia Thomas visited the area just after the death of the discoverer of the mine.  Tradition says that she failed to find the entrance to the mine, even though she had directions.

When their parents plan a trip and Aunt Kathy comes to baby-sit the Barker Boys, they grab the opportunity to return to the mountain and look for themselves.  Delilah comes too, even with her leg in a walking cast.  The quartet is successful, but there is a lot of suspense along the way.

Well-written descriptions of the area and exciting, dangerous adventures fill this novel.  The rescue of the quartet each time they are in great danger seems a bit too easy, but readers will become involved in the adventures and the characters and overlook this problem.  Each of the four children has his or her own strengths and weaknesses, which means that they work very well together.

Both boys and girls will thoroughly enjoy the adventures of these four intrepid explorers.           

Adventure, Ghost towns-Fiction                                    --Joan Theal