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American Girl Mysteries
The Cameo Necklace: A Cecile Mystery
As C�cile exits a crowded showboat after enjoying a lavish Floating Circus, she stumbles--and when she gets up, she realizes that the cameo necklace she borrowed from her aunt is no longer on her neck. Knowing that the necklace was the last gift Tante Tay's husband gave her before he died, C�cile is desperate to find it. As she tracks down the people in the crowd who were near her when she fell, her search takes her into many corners of New Orleans, from a society tea party to the crowded French Market, even the dangerous cypress swamps...and deep into secrets she never imagined! An illustrated �Looking Back� essay provides facts about the 1850s.
192 pages
First published February 28, 2012
7 people are currently reading
321 people want to read
About the author
Evelyn Coleman
23 books31 followersEvelyn Coleman is an Edgar Award finalist. She is best known for her many books with American Girl. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
February 13, 2021
My eldest daughter's emphatic 5-star rating of this book swayed me to agree. My daughter is 11.5 and got swept up in this story.
What I appreciated most was what my kids and I learned. I believe this is the first book I've read to my kids where the State of Louisiana was the setting. As outsiders looking in, unfamiliar with most everything, this read was an eye-opening experience that led to quite a few off-shoot discussions.
We learned French words, and their meanings, that had previously been unknown to us. We learned about the history and different cultures that comprised the State of Louisiana in the 1800's. We learned about people groups known as maroons, the creole language, and life lived within swamps.
This book not only provided an engaging story but a condensed history lesson that continues to stick with us. The final back pages that share real-life accounts and photographs of the time, place, and space of which the book spoke of is an invaluable, genius tie-in and add-on! Beyond our imaginations we were able to see clearly as through a window into the past. A true gift.
This was the first American Girl book read in our household and will not be our last! I appreciate and fully stand behind and support books with positive messaging. Books that don't shy away from hard truths but present those truths in ways that are appropriate for their intended audience of young ladies who are coming of age, and into their own effortless personas that become them.
The American Girl brand is one that lights the way of remembrance, while highlighting innocence, naivete, and goodness. Historic years and events of importance shared, not sugar coated, not lacking candor, but also not uncouth within their presentation. Well-rounded, pleasing efforts that you'll want more of.
I highly recommend!
What I appreciated most was what my kids and I learned. I believe this is the first book I've read to my kids where the State of Louisiana was the setting. As outsiders looking in, unfamiliar with most everything, this read was an eye-opening experience that led to quite a few off-shoot discussions.
We learned French words, and their meanings, that had previously been unknown to us. We learned about the history and different cultures that comprised the State of Louisiana in the 1800's. We learned about people groups known as maroons, the creole language, and life lived within swamps.
This book not only provided an engaging story but a condensed history lesson that continues to stick with us. The final back pages that share real-life accounts and photographs of the time, place, and space of which the book spoke of is an invaluable, genius tie-in and add-on! Beyond our imaginations we were able to see clearly as through a window into the past. A true gift.
This was the first American Girl book read in our household and will not be our last! I appreciate and fully stand behind and support books with positive messaging. Books that don't shy away from hard truths but present those truths in ways that are appropriate for their intended audience of young ladies who are coming of age, and into their own effortless personas that become them.
The American Girl brand is one that lights the way of remembrance, while highlighting innocence, naivete, and goodness. Historic years and events of importance shared, not sugar coated, not lacking candor, but also not uncouth within their presentation. Well-rounded, pleasing efforts that you'll want more of.
I highly recommend!
February 18, 2022
Of the two, I prefer the Cecile mystery to Marie-Grace's. It does start out rather slow (a lost necklace is really low-stakes) but does get into a more interesting and, I think, little-known aspect of American history (maroons, who are far more fascinating than a necklace).
Re-read 2022: My thoughts are pretty much the same as they were when I read this book almost ten years ago. The lost necklace itself isn't an enthralling mystery to me, and including her frenemies from the central series doesn't do much for the overall book. But I did love the inclusion of maroons, and I think that was handled fairly well.
Re-read 2022: My thoughts are pretty much the same as they were when I read this book almost ten years ago. The lost necklace itself isn't an enthralling mystery to me, and including her frenemies from the central series doesn't do much for the overall book. But I did love the inclusion of maroons, and I think that was handled fairly well.
August 4, 2020
3.5 stars, rounded up.
This mystery sounded far less interesting than others, since the premise is that Cecile loses a necklace in a crowd and has to recover it before her aunt comes home. I have never liked stories where people borrow things without permission, inevitably lose them, and have to panic over retrieving them, and too much of this story was like that. However, the lost necklace plot ended up only being the backdrop to an exploration of maroon communities in the swamps of New Orleans. The story shifted partway through to focus on this, and was extremely educational.
This part of the story also involves meaningful character growth for Cecile. She becomes increasingly aware of the world around her and the injustice that black slaves experience, instead of only focusing on her and her family's freedom. The book also includes the very real threat of illegal capture and the importance of having free papers at all times. Since Cecile's other stories were mostly shallow and self-absorbed, I appreciate this book's focus on the harsh realities around her and the anxieties that surrounded her and her family's precarious situation.
This book requires some suspension of disbelief, since Cecile is able to keep running into the various people who were in the crowd when she lost the necklace. The author tries to explain this away through a fortune teller's comments and occasional appearances, but that just made it seem more contrived to me. Fortunately, the book is engaging and educational enough that it overcomes these flaws within the story. I appreciate the meaningful character arc that Cecile experiences as she opens her eyes to the world around her, grows up more, and deals with the tension between being grateful that she knows the truth and wishing that she could still be young and naive.
The historical notes in the back are very educational, and full of more little-known details about communities of escaped slaves that lived in swamps and other dense, hidden places in America. I don't remember learning about this aspect of American history until a college class, and am glad that this book introduces young readers to the concept, in addition to addressing more commonly known elements of black history.
This mystery sounded far less interesting than others, since the premise is that Cecile loses a necklace in a crowd and has to recover it before her aunt comes home. I have never liked stories where people borrow things without permission, inevitably lose them, and have to panic over retrieving them, and too much of this story was like that. However, the lost necklace plot ended up only being the backdrop to an exploration of maroon communities in the swamps of New Orleans. The story shifted partway through to focus on this, and was extremely educational.
This part of the story also involves meaningful character growth for Cecile. She becomes increasingly aware of the world around her and the injustice that black slaves experience, instead of only focusing on her and her family's freedom. The book also includes the very real threat of illegal capture and the importance of having free papers at all times. Since Cecile's other stories were mostly shallow and self-absorbed, I appreciate this book's focus on the harsh realities around her and the anxieties that surrounded her and her family's precarious situation.
This book requires some suspension of disbelief, since Cecile is able to keep running into the various people who were in the crowd when she lost the necklace. The author tries to explain this away through a fortune teller's comments and occasional appearances, but that just made it seem more contrived to me. Fortunately, the book is engaging and educational enough that it overcomes these flaws within the story. I appreciate the meaningful character arc that Cecile experiences as she opens her eyes to the world around her, grows up more, and deals with the tension between being grateful that she knows the truth and wishing that she could still be young and naive.
The historical notes in the back are very educational, and full of more little-known details about communities of escaped slaves that lived in swamps and other dense, hidden places in America. I don't remember learning about this aspect of American history until a college class, and am glad that this book introduces young readers to the concept, in addition to addressing more commonly known elements of black history.
January 23, 2018
I wasn't crazy about the core 6 book series of Cecile and Marie-Grace, they were a bit hard to get into, but I think this Cecile mystery was really well done. Actually, I think it was one of the better American Girl mysteries. I liked how the author weaved Cecile's lost necklace mystery in with bringing up history that people don't know about. I don't recall ever hearing about the maroon people (people who lived in the swamps to escape slave-catchers) and it was really interesting. The writing had me flying through pages to see what would happen next.
April 19, 2015
One of the better AG mysteries. Not very much suspense, but definitely realistic. And I loved that Cécile could not just leave the house by herself. Too many authors of children’s mysteries omit this common rule that parents have in order to advance that plot and have the kids discover everything on their own. Kudos to Ms. Coleman for finding a way to make the mystery work within a realistic premise.
December 5, 2021
The great AG marathon continues. Again, reading for the first time as an adult.
It turns out that Marie-Grace isn't the only one away from home: Cècile's Tante Tay is also out of town. Cècile takes the opportunity to borrow her aunt's cameo necklace...and promptly loses it. Oops.
One of the most impressive things about the scene where the necklace gets lost is how vividly Coleman is able to evoke utter chaos, but also clearly lays out the exact movements and people near Cècile. And for that matter, I'm impressed by how clearly Cècile herself recalls the people around her, most of whom she'd never seen before. And when she realizes her loss, she is resourceful and methodical in tracking each of those people down. And that in spite of the fact that she is not permitted to roam the city by herself: every excursion means talking someone into going with her.
Unlike the MG mystery I just read, this one really is about the title character - there's actual character development and everything. And while the beginning of the plot looks like one that AG could have handed to Samantha, another rich girl with a sense of adventure, as things develop, it becomes clear that this could only be a Cècile book. As she searches for each person who might have picked up her necklace, she gains a new understanding of the tightrope she walks as a free person of color, and continues to expand her perception of how her world operates, outside of her own class and cohort.
The trade-off is that this is a mystery where everyone is almost inexplicably helpful. Without fail, every time Cècile finds someone from that night outside the circus, they're friendly, sympathetic, and don't take offense at the implication that they might have stolen the necklace. For all that it seems impossibly hopeless at the outset, the pieces fall into place very tidily by the end. Even the B plot about the Reys' mysterious new maid is neatly folded in.
But for a mystery that really truly belongs to its protagonist, I'm willing to let it go.
It turns out that Marie-Grace isn't the only one away from home: Cècile's Tante Tay is also out of town. Cècile takes the opportunity to borrow her aunt's cameo necklace...and promptly loses it. Oops.
One of the most impressive things about the scene where the necklace gets lost is how vividly Coleman is able to evoke utter chaos, but also clearly lays out the exact movements and people near Cècile. And for that matter, I'm impressed by how clearly Cècile herself recalls the people around her, most of whom she'd never seen before. And when she realizes her loss, she is resourceful and methodical in tracking each of those people down. And that in spite of the fact that she is not permitted to roam the city by herself: every excursion means talking someone into going with her.
Unlike the MG mystery I just read, this one really is about the title character - there's actual character development and everything. And while the beginning of the plot looks like one that AG could have handed to Samantha, another rich girl with a sense of adventure, as things develop, it becomes clear that this could only be a Cècile book. As she searches for each person who might have picked up her necklace, she gains a new understanding of the tightrope she walks as a free person of color, and continues to expand her perception of how her world operates, outside of her own class and cohort.
The trade-off is that this is a mystery where everyone is almost inexplicably helpful. Without fail, every time Cècile finds someone from that night outside the circus, they're friendly, sympathetic, and don't take offense at the implication that they might have stolen the necklace. For all that it seems impossibly hopeless at the outset, the pieces fall into place very tidily by the end. Even the B plot about the Reys' mysterious new maid is neatly folded in.
But for a mystery that really truly belongs to its protagonist, I'm willing to let it go.
November 15, 2024
This was a real fun read. I don't love that the plot starts with her losing a Very Important Object That She Borrowed Without Asking, since I find that to be a kind of tired trope, but it quickly evolves into something much more interesting. The mystery itself is fine, but the events that surround it are stellar.
I also love how Cécile is never going anywhere *alone*. She has to travel to a lot of different places to solve the mystery, but she's always accompanied by an adult. This isn't me going "thank goodness, the children are seeing a proper example to emulate on chaperoning!!" - it's not a moral thing I like about it, but a matter of historicity. She's an upper class young lady! She isn't going to be going on adventures alone!
This book also examines race a lot more then the main series did, and I appreciated that.
I also love how Cécile is never going anywhere *alone*. She has to travel to a lot of different places to solve the mystery, but she's always accompanied by an adult. This isn't me going "thank goodness, the children are seeing a proper example to emulate on chaperoning!!" - it's not a moral thing I like about it, but a matter of historicity. She's an upper class young lady! She isn't going to be going on adventures alone!
This book also examines race a lot more then the main series did, and I appreciated that.
April 4, 2022
Read this aloud to my kids. I appreciate the historical context and learning more about the history in New Orleans. I appreciated the story was told from the perspective of a young girl of color. It helped foster good conversations about our country’s history. It also challenged me on my pronunciation of French - wish I would have saw the glossary and ‘how to pronounce French words’ before I made my own attempts! ;)
October 3, 2021
Unrealistic explanation as to why a couple of freed slave children "stole" a necklace. They'd repaired the clasp and were trying to return it to the main character Cecile. It made absolutely no sense. What are we trying to tell children these days? That there are no "bad" people or "bad" children. Surely given the childrens' perilous existence it makes sense that they would steal stuff to buy food to survive. Maybe the author wanted to avoid parents having to explain to their kids acceptable times to do bad things?
October 1, 2017
This was a really great book. I really enjoyed picturing the places mentioned because I just visited New Orleans the summer. And I loved how we learned about a rich place and time in culture and history that I'd never heard of ever before in my life. Definitely worth a read no matter what age. So much more than just an American girl mystery book.
July 25, 2025
I struggle with AG mysteries and I’ve struggled with Marie-Grace and Cécile’s series as a whole. But this mystery ended up going in a direction I did not expect, and explored some interesting history that I appreciated.
August 15, 2018
3 1/2 stars
March 4, 2022
One of the best AG mysteries. It's about the necklace but it's not about the necklace. A great deep dive in Cecile's world, wish she had gotten more books.
August 20, 2024
Difficult to read aloud, a little scary for my girls (5, 6 and 8).
March 3, 2014
This is a great story. The only thing keeping it from fives stars is the background description or lack thereof. I have seen steamboats, wharves, and circus performers so I could conjure a decent picture of the events in my head, but younger readers may not be able to do that. Of course, the author is limited in space with a story like this so making the point is much more important than describing the circus surroundings. The author's description of the swamp and cypress boat was much more detailed.
This mystery is a classic tale of borrowing something without the owner's knowledge and losing it. There is a long list of suspects and Cecile does a good job of visiting each to get their knowledge of her missing cameo. At one point I thought I knew who it would be, but was surprisingly mistaken.
It was interesting that the only character Cecile viewed negatively was a peer. I don't know their history - if the girl was as annoying to her as Nellie is to Laura in the Little House on the Prairie series, then I completely understand.
Cecile shows great strength of character throughout the investigation. She also shows a wide range of emotion...ones we all feel when trying to find something in a short period of time. At the same time, she was able to show compassion to everyone she met.
Part of me did not like how watered down and politically correct some scenes were, but I understand and the scenes in question still made a point of how frightening life could be in the 1800s. Plus it isn't a new thing...we have romanticized much of history in books and movies when the reality of those times is much more severe.
Overall, I really liked this story and would love to have a cameo necklace like Cecile's Tante Tay. This mystery has peaked my interest in other Marie-Grace and Cecile stories.
This mystery is a classic tale of borrowing something without the owner's knowledge and losing it. There is a long list of suspects and Cecile does a good job of visiting each to get their knowledge of her missing cameo. At one point I thought I knew who it would be, but was surprisingly mistaken.
It was interesting that the only character Cecile viewed negatively was a peer. I don't know their history - if the girl was as annoying to her as Nellie is to Laura in the Little House on the Prairie series, then I completely understand.
Cecile shows great strength of character throughout the investigation. She also shows a wide range of emotion...ones we all feel when trying to find something in a short period of time. At the same time, she was able to show compassion to everyone she met.
Part of me did not like how watered down and politically correct some scenes were, but I understand and the scenes in question still made a point of how frightening life could be in the 1800s. Plus it isn't a new thing...we have romanticized much of history in books and movies when the reality of those times is much more severe.
Overall, I really liked this story and would love to have a cameo necklace like Cecile's Tante Tay. This mystery has peaked my interest in other Marie-Grace and Cecile stories.
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March 4, 2023a book that started out as fan fiction
American Girls
American Girls
August 10, 2014
This was a very exciting mystery that kept your interest thru the entire book. Just when you thought things were figured out something happens to make you rethink who might be guilty.
In this book Cecile loses her grandmothers cameo necklace. The book will keep you guessing as to who may have the necklace. There are so many possible suspects. Cecile will meet many people and study them very closely for possible clues as to the necklace whereabouts. In the end you learn not to "judge a book by its cover" as people who you might least expect could be guilty. It is very well written for girls my age. I recommend these mystery stories for preteen girls.
In this book Cecile loses her grandmothers cameo necklace. The book will keep you guessing as to who may have the necklace. There are so many possible suspects. Cecile will meet many people and study them very closely for possible clues as to the necklace whereabouts. In the end you learn not to "judge a book by its cover" as people who you might least expect could be guilty. It is very well written for girls my age. I recommend these mystery stories for preteen girls.
February 6, 2016
As a lifelong collector of American Girl, I was excited about the introduction of Cécile and Marie-Grace. I still love to pick up the books for some light reading and nostalgia. Unfortunately, their main series flopped for me. However, this book was a big improvement, in terms of getting to know Cécile more. The way the story was set up, visiting different sections of the city, gave you a detailed impression of life in New Orleans at the time that also wasn't really touched on in their main series. The mystery itself wasn't the most suspenseful, but I thought it was worth a read just for the tour of the city.
October 10, 2018
The Cameo Necklace is a nice addition to Cecile's set, but falls much flatter than "The Hidden Gold." While Coleman's characters are eccentric, her writing of Cecile is not on par with Denise Patrick. At times she seems to be a completely different character. I found this much less charming than other Cecile books, and lackluster after just finishing Marie-Grace's mystery.
July 27, 2016
I enjoyed this very much. It didn't seem like much of a mystery to me, though. It was more just like talking to people. There was no twist or anything. I loved all the history. I learned a lot and wish I looked into C&MG before they retired.
March 31, 2012
I loved learning about the maroons. This story held my interest and was not too intense for younger children.
July 3, 2012
I loved it I thought it was so interesting I learned so much
July 13, 2013
I thought this book was a great book. I really liked how much mystery the author put in this book. I think that I would be friends with Cecile because she seems like a few of my friends.
June 28, 2025
"The hunter always wants to kill the lion. The lion just wants to eat."
October 18, 2012
this book has many mastreys that are mistorys today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 15, 2013
i like the part when Cecile finds her necklace.
June 5, 2014
good story, these are great books for girls (and boys!)
April 17, 2017
See the first book in the series for a full review.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews