Traitor in the Shipyard: A Caroline Mystery

American Girl Mysteries

by Kathleen Ernst, Sergio Geovine (Illustrator)

When Caroline learns that British spies may be lurking in Sackets Harbor, she is worried. Then, a long lost friend of Papa's shows up in town. Papa is delighted to give him a job at Abbott's Shipyard, but soon, strange things start going wrong. Caroline is sure a spy is making trouble at the yard--but is it one of Abbott's trusted workers, whom she has known all her life, or could it be Papa's dear friend?

An illustrated "Looking Back" section discusses the role of spies in the War of 1812.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Historical, Middle Grade, Fiction, Childrens, Juvenile

192 pages, Paperback

First published February 26, 2013

About the author

I grew up in Maryland, in a house full of books! Both of my parents were avid readers, thank goodness. Before we traveled to a new area, my librarian-mom used to bring home historical novels set in that place. It was a great way to get excited about history.

I began writing stories when I was maybe 10 or 11. At 15 I wrote my first novel; I sold my first novel to a publisher 20 years later! Writing was my hobby, so during those two decades I just kept practicing, reading, writing some more. What a thrill to finally hold my first book in my hand! Still, I write because I enjoy the process (at least most of the time).

For years I wrote while working at other day jobs. I spent 12 years working at a huge historic site, which was a perfect spot for someone interested in historical fiction. I also developed and scripted instructional videos for public television. Finally, though, it got to be too much to juggle. I now write full-time, and consider myself enormously fortunate to do something I love.

Reviews

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The great AG marathon continues. Again, reading for the first time as an adult, inspired by the American Girls podcast.

Reading mysteries meant for eight year olds as an adult means watching out for both "who looks suspicious" and "who am I meant to think looks suspicious." And looking for a traitor/spy/thief/villain essentially rules out any character you've met in previous books - so like any TV procedural, you're left eyeing all the new characters as soon as they walk on the page. Papa's prison friend? The quiet sailmaking apprentice? The random officials from the Navy yard? Hrmmm.

I don't want to say too much - Ernst does a good job of misdirecting the reader and providing twists and secrets beyond "who's the traitor." Thus far I've read three "oh no there's a spy" AG mysteries set in wartime, and this is easily better than Felicity's Peril at King's Creek or Molly's Spy on the Home Front.

Lots of classic Caroline elements are in play here - she gets to sail, she gets to sew - and because Ernst wrote the core series, it all feels of a piece.

My favorite detail might be the moment where Caroline falls into the water and half the crew jumps in to save her. We may not know all these men by name, but SHE does, and they all feel as protective of her as the ones we do know well. In a book about war pulling a community apart, it's a nice moment of a community reaffirming their ties.


More Caroline babble

Meet Caroline | Caroline’s Secret Message | A Surprise for Caroline | Caroline Takes a Chance | Caroline’s Battle | Changes for Caroline

Traitor in the Shipyard | The Traveler’s Tricks | The Smuggler’s Secrets

[Danielle T · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is one of the few Mystery books where the author of the character's core novels also wrote it, which makes the side characters feel more true to how they were in the mainline ones compared to other Mystery novels I've read. I really liked this one- high stakes because it's a war time (Caroline is actually shot at...!), and mostly uses characters from previous books. This actually starts pretty immediately after the end of the sixth core novel, so it's a good move to go to if you're fresh from that. I appreciated Hosea having a larger role here- he's present in the core books, but here he teaches Caroline that war is complicated, and sailors who escaped from slavery might have a different perspective on who deserves their loyalty. It's a shame Caroline's tenure was short-lived; initially I thought, "hm, the War of 1812 is a very niche subject to do a whole AG series on" but it very capably did a dive into the topic at an age-appropriate level, and I learned more with these books than I did MaryEllen's (I should stop moaning about how ME's are my least fave, but they are, for now!)

[Panda Incognito · Rating 4 out of 5]

My little sister got this book free from Barnes and Noble's summer reading program. She asked me to preview it for her, and make sure that there was nothing scary. It's nice to have an excuse for reading something so below my reading level. ;) Then again, I read plenty of books like these without a such excuse!

When I was younger, I read many of the American Girl mysteries, and felt that they were hit and miss. This is one of the well-done, compelling stories. The mystery was simple enough for a young reader to follow, but surprisingly unpredictable. Not only were there some good twists, but I appreciated the depth and complexity behind the motives of the different characters. Books like these usually have stereotyped villains, but there was no bad guy here... Just people fighting for what they believed to be right.

"In a war like this one," a character says, "when right and wrong can get all tangled up, we need to answer to our own conscience."

[Danae · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice adventure from American Girl. It reminded me a lot of Peril at King's Creek: A Felicity Mystery in the beginning, so I was worried it would be predictable, but it wasn't.

A lot of stories starring children bug me because there's a point where things get dangerous and they really should take the issue to adults, but they don't because the book's marketed toward kids and kids want to see kids in charge. In this case, I thought Ernst did well giving Caroline a reason to have to do it herself, so I was happy with that.

[Katie Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pleasant read, perhaps in part because Caroline does the things she's best at: 1. Caring about Abbotts and Abbott's, 2. Sailing, 3. Sewing/embroidery, 4. Working hard and being steady, and 5. Learning about the manifold complexities of himan relationships. She's the best!

[RaspberryRoses · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredibly enjoyable mystery - Kathleen Ernst is the author of a lot of AG's mysteries, and so she really excels when writing a mystery for a girl whose main series she also authored.

It is a little funny how the terrible decisions of book 6 haunt the narrative here. IIRC, that book ends saying that they can spare Caroline for a few *days* for Independence Day - and yet she spends weeks away from the farm in this one! It does bug me from a continuity perspective, but also I think it was the right choice, since Sackets Harbor just works so much better as a setting for Caroline.

This is one of the least-forced mysteries I've read from AG - oftentimes you have to suspend your disbelief to figure out how the heck this 10 year old girl is getting involved in this sort of drama. But the wartime setting of Caroline and her daring spirit makes her a natural fit.

I also really loved how nuanced this book was willing to be on wartime topics. It's not just "America good, Britain bad". In particular I'm glad this book discussed the treatment of Black sailors. Once Caroline learns that many Black sailors are being threatened with slavery when they serve on the American side, and that's why Hosea is helping people defect to the British for their freedom - it isn't just something dumped on her that she forgets. It comes up again in the rest of the book, as she continues to reassess her country and the circumstances around her.

It does feel like the end of the book was a bit of a nothingburger, though. We don't see the final confrontation, and we have a clumsy return to status quo. Not enough to sour the story for me, though.

[Jessica Wagstrom · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the better AG mysteries I’ve read. There were several times where I had to keep reading to see what happened next. I like that this book tackles the complexities of human decisions during uncertain times, and dealt with some of the challenges of slavery.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is definitely on my favorite's list. I don't usually read mysteries, but I was given this for my birthday and, as Caroline was my favorite American Girl Doll when I was younger, I read it once I got my hands on it.

I love sailing stories. They're my favorite type of stories, especially if they have pirates in them (sadly, this one didn't). I just love ships in general, so this book was an absolute joy and sits proudly on my bookshelf, hopefully soon to be joined my other Caroline mystery books.

I don't keep up with American Girl Dolls anymore, as I've outgrown them, but I don't think I will ever outgrow these Caroline books. They've inspired so many of my stories, it would be a shame to not appreciate them.

[Sesana · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author of two of Caroline's mysteries has written both her Central Series and a number of mysteries for AG, so it's hardly surprising that this book holds up both as a mystery and as a Caroline book. Here, Caroline finds herself in the middle of a sabotage plot. The clues and suspects unfold naturally, and I didn't guess the complete solution until fairly late in the book. Also, it's kind of nice that while Caroline does some snooping, she doesn't go out of her way to put herself into dangerous situations and keeps the adults in her life fairly clued in to what's going on.

As a bonus, there's a side character named Mr. Crowley, and you can bet that I pictured him as David Tennant.

[Caitlyn Gongwer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It’s definitely one of my top favorite American Girl mysteries. Caroline has always been a favorite of mine and I’m so glad that this book was written by the same author as her original 6 books! It’s perfect if you just finished reading Caroline’s series and you want more! You get to read more about the side characters like Hosea and Rhonda, as well as some new ones! 110% would recommend it for American Girl and history lovers of all ages!

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was really good because I thought on every chapter it was sorta like a cliff hanger! And it was really suspenseful,And overall I just loved it,like I could just sit down and read the whole book! I LOVED it!

[Julie Lorimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is one of my new favorite American Girl books, mostly because they are trying to find a spy during the war, and it's kids my age.

[Kristen]

A brave girl saves an American ship and the American Revolution.

[Joey Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting mystery, you are left suspecting so many characters throughout as they are all pretty shady and sneaky. I really enjoyed following along with Caroline as she tried to figure out exactly who the British spy was and who was destroying her father’s shipyard.

My predictions did come across correct from my first instincts which i was surprised about, but happy about too. Sometimes you follow the trail and get ideas and they are wrong. But other times you can get them right.

I really did enjoy reading this mystery, it was very fun, so much kept happening, I also liked that there was a tame story too for Caroline and Rhonda who were building the quilt for Lydia which was really sweet.

[Addie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I am not going to spoil anything, but it was a turn of events. It put suspicion on the most likely person, but it ended up being the least expected cousin. I like how it takes place in the middle of the war and how Caroline has to learn how to live in these hard times. One chapter put shivers down my back many times and was a little creepy and scary too, but that is what makes it interesting. I like how she soon becomes able to come face to face with the traitor. It was my favorite book out of all there Caroline mystery books.

[Keilah T · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book for its storyline and how it was written! It really puts you in Caroline’s shoes and makes you excited to continue reading! This book has mysteries and just when you think everything is turning good, something happens and your brain goes wild! I like how you think one thing and your completely wrong at the end. It’s so funny and really gets you thinking. Over all, I think this book was a good story!

[Amber Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting mystery for young readers - well deserved 5 stars.

[Caitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love American history

[Liberty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was so so good. So many twists and turns. Normally I can solve the mystery before the characters but this one had me guessing till the end

[Merry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed Ricci characters in

[Sofia]

Another book i got for free during a summer reading challenge in middle school. remembered the ending had my eleven yo self in a daze but i cannot for the life of me remember what happened

[Lia (Taylor's Version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book
read it
now
<3

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun mystery with a fantastic heroine!

[Sarahs Reads ToKids]

Lydia read this book and really liked it. She is enjoying all of the American Girl mysteries.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the side plot with Hosea. I like that Caroline’s books don’t shy away from how the US treated black people.

[Little Seal]

Caroline has got to be the quickest thinking 10 year old in the world.

[Marian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Traitor in the Shipyard picks up right where Caroline's books leave off, which helps tie book #6 back into the rest of the series. Caroline's back home for part of the summer, unsure of when she'll be summoned back to her uncle's farm. While home, she wants to get in some sailing but the weather refuses to cooperate. Luckily her backup plan of spending time at the family shipyard is off to a much better start.

That is, until things down at the shipyard start to go horribly wrong. Sails are slashed, fires are started, and tensions run high when it becomes apparent that there's a British spy underfoot. Caroline suspects her father's friend from prison but can't prove anything... yet.

I like my mysteries to have a solution you can figure out for yourself if you're paying attention, and Traitor falls into that category.

[Tryina Denouement · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, I gave this book five stars because it managed making my mind think about terrorists, religious extremists,and other people who believe in causes that we think is bad. *gives virtual clap*

Well, Mr. Growly and Miss Lucinda being the culprit is unexpected. And it was dark for a children's book. Also, nobody here is the antagonist, really. And seriously, I was touched when I saw Miss Lucinda's reasons to be a spy. And that bombing of General Pike was awesomely written.

Suggestion: For people who like to think of serious things, this is going to set you on galau mode, (meaning you are sad/anxious.)

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to read this, as I am a huge fan of the Caroline series, as it is the only (current) AG series that actually deals with Death and more life threatening thins.
I was surprised that it took me a while to start really enjoying this AG mystery novel, as I am usually rivetd a few pages in. So things started slow, but hold on tight and it'll get better! Through the book the action wasn't to much and wasn't constant, constant, constant! I did guess one of the "who did whats" by the third of fourth chapter, so that kind of spoiled in.
Overall, four stars. Another awesome AG Mystery Novel!

[Eva B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always enjoy reading about Caroline and this book was no exception! This is one I had read before but I couldn’t remember a few of the twists, like, at all. I’ve read enough AG mysteries by now to know never to believe the first suspect but this one had me genuinely wondering if it would be who was suspected from the start. I also liked the way that the book pointed out how the US navy would return escaped slaves who joined up to the plantations they escaped from whereas the British navy would not—like Betrayal in Cross Creek, it was a more grey view on the early years of the US than is usual in middle grade, which tends to just be “USA Good, Britain Bad”