"It's a dark and stormy night when three sleuthing little girls get pulled into a web of mystery. They have mistakenly uncovered a secret society of some of the most famous female spies in history. A glamorous spy named Josephine Baker enlists the girls to find out who has kidnapped Chiquita, her precious pet cheetah. Do the girls have what it takes to become spies themselves?"-- - (Baker & Taylor)

"This book is a delight. Fun. Funny. And full of adventure.” --Andrea Beaty, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Rosie Revere, Engineer
 
The first book in a highly illustrated new chapter book series about three delightfully mischievous young girls and some of the most enigmatic women in history who worked as spies.


It's a dark and stormy night when three sleuthing little girls get pulled into a web of mystery. They have mistakenly uncovered a secret society of some of the most famous female spies in history. A glamorous spy named Josephine Baker enlists the girls to find out who has kidnapped Chiquita, her precious pet cheetah. Do the girls have what it takes to become spies themselves?

Debut author-illustrator Veronica Mang has created a playful pastiche full of masters of disguise, martial artists, codebreakers, and double agents in the first of this new illustrated chapter book series. Secret Spy Society: The Case of the Missing Cheetah introduces young readers to three delightfully mischievous girls and some of the most enigmatic and unforgettable women in history. - (Penguin Putnam)

Veronica Mang recently graduated from Parsons School of Design and works as a book designer. The Secret Spy Society series is her debut. She lives in Jersey City, NJ. - (Penguin Putnam)

Booklist Reviews

Peggy, Rita, and Dot comprise the spy club that headquarters in Rita's attic, but the young gumshoes haven't had a case in weeks. Then one night, their interest is piqued by a mysterious figure whom the girls pursue, and to their astonishment, they discover a fabulous den of female spies from throughout history—everything from Civil War secret agents to WWII resistance fighters. Among the members is the incomparable Josephine Baker, who offers a case to the girls: her cherished pet cheetah has gone missing, and she needs their help returning Chaquita home. It's a marvelous premise, and the accompanying illustrations help bring to life a whimsical world of intrigue. The plot rushes by quickly, but young supersleuth readers will long for more adventures among this league of extraordinary spies. Grades 1-3. Copyright 2021 Booklist Reviews.

Kirkus Reviews

Three girls stumble upon a group of lady spies and convince them to let them join their group. In this series opener, Peggy, Rita, and Dot are frustrated spies without a case. One dark and stormy night, they are bored and decide to venture out of their clubhouse when they see a mysterious figure walking the streets in the middle of the night. (Why these seemingly parentless children find that peculiar when they themselves are also up way past bedtime is anyone's guess.) It turns out to be Miss Khan, their teacher, who invites them inside for hot chocolate but is twitchy when Dot opens a door and sees a group of women gathering secretly. The next morning Rita sees a woman in the newspaper she recognizes from Miss Khan's, and they rush back to the teacher's home. That woman? Josephine Baker, the famed dancer suspected of being a spy. The girls confront the women and express their desire to be sleuths and spies as well, and Josephine conveniently has a mystery for them to solve: Her pet cheetah has been kidnapped. The girls eagerly take on the job. Delightful pencil illustrations with spots of bright yellow appear on every spread, but they can't save this poorly paced story. All the lady spies are based on real people (even the cheetah!), though they were not contemporaries, as the brief bios in the backmatter attest. The attempted noir tone feels ungrounded because of its slippery connection to time and world history. Rita presents Black and Peggy White; Dot appears to be a girl of color. All the ingredients are there, but something went wrong in the cooking process. (author's note, guide to Morse code) (Mystery. 6-10) Copyright Kirkus 2021 Kirkus/BPI Communications. All rights reserved.