Just So Stories

Penguin Australia

April 2025

• ISBN: 9781761349409
• Imprint: Penguin
• RRP: $16.99

OMG!!! JH fans, both young and old, are about to lose their minds!!! This fabulous new book, which I gobbled up in two sittings, heralds the start of another new series from the best-selling author, who really knows how to reach her audience. In this instance, the audience has just expanded a little, as Josephine Eloise Thomas, known as Jet is a teen.

So this adventure involves not only a crime and a mystery, but a likeable teen ghost who is an actual prince, and an even more likeable local French boy who is a real snack.

Jet, along with father, stepmum and older brother has just moved to France from Sydney. They are renovating an old chateau [just like the TV show!] to set it up as boutique accommodation.

There is an additional motive for the move. Jet’s mum died when she was only 2 and not even her father knows a lot about his late wife’s early life growing up in this particular part of France. Since Jet discovered, via an old photo and careful detective work, which school her mother attended, the family knew where to focus their search for a new home.

When Jet finds a beautiful, and clearly very old, locket tucked into a secret compartment in her armoire, opening it causes a very real young ghost to pop out. It’s just one step in a path that takes this enthusiastic would-be writer of mystery fiction towards a whole new story. Jet’s ghost turns out to be Louis XVII, former Dauphin of France, who has now been dead for centuries, although he wasn’t actually aware of that himself. He, in turn, mistakes Jet for the love of his young life, a girl named Madeleine who also lived in this locality.

That’s just one thread of this lively and engaging romp through history and mystery. By complete accident, Jet, Louis and, the gorgeous Gabriel, uncover a gang of art thieves in the neighbouring (supposedly) abandoned chateau, a place where Louis was formerly housed and home of his beloved Madeleine.

For Jet, who has eaten up every Kensy and Max, Alice-Miranda and Friday Barnes book [well played, JH!], this is like her favourite genre come to life. But it’s also dangerous, and almost deadly.

We get lots of clues about local connections to both Jet’s mum (and her own mystery) and Louis’ tragic history, plus the oh-so-sweet burgeoning romance with Gabriel. There’s the interspersed epistolary format of Jet’s diary and her emails to bestie Harriet, who we can see is going to play a part in future mystery/crime solving.

And, alongside all of that, is loads of humour and light-hearted interaction as Jet’s family work together reviving and restoring the old chateau. Once again, Jacqueline has worked her magic bringing readers a wholesome and entertaining narrative while including snippets of historical fact, cultural insights, and now working in a young romance angle, over which readers are going to swoon.

I loved seeing Jacqueline’s pics from her trip to France a while back [hard to believe that’s over a year ago!], and it was even more fascinating to read her notes about how the genesis for this new series came about as a result of encounters on that trip.

Well played indeed, Jacqueline Harvey!! This is going to be another cracker of a series indeed!! and thank you so much for your sweet note and giving me a sneak peek ahead of release time. Goes without saying it’s a triomphe with a 5 🏰🏰🏰🏰🏰 rating!!