The house with no keys

In this follow-up toThe Mystery of Locked Rooms (2024), young escape artists rashly accept a mysterious game designer's offer to get a sneak peek at a challenging new set of escape rooms. Worried by announcements of a new, high-tech fun house that might drive their employer, the Delta Game, out of business, middle schooler Sarah and her friends Hannah and West jump at the chance to give Mystery Mansion a try before it opens to the public. More's at stake than they suspect, but Currie dispenses with the backstory in a perfunctory way at the end. Her real focus--and the chief appeal here--lies in the set of fiendishly clever escape rooms that she's devised for the trio and the team dynamics that carry them through: Hannah is the reckless thrill seeker, West is the observant brainiac, and anxiety-prone Sarah has a knack for making correct choices. The story cranks up the suspense, and the Deltas call on all the courage and smarts they can muster, sweeping readers along as they work urgently against the clock to complete the course. Hannah is cued white, West is described as dark-haired, and narrator Sarah isn't physically described. Breathless action and engaging puzzles make this a page-turner.(Mystery. 8-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.