Hopping onto the Olympics bandwagon to share Winner Takes Gold by Eloise Smith – a compelling middle-grade mystery set at a junior Olympic gymnastics training camp.
The plot follows Pearl, a young gymnast, and her friends as they navigate the complexities of friendship, trust, rivalries…and competition-fuelled drama and sabotage!
The mystery escalates as the story unfolds, right up to a suspenseful finish at the Paris International Cup event.
But it’s not all about sport. Pearl is also grappling with the recent loss of her mother, which adds an extra emotional layer to the rich themes explored in the story.
Author Eloise Smith, a former Olympic fencer, knows what it’s like to compete at this level, and is able to bring us behind the scenes to really show us this setting, and all its drama, in vivid detail. And illustrator Natalie Smillie’s striking cover captures Pearl in action!
I read this fast-paced book with my gymnastics-crazy daughter and the captivating plot kept us both hooked.
