Kindle Edition Amazon Books By Ben Category:  Young Adult/Teen Publisher: Ben Woodard ISBN-10:  098862740X Type: Fiction Copyright: Dec, 2012 ISBN-13: 9780988627406 The eyeless body of a deputy and a rusty barge immerse two small town boys in a harrowing mystery.  Will flips the body over with his boot. The eyeless face shocks Tom. It’s 1923 and two small town boys’ curiosity about a rusty barge immerses them in a harrowing mystery. Tom’s past haunts him as the boys and their friends battle a shadowy group. Will Tom’s “crazy” book ideas save them, or get them killed? And where does the stairway to danger lead? Excerpt Will used his boot to roll the body over. An arm flopped in the water and the face pointed directly at Tom. A face with no eyes. Tom sucked in a breath and staggered back. He slumped to his knees staring at the ground. “Fish ate em,” Will said, toeing the body. Tom raised his eyes to see Will studying him, his head cocked. Tom turned away. His stomach rolled like the back of a hay wagon, and the taste of bile filled his mouth. His breath came in short gasps as his mind went back to that narrow staircase four years ago. He felt those walls closing in again. Sweat rolled down the nape of his neck. He bent over, gagged, and threw up. Not just because of the eyeless body. He wanted to empty out all his guilt and self-loathing onto the rocky hillside. “Never seen a dead body before, huh?” Tom glared. “No. Not that.” A flash of remembrance crossed Will's face. His head dropped and he turned back to the body. “You reckon that’s the Deputy?” Will asked. “He's been missing a couple of days. We better tell the Sheriff.” Tom didn’t answer. His only thought was running. Running and not stopping. Running north until he collapsed somewhere on the way to Cincinnati. He had to get away. And not later. Now. Will slipped his arm under Tom's armpit and hefted him up like a sack of potatoes. “Let's get outta here. I'm getting kinda sick myself. We’ll follow the river back. That’s the quickest way.” The yellow sky darkened to purple as they edged around the body and moved along the bank back toward Shakertown. Tom looked away from the bloated corpse and tried not to breathe. The stench filled the night air suffocating the musty smells of the river and forest. Will first said the smell was a dead cow until they spotted the body. Tom didn’t recognize the Deputy, but he recognized death. He had hoped coming to the farm would help him forget what happened at Grandfather’s. But reminders were everywhere.

Gripping and suspenseful teen mystery
This story grabs the reader with the first line and doesn't let go. Woodard has created believable teen characters and plunked them down in a fascinating historical setting. Full of mystery and intrigue, this is the kind of story that even reluctant readers will stick with in order to find out what--and who--is behind the shady happenings of Shakertown as well as what secrets the main character is holding!

Unstoppable Junior Detectives
This wonderfully told story presents two heroic teenagers who take on the mob back in the 1920s. Will and Tom are first cousins and, in the beginning, they seem to be as different as different can be. Will reluctantly goes along with Tom when his curiosity can't be satisfied concerning a mysterious, haunted barge moored along Dix River near their Shakertown farm. The boys' search for the truth gets them in a heap of hot water and in way over their heads when confronted by notorious gangsters. Their curiosity nearly kills them. Their quick wit and cleverness keep them alive. Their courage outshines men twice their age and the local law enforcement. Together, they are an unstoppable pair of junior detectives.

These two boys are as much fun as Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn and as smart as Joe and Frank Hardy. Tom is the reader with a mysterious past. Will is the levelheaded, natural born hero. Their sidekicks, Helen and James, are full of spunk and good humor. A teen adventure sprinkled with Southern charm and historical facts, I was hooked on this Shakertown adventure from the first page!

An Awesome Adventure
In Woodard's young adult novel, the story unfolds as heroic teenagers take on the mob in the 1920's. Cousins Will and Tom chase curiosity and investigate a haunted barge moored along the Dix River. Their curiosity nearly gets them killed as they stumble upon dangerous gangsters. With quick wit, cleverness and courage beyond their years, they meld into an unstoppable pair of rookie detectives.