{"product_id":"the-steps-9780823460380","title":"The Steps","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRiverdale\u003c\/i\u003e meets \u003ci\u003eThe Queen's Gambit\u003c\/i\u003e in this fun, twisty thriller by an Edgar Award-winning author, featuring a deliciously dysfunctional family with dark secrets and shifting alliances.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFourteen-year-old chess whiz Ruby Vossen tries to keep to herself. She refuses to be a pawn in her wealthy family's web of deception. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBut ever since Ruby's mother and aunt died in a car wreck, the battle lines drawn within the Vossen clan have ruled her life. Ruby's father and uncle became irreparably estranged, and within months, Ruby's cousin\/BFF was banished from her life, her father remarried, and she wound up with a gold-digging stepmom who has two teens of her own--The Steps. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSo when strange and dangerous things begin happening on the Vossen estate, Ruby sees only one logical explanation: The Steps are scheming to inherit the Vossen fortune. And as things get more and more intense, it seems like killing is in their playbook. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLuckily, Ruby has her own playbook, and she's not about to go down without a fight. She'll even break her dad's rules to get her cousin back on her side of the chessboard . . . It's time to check-mate The Steps before they can finish the Vossens off. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSecrets, lies, and lethal threats abound in this clever, quirky thriller by the award-winning, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eFlipped\u003c\/i\u003e and the Sammy Keyes mysteries.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWendelin Van Draanen \u003c\/b\u003eis the award-winning, bestselling author of more than thirty novels for kids and teens. Her books include \u003ci\u003eFlipped\u003c\/i\u003e, which was named a Top 100 Children's Novel for the 21st Century by SLJ and became a Warner Brothers feature film, the Edgar Award-winning Sammy Keyes mystery series, and \u003ci\u003eThe Running Dream\u003c\/i\u003e, which won ALA's Schneider Family Book award. A high school teacher for fifteen years, Wendelin is now a full time writer who enjoys staying active in the school author-visit space.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Holiday House","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51580361310482,"sku":"9780823460380","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_ca46bfc7-4217-4c1b-a69b-56ba855d9a58.jpg?v=1756217623","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-steps-9780823460380","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}