The Mystery of the Factitious Falconer — Elizabeth Arthur

The world has changed since the first time The Three Investigators went into action, but some things never go out of style. The persistence of truth. The power of perseverance. The importance of questioning everything.Conceived and co-written by Elizabeth Arthur, the daughter of Robert Arthur, the creator of the Three Investigators universe, this exciting reboot of the classic series takes its iconic characters into a new age. They return reimagined, reinvigorated, and more relevant than ever.In the sixth book of a 26-book story arc, Jupiter receives an unusual birthday present from his Aunt Mathilda and Uncle Titus: three fencing lessons at the Center for Falconry and Fencing. The gift launches a new case involving the Second World War, the Norwegian Resistance, degenerate art, and a purple-shoelaced artist when the theft of a painting of a medieval falconer and his falcon from the Center's lobby puts The Three Investigators on the hunt.Soon they discover that the Salvage Yard's resident carpenters, Leif and Magnus Haldorsson, have a family connection to the artist who painted the stolen canvas - as well as a sister named Freya who seems to have a crush on Bob! At a fundraising event to save priceless frescoes by the Russian-American painter Evgeni Voronin, The Three Investigators and Mallory cross paths with Matthias Mueller, the gallery owner who sold the stolen painting to Per Jorgensen - the famous Danish actor who purchased the painting to give to the Center in the first place.As the team moves among the Center, the Haldorssons' home, Mueller's gallery, and Jorgensen's oceanside house, they find themselves contemplating a deeper mystery. Why did artist Aksel Olsen paint ten nearly identical paintings of the same falconer and falcon? Who put the paintings up for sale at German auction house? Why is the purple-shoelaced artist  Günther Böhm so determined to get his hands on every painting? And what secrets lie within the letters Freya's father inherited from her grandfather, who fought in the Norwegian Resistance during WWII?As the answers to these questions slowly materialize, The Three Investigators put into place an ingenious plan to save from destruction a painting by one of the 20th century's great artists. But will the plan work?Join The Three Investigators as they solve a case involving war-time secrets, priceless paintings, and an art thief with a taste for deception. Whether you're a long-time fan or new to the series, you'll be intrigued by the sweep of this thoroughly twenty—first century mystery.