Thirteen-year-old Gerald is just about to head out on holiday with his friends when a great aunt he never knew he had dies and leaves him something in her will -- her entire $20 billion fortune! And a family secret. In an instant, Gerald is suddenly the richest boy in the world, and the target of diamond thieves who may have killed his aunt, and might want to kill him next. Along with his new friends Sam and Ruby, Gerald is suddenly thrust into an outrageous and dangerous adventure that will take him from London to the English countryside. Hopefully the trio can figure out what secrets Aunt Geraldine was hiding before her killer does, so that they aren't next on his list.

This rollicking ride began as a bedtime story for the author's children, and years later is finally down on paper. The story starts calmly enough in the classroom, but quickly changes pace into an over-the-top adventure, reminiscent of Indiana Jones, complete with secret doors, laundry chutes, a car chase, hidden caverns and a thousand-year-old mystery. The danger is real for the children -- they are threatened with a stiletto knife, cut on the leg with a sword, and suffer various bumps and bruises from climbing and falling. There is some blood and violence and a few adult characters die at the hands of other adults, though not in a graphic way. There is mild language: arse, h-ll, d-mn. All told, with the complexity of the plot, the violence and language, this book is probably best-suited for older tweens or young teens.

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