The Samurai’s Secret. Puzzle Mysteries Collection

High on Mount Kagemine stands Mugen dōjō, a place frozen in time where discipline is absolute and the code of bushidō shapes every breath. For thirteen-year-old Takeshi Ito — expelled from multiple schools and with no future ahead — it is a last chance. But the mountain hides more than strict training. A legend lingers among the trees: a rōnin who once slaughtered an entire village to stop a hidden crime. Beneath the dōjō, that same secret may still lie buried. When a girl is murdered and another student disappears, Takeshi is drawn into a mystery rooted in the past — one that will test not only his courage, but his understanding of what it truly means to be a warrior.

The Samurai’s Secret is part of the Puzzle Mysteries series, a highly engaging middle-grade collection (age 10+), created by a remarkable group of acclaimed Italian authors from the Book on a Tree collective. Each stand-alone novel is a brilliantly constructed interactive puzzle that reinvents the classic whodunit with fresh, contemporary twists. With no supernatural shortcuts, every mystery is solved through logic, deduction, and sharp observation. Readers are treated as real detectives, invited to gather clues, untangle deceptions, and solve the case alongside unconventional young protagonists. From gothic Alpine boarding schools and isolated islands to luxury trains and high-pressure contemporary concerts, each book offers a distinctive setting and a fresh angle on the genre. In this series, every clue matters — and every reader becomes the detective.