Lis Jardine grew up in various vicarages across London and the Black Country. She has been a lifelong reading addict and is rarely spotted in the wild without a book, usually a Golden Age murder mystery or a comic fantasy.
She currently lives in Cheshire with her husband and nearly-grown daughters, where she combines the two best jobs in the world: secondary school librarian and children's novelist.


Lis studied English Literature at the University of Warwick and completed the MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University. She has not won any prizes since a General Knowledge quiz at primary school.


In her spare time, Lis likes to watch TV, learn Norwegian (1300 day Duo streak!) and invent unlikely vegan sandwich recipes.
Follow Lis Jardine on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @LisJardine

'Sharply drawn... convincingly humorous and stroppy' - The Guardian

"Finding a dead body at my new school was a pretty rubbish way to start. But actually getting mixed up in the case? I was bound to get into deep, deep trouble for that!"

Murder comes to Hanbridge High, and three Year Seven misfits want to solve the crime:

New boy Jonno hopes playing detective will convince his parents that moving to Hanbridge was a big mistake.
School reporter Lydia thinks her news story will sweep everything else off the front page.
And young carer Daniel needs the police to arrest the right culprit - for his mum's sake.

They may not be friends, but they're about to become. . .The Detention Detectives.

'a fresh new take on the murder mystery genre' - The School Library Association

'Friendship, trust, courage and determination are at the heart of this extremely funny murder-mystery tale' - BookTrust

Misfits and murder meet in this brilliantly fun new mystery series by debut author Lis Jardine. A perfect next read for fans of Sharna Jackson's The High-Rise Mysteries, Fleur Hitchcock's Murder in Midwinter, and Robin Stevens' Murder Most Unladylike.