A million dollars... or a Clue.
"You have been chosen as the most likely to succeed in the greatest, most perilous undertaking of all time - a quest of vital importance to the Cahill family and the world at large..."
— William McIntyre
The Maze of Bones is the first book in the first series of The 39 Clues.
What would happen if you discovered that your family was one of the most powerful in human history? What if you were told that the source of the family’s power was hidden around the world, in the form of 39 Clues? What if you were given a choice — take a million dollars and walk away... or get the first Clue? If you’re Amy and Dan Cahill, you take the Clue — and begin a very dangerous race.
Tropes:
- Downer Beginning: This book, and the series as a whole, begins with Grace Cahill's death.
- In My Language, That Sounds Like...: Amy hastily tells Nellie to get them rooms for the night at a seedy-looking hotel called the "Maison des Gardons," which she assumes means "House of Gardens." Later they find out the hard way that "gardons" means "roaches".
- Video Wills: How Grace starts the hunt for The 39 Clues. She left a recording of herself explaining that her will gives certain selected family members a choice between a million dollars and the first clue.
