The Cassette Tape Secret
- Vanessa Bettencourt
- 6 hours ago
- 2 min read
Book Info:
The Cassette Tape Secret by Danielle Herzog
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary
Publishing Date: October 21, 2025
@topplingstackstours & @danielleherzogkidlit
5 Reasons to Read...
Synopsis:
Thirteen-year-old Alex Bennett is used to being overlooked by his classmates. From being bullied due to his OCD, he’s learned that being invisible is the safest option. So he’s unprepared when the new girl, Ida May, requests to partner with him on a school project. And he is even more unprepared when the project she wants to work on reveals a mysterious message left on a cassette tape—one that leads the pair to a box buried in Alex’s front yard.
Soon, Alex finds himself knee-deep in a mystery he wanted no part of. Urged on by his therapist and Ida May, he’s forced to step out of his carefully created comfort zone to untangle the complicated history he and Ida May have uncovered. But the more time Alex spends with Ida May, the more he wonders if the friendship growing between them is real or if she’ll leave as soon as the mystery is solved. As he and Ida May close in on the answers they’ve been searching for, Alex begins to understand that not everything is as it seems on the surface, and that maybe he doesn’t have to hide his OCD—or himself—from the world.
Content Warning: bullying, anxiety attacks, mental health, severed finger
Book Links:
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-cassette-tape-secret-danielle-herzog/1146868364
About the Author:
Danielle Herzog works in education (former school counselor) by day, and by night, she’s a kid lit writer, freelance writer, speaker, mother and member of one ridiculously insane large Italian family. And by insane, she’s referring to aunts that still pinch her cheeks, and uncles who slap her husband’s face when they say hello. She has about thirty cousins whose names are Godfather characters.
As a freelance writer, she has written everything from parenting articles to restaurant reviews, to the style section, to book reviews, and, her favorite – education and mental health. Her work has been featured in The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Parenting, The Huffington Post, Mamalode, AOL, What to Expect, Barnes & Noble, and Nickelodeon, as well as other national and local publications. She’s spoken and led workshops on counseling and education, writing and blogging, as well as provided on-air reporting and corresponding for various television shows.
Author Links:
Website: https://www.danielleherzog.com/
Twitter: https://x.com/danicounselor
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