Books like The Third Eye

If you liked The Third Eye, read Don't Look Behind You, Stranger with My Face, or Christina's Ghost — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The Third Eye by Lois Duncan (Mystery · grades 6–8)? It’s most often read for its themes of kidnapping, mystery and detective stories, and extrasensory perception. The 10 titles below are the closest matches in the ReadingList database — each scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level, and each linked to the curricula, states, and grades where it’s assigned, with primary sources.

These are reading-level matches, not just topical ones — so the picks stay grade-appropriate for a grades 6–8 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

10 books similar to The Third Eye

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Why each is a match

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Don't Look Behind Yougrades 6–8
Is by Lois Duncan, the same author, shares themes of mystery and detective stories, and both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list. Amazon → books like this →
Stranger with My Facegrades 6–8
Is by Lois Duncan, the same author, shares themes of mystery and detective stories, and both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list. Amazon → books like this →
Christina's Ghostgrades 4–6
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
Nightmare Mountaingrades 3–6
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
The Dark and Deadly Poolgrades 6–8
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
Whispers from the Deadgrades 6–9
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
Dead Man in Indian Creekgrades 4–6
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
Twisted Summergrades 6–8
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
A Deadly Game of Magicgrades 6–8
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon → books like this →
Alvin's Swap Shopgrades 4–6
Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Third Eye for younger readers (K–2)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps K–2— same scoring, different audience.

  • Piggins by Jane Yolen · grades K–3 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories and same genre (Mystery).
  • Baby Monkey, Private Eye by Brian Selznick · grades K–3 — Same genre (Mystery).
  • Down the Rabbit Hole by Peter Abrahams · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Mystery) and overlapping grades (2–8).
  • Heckedy Peg by Audrey Wood · grades K–3 — Both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list and the same era (1980s).
  • The Apothecary by Maile Meloy · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Mystery) and overlapping grades (2–8).

Books like The Third Eye for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 3–5— same scoring, different audience.

  • Piggins by Jane Yolen · grades K–3 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories and same genre (Mystery).
  • The Stranger by Chris Van Allsburg · grades 3–5 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories and same genre (Mystery).
  • Baby-Sitting Is a Dangerous Job by Willo Davis Roberts · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of kidnapping, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Closed for the Season by Mary Downing Hahn · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Framed! by James Ponti · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like The Third Eye for middle school (grades 6–8)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 6–8— same scoring, different audience.

  • Baby-Sitting Is a Dangerous Job by Willo Davis Roberts · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of kidnapping, both on the Young Hoosier Book Award list, and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Closed for the Season by Mary Downing Hahn · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Framed! by James Ponti · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Skeleton Man by Joseph Bruchac · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of kidnapping, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (3–8).

Books like The Third Eye for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 9–12— same scoring, different audience.

  • Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories and same genre (Mystery).
  • The Haunting by Joan Lowery Nixon · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of mystery and detective stories and same genre (Mystery).
  • How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine · grades 9–12 — Same genre (Mystery).
  • Middlemarch by George Eliot · grades 11–12 — Same genre (Mystery).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Third Eye?
The 10 closest matches to The Third Eye by Lois Duncan on ReadingList include Don't Look Behind You, Stranger with My Face, Christina's Ghost, Nightmare Mountain, and The Dark and Deadly Pool. Each is scored on shared themes (kidnapping, mystery and detective stories, and extrasensory perception), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 6–8), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Third Eye reading-level appropriate?
Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 6–8), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.
How does ReadingList choose similar books?
Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Book data last updated 2026-09-05. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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