About The Sylvan Spy
The Sylvan Spy is the official secret message ring of the Casey Grimes world—home to adventurous kidlit, bonus stories, behind-the-scenes notes, and the occasional monster survival tip.
It’s popular in living rooms, classrooms, and secret fortresses.
Always kid-friendly.
New to Casey Grimes?
If you’d like to start at the beginning, you can read a free sample of The Mostly Invisible Boy—the first novel in the series—right here:
ajvanderhorst.com/sample
What you’ll find here
Extra scenes and short stories from the Casey Grimes universe
The full Sylvan Spy archive, including the exclusive story Wicked Winter Rush
Writing updates, author chats, and occasional Q&As
Monster survival tips (use at your own risk)
Every new post can be delivered straight to your inbox, and subscribers can like, comment, and join discussions.
Join the secret (forest) society
This is a community for readers who love fast-paced, memorable stories that champion courage, tenacity, and hope. Not everyone enjoys that kind of kidlit—but we do.
Jump into the comments, explore the archive, or support the Casey Grimes world with a subscription.
Why support the Spy?
The stories are my full-time job. It’s a risky life but good—something like fighting monsters for a living.
The books began as read-alouds with my kids. After I worked up the courage to publish them, the series took off, and I started making enough to justify the huge amount of time and energy it takes to write all those action scenes. Hundreds of notes from readers helped too—though they aren’t as useful for feeding my teenagers.
I publish the Casey Grimes books independently, without permission from Big KidLit. The agents, editors, and committees who decide what kids ought to read have very selective tastes. I don’t like their priorities, and it turns out most kids and parents don’t either.
So I keep battling the gatekeepers. Defying the dragon.
It’s a good fight—but there’s not much of a safety net.
If you love courage, tenacity, and adventure—fantasy books written for kids and parents—I invite you to consider becoming a paid subscriber or founding Sylvan Spy member. The stronger the support, the more books, short stories, and posts I can promise.
Because series like this don’t come along every day.
Boys love them. Girls love them. Parents love to steal them.
Books for kids you’ll be happy your kids are reading.
