Candace is not your typical third grader--or your typical girl for that matter. She's not into her appearance or competing in the Li'l Miss Live Oak pageant like all her friends are or the ladies in her family were. Her mama was a Li'l Miss Live Oak, her grandmother was...her great-grandmother too. But she has no interest in competing even though it's her year to. Plus, there's that little stage fright issue she has.

But she does love to figure out puzzles and mysteries! Her best friend, Arnold, isn't like other boys their age either, but his quirky ways make him the perfect sidekick who always keeps things interesting.

Normally, life in a small town can be dull. But not in Live Oak. School has just ended, and Live Oak's pageant season has just begun, along with mysterious happenings to the contestants. Candace's friend Anna Kate swims up to Candace and Arnold at the School's Out for Summer Soiree, requesting Candace's help. Telling her a tale so unbelievable, Candace can't help but be reeled in as more bizarre events keep occurring to her friends.

To truly find the culprit, Candace must make one of the toughest choices of her life--go undercover, becoming a contestant in Li'l Miss Live Oak, overcome her stage fright phobia, and catch whoever is trying to botch the beauty pageant. With Arnold by her side, anything's possible, but will they solve it in time to crown the next Li'l Miss Live Oak?