map to treasure is a middle-grade novel about hidden pasts and the adventures of five sisters in a christian family. taking place in 2001, it is in clyde, north carolina where the girls are growing up. elise rethman is the youngest sister and also the main character, whose main problem is avoiding diana, an annoying girl at church who seems to want to "steal" elise's best friend from her. at the beginning of the book, elise is chased by a wild bear while she is out on the trails in her woods, riding her beloved horse, blossom. after this event, her and her sisters are plunged into curiosity as their dad seems to be hiding an important secret from them. when diana comes to stay at the rethman home while her parents are away, her and elise are kidnapped while trail riding. their captors threaten the girls to give them a box that conceals a map that leads to treasure, which elise's father supposedly has. her and diana find themselves in a mess with their captors and each other. together they have to figure out how to escape and push aside their pride to work together. after many happenings, elise and diana arrive safely home, elise and her sisters are let in on the secrets their dad seemed to have been keeping from them and they are sent to new york to stay with their cousins and be out of harm's way. it is there that elise discovers the key that would go along with the map to lead them where the treasure is and unlock the secret.