Rating - ⭐⭐⭐1/2
"It’s wintertime at Greenglass House. The creaky smuggler’s inn is always quiet during this season, and twelve-year-old Milo, the innkeepers’ adopted son, plans to spend his holidays relaxing. But on the first icy night of vacation, out of nowhere, the guest bell rings. Then rings again. And again. Soon Milo’s home is bursting with odd, secretive guests, each one bearing a strange story that is somehow connected to the rambling old house. As objects go missing and tempers flare, Milo and Meddy, the cook’s daughter, must decipher clues and untangle the web of deepening mysteries to discover the truth about Greenglass House—and themselves."
Greenglass House is the first novel in the MG mystery series of the same name by Kate Milford.
I more or less enjoyed myself while reading it, but it just didn't quite fulfill what I wanted out of it. I love the idea of a book set at an inn, and it is one that I actively look out for. While to some extent it did deliver on that aspect, what impacted my experience was in part the way the story was told.
In order to advance the plot and solve the mystery of who was stealing the guest's belongings, our main character Milo and his new friend Meddy decide to play a game and act through their characters. While I did eventually get used to them using their character names interchangeably with their real names, I thought it was a bit of an odd way to write the story.
Besides that, the only other thing that bothered me was the inclusion of the plotline that told the story between Clem, Georgie, and Owen. While it helped establish their connection to the house and the overall story, I felt like it didn't add much to the narrative and could have been cut down.
I was also able to guess the big reveals in the end, but I wasn't really expecting to be blown out of the water by the mystery. A minor issue I had, which is entirely on me, was the fact that every time the BTS (short for belowground transit system) was mentioned, I was immediately taken right out of the story because I would think of BTS.
Overall, I thought that this was a solid mystery that brought forth some interesting elements. It gave me Mr.Penumbra and Knives Out vibes, so if you are a fan of either of those, maybe this might work for you as well.
Commentaires