Death at Morning House

Fans of Maureen Johnson should not miss this book! My journey with Maureen started with the Truly Devious series. I fell in love with the writing and the characters quirkiness. When one loves a series so much, it can somewhat be difficult not to expect the same reaction with a new book by the same author. Death at Morning House did not disappoint with the twists and turns of a mystery novel. I loved the stories and how each one had it's own problem to solve. In the back on my mind while reading, I was expecting the stories to truly intertwine, which never happened. The only connection is the house itself. I say this not to spoil anything but to get that prenotion out of a readers head so they can enjoy the story as it is told. If I knew this going in, I think I would have had a better time with each story individually.

The characters were decent, but I'll admit I liked the past better than the future. Marlowe was enjoyable enough but there was a spark to her that I was missing. Clara was the true winner of this story. She starts off almost unlikeable but the more her story progresses, the more I connected with her. Although her fate is sealed, the journey was worth it. The way the whole past unraveled was something I did not see coming and I enjoyed that so much! While I can appreciate the present story - I didn't find it nearly as interesting.

Overall, Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson is a must read for anyone who is a fan of hers. Even if you haven't read anything by her and you enjoy murder mysteries - then you should still pick this up. The two timelines help split up the book to enjoy both mysteries. While I personally enjoyed the past more than the present, both held my interest. It's always fun trying to figure out the end, and while I was able to figure out the present, the past was surprising!

Marlowe Wexler has a decent summer planned, working at a local ice cream parlor alongside her crush, Akilah. Things go well, until they don't. An excellent date at the Cheesecake Factory ends with some light arson (due to a defective candle), and before she knows it, Akilah has taken another job, and Marlowe is shuttled off to Ralston Island in the St. Lawrence River. A friend of her parents' is doing research on the property, which was owned by a Dr. Phillip Ralston and his wife, former actress Faye, in the 1930s, but has been derelict ever since two of their children died on the same day. The book goes back and forth, telling the story of the Ralstons as well as Marlowe's experiences as a docent at the house. In 1932, there were six children the doctor had adopted in England from mothers who couldn't care for the children and whose fathers had been killed in the Great War. Clara, William, Unity, Victory, Edward, and Benjamin all are fed the Kellogg's sanitarium diet, with whole foods, are expected to swim twice a day, and are encouraged in their academic and creative pursuits. Clara is a swimmer and dancer, and is a favorite of the father, but is having a bad summer and drinking a lot of bootleg hooch that can be found abandoned along the river due to bootleggers. There is also young Max, the couple's son, who is four, and a difficult child given to tantrums. Phillip's sister, Dagmar, has been involved in the children's care. Marlowe knows that Max drowned, Clara found him, and subsequently threw herself off the house in grief, but there are things about the story that don't seem right. Dr. Henson, the family friend, works alone in her office while a variety of local teens and Marlowe run tours of the house. April is super friendly, Ricki is an enigmatic Goth type, and the others were all involved in their own tragedy when one of their friends drowned after prom. Marlowe, who is missing Akilah but afraid to text her, throws herself into work and also investigates the mysteries. When Dr. Henson goes missing, things become dire. As the tensions ramp up, and adult supervision is minimal, a storm and subsequent fire bring hidden secrets from the past and the present to light. (I don't want to ruin either mystery!)

DEATH AT MORNING HOUSE is a riveting YA mystery/suspense that kept me hooked from the start. The story follows Marlowe, a teen whose life seemed to rapidly spiral after her date with her dream girl ended up going up in flames - literally. Horribly ashamed and planning to do plenty of sulking, she takes the lifeline offered to her by a close family friend to go to a remote island and be a tour guide at Morning House.

Morning House is the notorious summer home of a wealthy family that was a leader in the eugenics movement in the early 1900s. The family seemed to have a curse that began when the youngest child drowned and then the oldest fell off the balcony to her death. Most of the rest of the family followed in the coming years - with one of the boys Benjamin making it to old age. He was rumored to have buried a treasure on the island home before his death. Now, some wealthy investors have bought it as some kind of retreat but are allowing the locals to show the house as a historical site for a year before taking over.

Marlowe is the outsider on the island, and she has always had a good memory and a knack for figuring out puzzles. As she spends time with the other teens at Morning House, she begins to realize that the past reflects the present - and she may be in danger.

What I loved: The story is told primarily from Marlowe's point-of-view with interludes from the past, following the different children in that summer leading up to first two deaths. While Marlowe is not interested in playing detective, she ends up with her own case in the present to be solved - while the one in the past is somewhat solved on its own. Both the present and the past were riveting, and the reader couldn't help but get into Marlowe's life and story.

Marlowe is shy, awkward, and smart in her own way. She is not looking for any cases to solve and really just wants to spend the summer away from the town and the memories of the fire (which was really only caused by a faulty candle and a total accident). Her reputation follows her, but she finds a rhythm and camaraderie among the other teens working on the island. Her love life seems a bit hopeless, but she finds herself with a small crush on one of the others that could potentially lead her into trouble. It was easy to fall into her story and care about her personal development. The pace was quick and kept the reader hooked.

The interludes from the past were endlessly interesting. This family was unique for so many reasons with the father having adopted the six older kids in relatively quick succession and raising them to be the best at everything. He later married and had a child with his wife, who seemed to be quite different than the others. The past story brings up some really intriguing themes around parenthood, wealth, prejudice and problematic beliefs, lies, individuality vs conformity, and nature vs nurture.

In the present, there is a case that begins to build more as the story continues with little hints and tidbits along the way. It was one of those mysteries that makes you want to immediately go back and reread the book to see what you may have missed along the way. It is very clever, intricately woven, and thoroughly plotted. While these elements and atmosphere will heavily appeal to fans of TRULY DEVIOUS, this story does feel a bit different as the main character does not intend to solve any crimes (though somehow does along the way).

Final verdict: Whip-smart and thoroughly riveting, DEATH AT MORNING HOUSE is a compulsive YA mystery/suspense that will keep readers hooked until the shocking end. Highly recommend picking this one up!