Source: Bookstore Inventory
Publisher: Little Brown
Series: All the Wrong Questions #1
Edition: Hardcover, 258 pages
Genre: Middle Grade Mystery
Purchase: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Book Depository*
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Rating: 3.5/5
The adventure began in a fading town. Far from anyone he knew or trusted, a young Lemony Snicket started an apprenticeship for a secret organization shrouded in mystery and secrecy. He asked questions that shouldn’t have been on his mind. Now he has written an account that should not be published that shouldn’t be read. Not even by you. Seriously, we recommend that you do NOT ask your parents for this, the first book in his new ALL THE WRONG QUESTIONS series.
Lemony Snicket, in case you don’t already know, grew up to be the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events series.
Who Could That Be At This Hour? is basically this generations Unfortunate Events, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing considering I loved UE when they were coming out. However since I have read UE and I know the author’s style, I also know that this one isn’t that much different from those. So nostalgia both hampered and heightened my enjoyment.
Our main character is none other than Lemony Snicket himself, as a young boy. He’s quick witted and after answers, but to what we’re never quite sure. True to form Lemony snicket writes the story in a sort of odd and clever way; defining words as he goes, asking odd questions, and pointing out things that would never have garnered much notice before. One cool thing is how it has a very noir crime novel feel to it and I love that he decided to do that in a middle grade novel. It’s not a gritty read of course but it has that first person description thing going on. The story in itself is pretty fun and I love the amount of questions it makes you ask, because that’s sort of the point. I also love the incredible round about way the characters decide to do things.
I like Lemony as a character. He’s very serious and quite smart, bringing his observant personality to the board as he sets about solving a rather…silly crime. I hated his ‘mentor’ though. She’s really dumb, but I did appreciate that fact that he knew that quite well. It’s the typical kid knows best storyline, which is great for the age but a bit overdone. I loved the taxi kids, it’s a bit odd that anyone lets them drive but I loved how they always want tips.
Overall it’s a good book, especially for those it is intended for. It’s a bit out of the ordinary in terms of writing style and is a great way to up your vocabulary in a fun way.
In Libris Veritas 