I received this book for free from Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie BerryPublished by Roaring Book Press on September 23rd 2014
Genres: Historical, Middle-Grade, Mystery
Source: Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group
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There's a murderer on the loose—but that doesn't stop the girls of St. Etheldreda's from attempting to hide the death of their headmistress in this rollicking farce.
The students of St. Etheldreda's School for Girls face a bothersome dilemma. Their irascible headmistress, Mrs. Plackett, and her surly brother, Mr. Godding, have been most inconveniently poisoned at Sunday dinner. Now the school will almost certainly be closed and the girls sent home—unless these seven very proper young ladies can hide the murders and convince their neighbors that nothing is wrong.
The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place is a smart, hilarious Victorian romp, full of outrageous plot twists, mistaken identities, and mysterious happenings.
Super cute! The plot is more-or-less a game of clue, but more MG-like, with a large cast of funny, resourceful, and charismatic young girls.
Much like its cover, The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place is intriguing and fun with a touch of humour. We begin by being introduced to the girls with the help of some illustrations and a quick look into why they were sent to St. Etheldreda’s School for Girls. I had the ARC so the illustrations were sadly missing, but the cover accomplished the same and it was fun to have a visual to go with all these great personalities. Then shortly after, we have the death of the headmistress and her brother, leaving the girls to solve a mystery while trying to hide the events from the townsfolk – which proves to be quite the challenge in such a small town full of nosy neighbours and visitors.
While the plot is not especially hard to predict, the characters are what makes this entertaining. The girls range from tween to early teen, giving us an MG novel that is still a great read for adults. Plus, the novel is set in a time where kids that age seemed much older, married much younger, and had to be a lot more independent at a young age. So while they’re very young, they’re intelligent and capable, free of the usual angst and dramatics you might have expected otherwise. And do they ever have personality! I loved how quirky every girl is. They all bring something to this story: some with know-how that end up being very useful, others with rational thinking and social abilities to deal with the many dilemmas encountered. In addition, most of them have a sense of humour that proves to be the perfect touch to keep this novel from getting even a hint of a dark tone. The vibe is kept light-hearted and overall amusing throughout. Even adding in a sprinkle of romance now and again. The downside to having 7 girls as main characters, however, is that you’re unlikely to find yourself connecting with them on a personal level – just keeping track of everyone can be a challenge – but it’s not meant to be a deep, emotionally charged story at all so this doesn’t become a major issue.
Another thing I really enjoyed was the historical setting which is built to perfection. The atmosphere Julie creates is excellent; the descriptions of the girls, the dialogue, and especially the dynamics of the town truly breathes historical life into this novel.
An adventure full of character and charm, The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place is as much about the mystery itself as it is about the friendship between these young girls. Nothing forms a tighter bond than covering up a murder together!
4 Hot Espressos
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Zen DiPietro
This sounds delightful. Something to curl up with and just read for the pure happy of it. Your observations about the girls’ maturity level and lack of angsty-stuff sold me. Thanks for the review!
Nick @ Nick's Book Blog
I’ve had my eyes on this book for a while now. I’m glad that it lives up to the cute cover. It sounds like something I would really enjoy, especially the characters of the girls! 🙂
Lovely review, Giselle!
Savannah
Is this middle grade? If so, I need to recommend to my mom. (nevermind, I scolled on the top and saw that it was)LOL! Thanks for the awesome review.
Quinn @ Quinn's Book Nook
This book looks so cute. I definitely want to read it. I love books with awesome, quirky characters. I’m glad you liked it.
Lola
This sounds like a fun book! I haven’t read many historical books yet, but this one sounds worth a try. And I like mystery books, but I haven’t read that many so far. I am adding this one to my to-read list! Sad to hear the ilustrations were missing in the ARC. I always like illustrations in MG books, it’s fun to see some art on the pages and it reminds me of when I was younger and at a certain age only wanted to read a book when it had pictures in it.
Kori
So cute! Have to get it! Have a fabulous Thursday honey! Kori xoxo
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ShootingStarsMag
Aw, this sounds like such a fun book! And I LOVE the cover. I need to pick up more MG novels.
Lily B
Okay wow this does sound like so much fun 🙂 I haven’t read a lot of children fiction lately but this feels like I am totally missing out, me want now!
Faye le Potato
First off, can I just say that the cover is absolutely awesome? There’s just something so endearing about drawn covers <3 And also, GIRL POWER!!!
I've been so excited for this book since I first heard of it. I like that the characters showcase a cast of various ages – it definitely gives a lot more depth to the story and plot because we would be getting insights from different people (and we all know wisdom comes from age… right? RIGHT?! And age comes with experience!! Haha) Somehow this basic premise reminds me of Little Girls by Alcott… all girls, all had different personalities that made the book such a pleasant and enlightening experience.
Great review, love !!! Can't wait for this!!
JennRenee
So glad you loved this one. I have this coming up on a audio and I am super excited for it. I am happy to see another awesome MG novel out there. I did think this was YA but the cover made me question it and I guess for good reason. The title and the cover really is what drew me in and now I am even more super excited because of your review.
Justine
I was able to meet Julie Berry and get a copy of this signed! I have been excited to read it since I love a good fun mystery.
Lacey
This sounds great and that cover is pretty awesome. I think I might track down a copy and see if it is something I want to add to my baby’s library.
Melissa
This does sound super cute! Clue was my favorite game as a child! lol
Alreem
hey there i have been waiting for you to finish this book .. it look like it is going to be on my to read list … i want it to read it but i hesitate a little .. but thank to you i will give it a shot now 😀