My Rating: 5/5 stars
This is an all new time favorite middle grade book. This book follows an interesting family who are all named after a word picked in the dictionary on the day of their birth. Shenanigan Swift is very much so not happy with her name and wants to be more than the kid who gets into all sorts of trouble. When she’s not causing trouble, she’s busy mapping her very large and sometimes sentient seeming house in attempt to find the missing treasure hoard buried centuries ago by her ancestors. She hopes that when she finally finds the treasure, all by herself, she’ll finally be able to be more than just Shenanigan Swift and people will start to take her seriously. Unfortunately, during an impromptu family reunion, a beloved family member dies and Shenanigan and her sisters are caught up in an investigation that’ll have them chasing a killer amongst their own.
I loved all the characters in this story. I’m a huge sucker for a trio of sisters, especially when they all have varying personalities. I especially liked the sisters in this book because while they had their handful of wholesome moments, there was something significantly more mature about them. I liked reading how they bounced off each other and how they fought and handled their fights. It felt very authentic.
Honestly, the highlight of this book was the mesh of different characters. The Swift family is a large and loud family. All named after a word in the dictionary, every character is uniquely different from each other in a way you probably haven’t seen in other books. It was quite refreshing to read and also the perfect cast for a murder mystery setting.
The mystery itself was highly entertaining. I was pretty curious to see how the author would mix the treasure hunting plot line with the murder mystery plot line but it worked really well! I honestly got so frustrated as I read about how stupid some of the adults were with the investigation but I thought it was brilliant how the author played with that and how they made everyone seem a bit suspicious. I also absolutely loved the illustrations in this book. It made everything even more cozy.
I highly recommend this book if you’re looking for a fast paced middle grade that’ll have you rolling your eyes, laughing, and tearing up sometimes. It’s got LGBTQ+ representation, a large family that kind of gives Adams Family and Scary Godmother vibes, and a main character you just want to hug.