Something always falls down whenever Elizabeth gets “the feeling”. There’s a variety of mysteries sprinkled throughout the story – what really happened to Elizabeth’s parents? What does the coded message on the painting say? What are the Heims up to? Where does Elizabeth fit in all this? Does she really have magical powers? Because, while the story starts out as a straight fiction, there is a bit of magic that creeps in. From the first chapter, I was drawn right into the story. Elizabeth is drawn into solving the mystery before evil can befall the hotel.įinal thoughts: A very fun book that was a pleasure to read aloud. She also has a feeling the Heims, a couple at the hotel, have a secret agenda while they are staying. Elizabeth soon learns about a mystery at the hotel involving a book hidden in the library and a coded message on the founder’s portrait. It’s made even better when she makes friends with Freddy, another 11-year old on his own at the hotel (because of course you sent 11-year olds to stay by themselves at a hotel for weeks). Long version: Elizabeth is surprised to be sent to the Winterhouse hotel for the Christmas holiday, since it is out of character for her awful (and poor) aunt and uncle who she lives with. Summary: Short version: Who can find The Book and decode the secret message first? Setting: mostly the Winterhouse hotel, in a northern climate, present day

Genre: middle grade fiction with a touch of magic It’s set in the winter, so it made it appropriate to read this late in the year. Bristol's art is whimsical and enhances the spirit of the story.I had heard good things about this book and decided to read it to the kids. 'Clever and captivating.' - Kirkus ReviewsĪ charming, atmospheric mystery with some fantasy elements, for fans of Kate Milford's Greenglass House and Trenton Lee Stewart's The Mysterious Benedict Society. Mystery, adventure, and beautiful writing combine in this exciting debut richly set in a hotel full of secrets. But will it be at the cost of losing the people she has come to care for, and even Winterhouse itself? As fate would have it, Elizabeth is the only person who can break the hotel's curse and solve the mystery. But the deeper she delves into the hotel's secrets, the more Elizabeth starts to realize that she is somehow connected to Winterhouse. It's not long before she locates a magical book of puzzles that will unlock a mystery involving Norbridge and his sinister family.

Upon arrival, Elizabeth quickly discovers that Winterhouse has many charms-most notably its massive library. Orphan Elizabeth Somers's malevolent aunt and uncle ship her off to the ominous Winterhouse Hotel, owned by the peculiar Norbridge Falls. An enchanting urban fantasy middle-grade debut-the first book in a trilogy-set in a magical hotel full of secrets.

Winterhouse book 1