April 21, 2026 by Wednesday Books
ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Virginia Tillis is traveling to visit her grandmother Lainey at her retirement condo in Florida, and also to attend the funeral of their friend Claude, who was responsible for the quirky nature of the building. The pink, rococo style resident was home to a number of elderly theatrical retirees, and hosted Murder Most Fowl dinner parties (where fried chicken was served) as well as regular games of Killing Me Softly. Virginia willingly plays along, donning a vintage dress for the reading of the will. At the airport, she has met Felix, who is the grandson of another resident, and the two hit it off. Virginia is not as happy to meet Bradley, the college aged step nephew of Claude's sister Berneice. He's a little too familiar and creepy, and he and Berneice are not happy to find that Claude has left Berneice only his apartment, and not the entire building. Not only that, but his sister must stay in the apartment for three months and take care of his cat. When the unpleasant Bradley is found dead under the pool table, Virginia and Felix step in to investigate, even though it is assumed that one of Bradley's many allergies killed him. Bradley has taken some of Claude's paintings to a local thrift store, hoping to get money for them; one was painted by Felix's grandfather, and the two buy it back. Bradley's father runs a redevelopment company, which seems to be interested in the building, since it sits on a prime piece of real estate and has been attractive to other developers as well, even though Claude steadfastly refused to sell. As details emerge about Bradley's past as well as about suspicious things at Castle Claude, like a neglected garden full of poison plants, Virginia and Felix become closer as they participate in some of the residents' investigative parties, and also come closer to solving the crime.
There are so many cozy murder mysteries for adult readers that it should be no surprise that young adult readers would like some as well. Even middle grade readers are thrilled by books like Souders' Secrets of the Broken House. What better setting than a condo filled with quirky, theatrical retirees who love putting on murder mystery parties? Virginia and Felix both wholeheartedly enjoy the older people around them, and have learned a lot about detection during the course of the many scenarios. The fact that Castle Claude might cease to exist adds a layer of anxiety to the proceedings as well.
Bradley is a stereotypical heel, so it's hard to take his death too seriously. Berneice works against the residents in a way that makes her unsympathetic as well. There's some unexpected community in a local taxi service run by several sisters, a lawyer who doesn't have the best intentions, and a twist that will make readers who want to see justice served happy.
Felix and Virginia have a charming new romance, and this will play well with middle school readers as well as high school ones. Recommend this to fans of young adult mysteries like Johnson's Death at Morning House, van Draanen's The Steps, or Cavalanchia's Murder Royale, or even readers who enjoy the grandfather in Ponti's Hurricane Heist and the similar residence involved in that second book of The Sherlock Society mysteries.
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