"'Tomorrow at dawn, I shall meet le sniveling froussard on the front lawn for a deadly contest of wits. Yes, it shall be Scrabble-to the death!'"
-Pamplemousse, page 174


First of all, that cover caught my eye. And second, how could I not read a book where each character has a name taken straight from the dictionary!? The main character's name is literally Shenanigan!

This was a wild, quirky, and humorous ride. ( )

The Swift family reunion turns deadly while relatives search for Vile's Hoard, a treasure hidden somewhere on the grounds of the House. Young Shenanigan Swift, along with her sisters Phenomena and Felicity, and their cousin Erf, investigate the murders (attempted and actual), trying to ascertain motive and opportunity, and catch the killer before they strike again.

A little bit Addams Family, a little bit Clue, a little bit The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, and wholly satisfying, clever, and delightful, this twisty mystery is enhanced even more by Claire Powell's marvelous illustrations (some full-page, and one at the head of each chapter). Erf is nonbinary and chooses their own name; Fauna is trans. Shenanigan is Shenanigan.

See also: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

*
Re-read (audiobook, excellent) April 2024. I remembered who the main villain was, but had forgotten some of the other details; it was delightful all over again. See also: No One Leaves the Castle

Quotes

[Shenanigan] has just the mix of stubbornness and curiosity that either rediscovered lost cities or landed a person in prison. (26)

When you are faced with a problem, it can be very difficult to admit that doing nothing might be just as good as doing something. (30)

"...just because two things seem connected, it doesn't mean they actually are." (41)

...translation can be a sort of treasure if words mean more to you than gold. (139)

While Phenomena, Shenanigan, and Erf had been in the library proving that Gumshoe's death wasn't an accident, Inheritance had been in the Evening Room, telling everyone that it was. (171)

[Daisy] was like a bouquet of flowers with a crowbar in the middle. (173)

She didn't care about all these "hows" or "whys" - only the "whos." She felt like an arrow in a bow. She needed to be pointed at a target, and let fly. (177)

She didn't lie, but she did act. The trick to acting was to find a bit of truth, and pull it around you like a raincoat until it covered your whole body. (190)

"A hunch is just your brain subconsciously taking in data and coming to a conclusion without you really being aware of it." (197)

"Sometimes it all feels a bit...inevitable." (216)

"There will always be people who think they know you better than you know yourself. But I quickly learned that they don't matter; the people who love you are the people who listen." (Fauna to Erf, 217)

Each of them was too upset to see the others properly. (249)

People often reasonably discuss such unreasonable things. (266)

Growing up happens whenever it wants to, in fits and starts and all over the place....Now she was grown-up enough to be afraid. (285)

Maybe the Naming was all rubbish, after all, she thought. Some people acted the way they were expected to, and some didn't....Shenanigan was who she was. (286-287)

From now on, Shenanigan would have to learn how to be afraid. And, most important of all, how to be afraid and keep going anyway. (299) ( )

Ganador del Barnes and Noble Children's and YA Book Award 2023

Los Swift es una historia llena de suspense y arrebatadoramente ingeniosa, repleta de juegos, dobles sentidos y todas las diabluras imaginables.

Una novela sobre el poder de las palabras, la identidad propia y las expectativas de los padres, y lo que ocurre cuando esas dos cosas no van por el mismo camino.

Pasadizos secretos, un tesoro oculto, una peligrosa reunión familiar, una arriesgada partida de Scrabble y un misterioso crimen que resolver.

this is so fun. it's full of word games and puns and twisty mysteries, but also it is a strong message about not being bound by what people think they know of you or what they tell you you should be. fantastic all around. (i'm pretty sure that more than half of it went over my 11 year-old's head, though.) ( )

First sentence: It was a bright, well-dressed morning in early May and the Swifts were in the middle of a funeral. The House looked very fine. The lawns had been swept clean of leaves, the hedge maze had been trimmed, and the statues had been scrubbed behind the ears. The Family had spent the morning practicing their eulogies in front of a mirror, and now they walked in slow procession through the cemetery, faces professionally grim.

Premise/plot: The Swifts are something else. Shenanigan Swift, our narrator, has a LARGE, bizarre, odd, quirky, whimsical, one-of-a-kind family. And they're all coming--well the living ones--to a Reunion. Some may choose to partake in an actual treasure hunt--a Vile relation, literally named Vile Swift--hid treasure on the property way back when that has yet to be discovered. He lived up to his name. Supposedly, all Swifts lift up their names. But do they? Maybe. Maybe not. Shenanigan has spent much of her time mapping out the LARGE equally bizarre, quirky, one-of-a-kind house and looking for secret tunnels, secret rooms, secret hiding places, etc. She may not be the matriarch or the archivist, but, she's accumulating knowledge in her spare time--knowledge that may just prove useful once this family reunion turns deadly.

This whimsical mystery packed with dark humor is unique. There are dozens of characters--or suspects, or victims--and dozens of clues. There's plenty of twists and turns.

My thoughts: I liked many things about this one. It was a little crazy--for better or worse. And by crazy I don't make an allusion to anything regarding mental health or well-being. I mean zany, topsy-turvy, out-there, bizarre, whimsical, quirky. It was a little OVER the top. So over the top that it goes right past "realistic fiction." Imagine if Roald Dahl ever wrote a family reunion with a treasure hunt. It isn't so much about in-depth characterization and believable story as it is just a roller coaster ride of whimsy.

Erf. I personally am not a fan. I think giving them an actual name beyond "Erf" would go a long way. I can get--or try to get--why they would want to choose a new name for themself that wouldn't be the one on their birth certificate. But why Erf? And is Erf a new name? a nickname? an-in-between name? Is a better sounding name coming? I'm glad that Shenanigan makes a friend. But still... ( )