Having narrowly escaped the clutches of Professor Rattigan in Curiosity House: The Shrunken Head (2015), the children of Dumfrey's Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders are finally starting to feel back to "normal." Telepath Pippa can sometimes read more than what's in people's pockets; Max's knife throwing is on point (mostly); Sam is like a mini Lenny from Of Mice and Men, with his incredible strength and desire for a pet; and Thomas' contortions get him into d out of me tight situations. In a ploy to drum up business for the museum, Mr. Dumfrey decides to re-create the "crime of the century": the recent murder of a New York City heiress. Tensions rise among the four orphans as a newcomer joins their ranks, Rattigan poses a continued threat, and another murder touches their lives. Could the two deaths be linked? Oliver and Chester have created another quirky middle-grade mystery that will have no trouble drawing a crowd. Occasionally, plot points are belabored, but most readers will be too caught up in the unusual characters and intrigue to mind.

Sam, Thomas, Max, and Pippa are in danger of losing the only home they've ever known, in Depression-era New York City. Their strange, unusual skills are valued at Dumfrey's Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders, but the museum is struggling to survive. Several displays have been destroyed, and there is dissention that leads many of the inhabitants to jump ship amid mysterious accidents. When a beloved friend and supporter is murdered, the children are determined to find answers. They employed their skills in series opener The Shrunken Head (2015), but the stakes are even higher now. There are more murders, museum mayhem, skulduggery, kidnappings, and danger at every turn. All the while the four young heroes are concerned that their evil archenemy, Rattigan, is behind it all. A large cast of mostly one-dimensional, mostly white characters moves in and out of the tale, providing clues and hints as well as many red herrings in what turns out to be a distracting subplot. Oliver and Chester keep a somewhat tighter rein this time, allowing some insight into the children's emotions and growing pains and providing one new character, newsboy Chubby, with a bit of substance. When all seems to be resolved, a very unlikely twist allows for yet another series entry. Strained and derivative, without sufficient depth to compensate. (Historical fiction. 9-12)