A Syracuse, New York, teen takes a summer job as a tour guide at a remote estate that was the summer home of a wealthy and eccentric family in the 1930s.Marlowe Wexler is stunned but delighted that her crush on Akilah Jones, her classmate and ice cream shop co-worker, is reciprocated. But when she accidentally causes a house fire on their first date, she's overwhelmed by anxiety, embarrassment, and doubt. When her history teacher recommends her for a job at historic Morning House in the St. Lawrence River's Thousand Islands, Marlowe is eager to escape to a place where no one knows her. Soon she's trying to find her footing among a troubled group of teens working there, all with their own messy secrets. Johnson's latest juxtaposes Marlowe's clever, funny, slightly neurotic first-person voice with chapters about the mysterious historical family, which included six children who were adopted from England during World War I by Phillip Ralston, a eugenicist physician. The other household members were Ralston's sister, his actress wife, and their youngest child, a biological son. Compelling mysteries unfurl in the past and the present, centering on tragedies that befall both groups. Marlowe serves as an anchor amid the many contemporary characters who seem like they may be deceiving her, keeping readers guessing. Lesbian Marlowe reads white; Akilah is cued Black, and there's diversity in race and sexual orientation among the supporting cast.An engaging and expansive mystery. (map) (Mystery. 13-18)

Gr 9 Up— Marlowe Wexler is an accidental arsonist. After an exploding candle ruins her first date with the girl of her dreams—and a family friend's cabin—Marlowe wants nothing more than to get away. She snatches at the opportunity to take a summer job as a tour guide on Ralston Island, one of the Thousand Islands (of salad dressing fame) and home of the infamous Morning House, where, in the 1930s, two of the Ralston children tragically and mysteriously died. As Marlowe gets to know her fellow teen colleagues—stoner Van, rich kid Tom, serious and put-together Liani, peacemaker April, and sarcastic Goth Riki—it becomes apparent that they and Morning House, with its marbled hallways and extravagant living quarters, hold many secrets. When Dr. Benson, a historian writing about the Ralston family and overseer of the tours, goes missing, Marlowe and company are thrust into solving an uneasy whodunit. If they're the only ones on the island, who can Marlowe trust? Alternating chapters tell the story of the fateful days leading up to the deaths of Clara and Max Ralston almost 100 years before. The fleshing out of the supporting cast leaves a little to be desired, but it is endearing, awkward, kind Marlowe who drives this narrative; readers can't help but root for her. Some readers may solve both mysteries long before the characters do, but that shouldn't take away from an enjoyable, fast-paced read. All characters are described or read as white, except Riki, who is Indian American. VERDICT A fun, thrilling mystery than spans almost a century, and a must-read for mystery fans.— Tyler Hixson