In the Study with the Wrench by Diana Peterfreund
My rating: 3/5 cats
fulfilling my 2022 vow to read more YA/finish series i have started and left unfinished
book two! okay, so if you’ve read my GIF-heavy review of In the Hall with the Knife, you will understand that Clue is my all-time favorite movie, so this series was bound to find its way into my hot little hands.
i read the first one with the highest expectations, but although i bought the rest of the series the day each of them came out, i’ve been sitting on ’em without feeling any urgency to dive back in. however, since one of my 2022 goals is to finish some of the series that’ve been sitting on my shelves unread, here i am, dutiful AF.
both books are fine YA murder mysteries, but if i’m being honest, a lot of the affection i feel for them is being carried over by my love of the movie, which is a double-edged sword knife in the conservatory. i know this series isn’t intended to be a muppet babies kind of thing and these teenversions of the characters have no connection to their cinematic predecessors, but try telling that to my brain and my heart. these characters have been in my bones for nearly forty years, so peterfreund’s new coke versions are somewhat jarring to this old dog. i mean, obviously some character tweaks were necessary to keep it YAppropriate—after all, a teenage procuress would be pretty dark for a light murder romp—and kudos to the author for updating and diversifying the cast, but—although she’s CLEARLY established that these characters are WHOLLY distinct from that iconic ensemble of yore, she’s gotta know that, thanks to her, some of us readers are over here picturing View Spoiler »
as an aside to a review that is basically one long aside already, i still can’t wrap my head around the rebooted game’s insistence that “orchid is a Clue character now,”
and since orchid and no-connection-to-Clue-whatsoever vaughn are pretty much the series’ focal points, it’s just one more obstacle standing between me and my potential for loving this series.
mrs. white appears as a significant side character, which i appreciate, but swapping out mrs. white for dr. orchid in any Clue-related property is not appreciated.
if the crime is “stealing my heart,” mrs. white will always be the one whodunnit.
so even though i want to love these books more than i do, i will finish the series, because every time there’s a little referential easter egg, my heart soars.
in conclusion:
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