Book 113, 2024
The Mystery Of Hollow Inn by Tara Ellis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
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I managed to knock back an entire ebook last night. It was The Mystery of Hollow Inn by Tara Ellis. It's the first in the "Samantha Wolf" series of young adult mysteries. Think modern day Nancy Drew or Trixie Belden.
Sam and her friend Ally are excited to spend a couple weeks in Montana with Sam's aunt and uncle. Beth and Bill purchased an old mansion and have turned it into an inn. However, problems are dogging their dreams. There have been acts of vandalism and reports of ghost sightings. Sam thinks the legend of lost treasure has something to do with it, and she and Ally set out to prove it. The girls use an old poem, found hidden in the journal of the original owner, for clues as to where the treasure may be hidden. Unknown to them, someone else is watching their every move and may beat them to the prize.
Since this was a young adult novel I wasn't expecting anything complicated. However, the narrative lacked the more polished plotting of the olden girl sleuth books I've read. Nevertheless, it was a fun read. Characters would have benefitted from more fleshing out, and I would have liked to see the girls just out having fun instead of being consumed with their mysterious treasure hunt.
Favorite line: "Here comes the moon again." Lame, but nothing really jumped out at me.
I have other books in this series, which I'll read eventually. For now, this one earns an average score.