The Unseen Guest Maryrose Wood Book Review

If there was ever doubt in my love of the Incorrigibles, it was erased by the third edition to the series, The Unseen Guest. Miss Penelope Lumley and her three charges Cassiopeia, Beowulf, and Alexander are back. And friends? This adventure by Maryrose Wood is a keeper.

So, the Ashton household is abuzz for several reasons. First, an ostrich is randomly walking around the woods that surround the Ashton estate. Second, Widow Ashton, Lord Frederick’s mother is dropping in for a visit with her gentleman caller. Of course, these two plots interlink with a hunt for the lost ostrich and a seance. Characters we met in book two, The Hidden Gallery make a cameo appearance.

The Unseen Guest is a bit heavier than the previous books, The Mysterious Howling and The Hidden Gallery. I liked this sort of growth or evolution. You see, Miss Penelope Lumley is melancholy over never receiving word from her parents since being dropped off at Swanburne School. She also does not feel the same sort of joy for the adventures of Edith Pevington and her horse, Rainbow anymore, either. I like that Penelope is growing up and changing a little, yet ultimately retaining her essence. Seriously, I hate reading series where characters seem to make no progress at all.

Of course, I can’t not talk about The Incorrigibles. They are still adorable and becoming civilized. AND oh gosh we get to meet a character who had a HUGE impact on the life of the Incorrigibles. There are some in The Unseen Guest with evil designs on the children. Yet, we don’t get any further, as readers, in discovering their heritage. Naturally, more mysteries are raised by this addition.

Frankly, I adore The Incorrigible Children Of Ashton Place books and feel that if you are looking to start reading middle grade, you could definitely do worse. I mean, there’s definitely a classic feel to Maryrose Wood’s writing, yet I still feel that her books are accessible to young readers.

Disclosure: Received for review via Blog Tour.

Other reviews of The Unseen Guest by Maryrose Wood:

YA Librarian Tales

The Incorrigible Children Of Ashton Place Series Order:

The Mysterious Howling (Book One)
The Hidden Gallery (Book Two)
The Unseen Guest (Book Three)