The Secrets of Winterhouse: Winterhouse, Book 2
By Carrie R. Wheadon,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Return visit has more puzzles and the same spooky vibe.
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What's the Story?
In THE SECRETS OF WINTERHOUSE, Elizabeth returns to the Winterhouse hotel on the bus with the rudest family ever. A boy steals her seat and his parents yell at her to find another one. She can't help but give into the temptation to use her secret power against the boy. She concentrates her mind and wills a bag from the overhead compartment to fall on his head. When she gets off the bus in the nearby town of Havenworth to meet her Grandfather Norbridge Falls, proprietor of Winterhouse, he has some great news for her: She's moving to Winterhouse to stay. He also warns her about her power and how she uses it, especially now that she knows more about Gracella, his sister who came back to life with Elizabeth's unwitting magical help the Christmas before and tried to destroy the family's hotel. As Elizabeth settles into her new permanent home, she's determined to fit in, and to leave her sleuthing ways behind. But clues are everywhere about secret passageways, and someone in the hotel is trying to uncover them at all costs.
Is It Any Good?
It takes some time to check in to the main story, but this return visit to the wonderful Winterhouse hotel has more clever puzzles to solve and the same spooky-mystery vibe. Kids who loved the first book will enjoy some long winter nights with this one, as well, though will be waiting maybe not so patiently for Elizabeth to give in and explore the secret passageways. She slowly solves the puzzle of why they exist, and this is important to the plot, but wouldn't she learn much faster if she and Freddy took a peek inside?
While we wait for this to happen, Elizabeth settles into her new home and tries to fit in. It will be easy for kids to relate to how frustrated she gets by rude guests (who also begin to behave rather suspiciously), and fun for all to imagine living at a cool hotel with a skating rink, a pool, an ice castle to explore, and dinner parties in a big hall with magic tricks and extra helpings of dessert.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the rude people in The Secrets of Winterhouse. How does Elizabeth handle them at first? Who helps her to reflect on her behavior?
How does Elizabeth feel about moving and going to a new school at the beginning of the book? Do you have similar feelings when things change? How does she gain confidence?
Will you read the Winterhouse finale? What other secrets do you think the hotel and Elizabeth's family keep?
Book Details
- Author: Ben Guterson
- Illustrator: Chloe Bristol
- Genre: Mystery
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy , Friendship , Holidays , Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires , Science and Nature
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Henry Holt
- Publication date: December 31, 2018
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 9 - 12
- Number of pages: 384
- Available on: Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: December 20, 2019
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