The Secret Keepers

why is it so reminiscent of The Keepers by Ted Sanders. I could totally compare Reuben and Horace XD. Anyways, I've read this... three times now as of last night.

** spoiler alert ** I had very high hopes for this book, but unfortunately I feel let down! I remember thoroughly enjoying all three of the Mysterious Benedict Society books, as well as the prequel, even though I read them as a high school student. One of my favorite things about Trenton Lee Stewart was his ability to craft such an effortlessly beautiful sentence. I feel as if he didn’t put as much care or thought into sentence structure and word choice this go round. Aside from writing style, I also was not a very big fan of this book’s plot. Overall, I feel like it can be summed up into one word: anti-climatic. To give an example, the final chapter of the book is titled, “The Most Mysterious Thing in the World.” That’s a pretty bold statement, and it had me clawing my way to the end of the book, eager for a surprise! However, unlike the chapter title suggests, not one final plot-twist was developed to leave us readers with our jaws dropped. Instead, the chapter was simply an epilogue, in which no new intriguing or mysterious information was divulged. Overall, I feel as if this book was poorly planned out. It felt as if the author was coming up with the twists and turn as he wrote rather than planning the story out before hand. Whether or not that was the case, it’s how it felt to me personally. In an attempt to end on a high note, I will say that about the only thing I can praise this story for is a few moments of true suspense that had me sitting on the edge of my seat. Towards the beginning, the plot unfolded quickly and left me feeling intrigued, but as the story progressed, I just feel like it lost its steam.

This was a cute story full of adventure and fun! The characters were well fleshed out. However, the story had elements that reminded me of other stories, and they weren't done nearly as well.

Unfortunately this book just wasn't for me. I don't think it is a bad book, but I have read so many amazing middle grade that this one just felt flat. I have no problem supsending belief, but this required way too much. Jack is a kid, which the author reminds you of 80000 times, but he made some really dumb and completely illogical choices even for an 11 year old. The pacing was not great and this book was about 200 pages too long. Overall, if you have a very young reader or you have not read a lot of middle grade and just want a completely mindless adventure, give this one a try.

Trenton Lee Stewart had me charmed with The Mysterious Benedict Society. I fell in love with the quick moving, fluid and well-written story line that unfolded on the pages. To say I had high hopes for The Secret Keepers would be an understatement, which probably contributed to disappointment. This book isn't quite up to bar that I had set for it. First off, this book is honestly much longer than it should be. It stretches the story out to the point where, quite often, there is nothing actually happening on the pages. I can absolutely forgive a book for starting out slowly, as the background and characters are set in place. This book, however, never actually picks up speed. It meanders along, at a plodding pace, to the point that I skimmed a fair amount of pages per chapter and didn't feel like I'd missed anything. The story line itself is solid, and interesting. It's just bogged down by the length it needs to fill. I also just never fell in love with our main character. Reuben never felt brave to me, only foolhardy and impulsive. While I could see Stewart trying valiantly to outline the reasons why Reuben behaved as he did, it still never felt truthful to me. I'm absolutely enamored with the idea of a boy who loves his mother so much he'd do anything to protect her. Past that, however, it just fell apart for me. I admit that Penny did increase my interest for a while though. So there's that! She's a little spitfire. Whenever I read a book that is aimed at the Middle Grade crowd, I always try to think about it from that perspective as well. After working with that age of children for many years, and being an avid reader myself well before that age group, I feel comfortable settling myself back into that mindset. That being said, this book doesn't seem like one that would capture their imaginations. It lacks excitement. It was missing that piece that keeps you riveted, tearing through the pages to find out what happens next. Even the ultimate confrontation, the big climax, didn't really come through. Both Middle Grade Jessica and adult Jessica would have felt that lack of real energy. I'd love to recommend this one, but I really can't. Go forth and get lost in the charming world of The Mysterious Benedict Society instead.