A New York Times bestseller Parents' Choice Gold Award Iowa Children's Choice Award Kentucky Bluegrass Award Nominee West Virginia Children's Book Award Handpicked for Amazon Prime Book Box * "The tone of this darkly dry pastiche is consistently witty, and it's chock-full of accessible parodic references to.classic children's texts.Lowry crafts a tidy plot."-- The Bulletin, starred review * "Lois Lowry, who casts her noble and enviable shadow wide across the landscape of children's literature, from fantasy to realism, here turns her quick, sly gaze to parody, a word which in this case means 'a short novel mocking the conventions of old-fashioned children's books stuffed with orphans, nannies and long-lost heirs.'"-- Publishers Weekly, starred review, written by Lemony Snicket * " Sly humor and a certain deadpan zaniness give literary conventions an ironic twist, with hilarious results.Great fun."-- Booklist, starred review * "With this fey venture into kiddie Gothic, the august two-time Newbery winner and author of the beloved Anastasia Krupnik series proves that a writer can always reinvent herself.Readers who are willing to give themselves up entirely to the sly foolishness will relish this sparklingly smart satire, which treats them with collegial familiarity.

"-- Kirkus Reviews, starred review.