This was a fun audiobook. The narration was excellent and perfectly suited to the story. I found the characters delightful and really enjoyed the unusual world-building and the forms that the world-within-a-world story took. There was not quite as much plot or character development as I would have liked to see - although I do think it was appropriate for the grade level, there could easily have been a little more depth and breadth without losing the audience.

It felt like the setup to a series, and if there were subsequent book set in this world I would definitely take a look - as well as introduce my eight-year-old to them! She would love and relate to Tuesday's sense of adventure as much as I did Zed's more careful methodical nature!

I enjoyed Relatively Normal Secrets. I thought the figurative language was great and helped paint the setting picture. I would have loved more plot development and the ending felt rushed. Great for kids in middle grades!

This review is of the audiobook of this title. The story has a bit of a “Spy Kids” vibe to it, as the main characters, Tuesday and Zed, know their parents have secrets they are keeping about their past and their jobs. They find themselves fleeing their parents’ enemies from the past and trying to save themselves and their parents while determining who the good guys really are. This is a great middle-grade book for kids interested in mysteries, supernatural, magic, and fantasy.
The narrator did a great job animating all of the characters in the story and keeping an engaging pace.

3/5 Decent read and great narration.

This review is for the audiobook version. Firstly, I want to say that I really liked this narrator and they don't sound weird sped up which is a huge plus for me. The story however was a bit confusing at times and didn't always keep my attention which is usually a big no-no for me when reviewing books let alone children's/middle-grade books. I really liked the middle of the book though and really enjoyed the first little bit when they just get to Falinnheim. The ending and beginning were both quite dull. I usually prefer when the secrets get revealed in the last third of the book and not the last 10% but it is, unfortunately, a common thing in kids' books so I didn't mark it down for that. In conclusion, I liked about 50% of this book and really only recommend it to young readers/listeners.

Disclaimer: I got early access to this audiobook on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

RELATIVELY NORMAL SECRETS is an adorable, fun middle grade. Zed and Tuesday hold all of the aspects of middle grade characters I've come to love: children that feel they can take on big missions in adult worlds. Zed and Tuesday feel unique and full of voice, as does the world that surrounds them. My favourite part about this book was the author's ability to ignite all five of my senses in the read. The story truly comes to life.

That being said, the layering of complexities (nursery rhymes, a fantasy world, the mystery of Zed and Tuesday's parents) was a bit confusing, and I think might be a bit beyond a 10-12y reader's ability to keep track.

I would like to say thank you to the author and the publisher for allowing me access to a copy of this book and thank you to NetGalley Shelf are allowing me access to the website. I enjoyed this book a lot I thought they had really good humour and sarcasm and I really enjoyed a lot of quotes such as names are just sounds that I shouted at people for their attention I really enjoyed that quote and I thought it was really hilarious it’s marketed for young adult to middle grade and I think this is right but as a young adult adultReader I think this is also really good to read and it was refreshing and I very much enjoyed this

Relatively Normal Secrets was a fun and fast paced middle-grade book. It told the story of two kids who come from a family filled with secrets and suddenly transported a magical land called Falinnhaiem.
The main characters Zed and Tuesday were very cute characters. I liked that even tho they were complete opposites they could still work together. It doesn't take long for this story to take a turn where the kids are separated from their parent and are pulled into a magical world ruled by the tyrant who has taken over Falinnhaiem.
I loved reading about all the secrets, codes, and sheer magical realism of it all.
I also thought it was very clever the way the author used old nursery rhymes in the story, you don’t see that done very often.
There was action and adventure, magic and politics. The only bad thing I would say is that it felt like the author dumped all the info at the end instead of a slower reveal. I don’t think this will bother a middle school reader tho. Can’t wait to read the next book.

Two adorable troublemaker siblings landed in an unknown world after magically being transported from their home during an attack.
Now set to decode secret messages & solve the mystery to get back where they belong

The story is humorous, Magical, mysterious & Unpredictable
Somehow I find it a combination of
The Incredibles
+
Mission Impossible (parts)

In this story, the kids are normal and the parents are just weird. Tuesday and Zed Furst have a father who won’t discuss his job and their mother never leaves the house without her guard dog. The topic of the family tree is completely off limits.

The parents have now left for a last minute “business trip.” With the grownups gone, Zed and Tuesday decide to get to the bottom of things once and for all. Their quest leaves them trapped in the modern-meets-medieval Falinnheim, where everyone insists their father is a disgraced fugitive. They hope whoever is leaving them coded clues will reveal some answers. But the answers may not be what they hope to find.

If they ever want to see their parents again, they’ll need the help of a smuggler with a broken compass, their suddenly unusually talented dog, some organized bandits, and a myriad of misquoted nursery rhymes.

This is a quirky, fast paced magical tale, fantasy readers will devour. It will make a good read aloud and the narration in the audio was quite appealing

This was my first time reading/listening C.W. Allen, and when I tell you I am so glad this was my introduction to this author. Relatively Normal Secrets, is filled with intense secrets, but it's relatable in how sometimes we are curious about what our parents do and their life before children and such. It's so magical, I could truly picture everything scene as it was being narrated. I cannot wait for Relatively Normal Secrets to be released and for the second part, which I hope there will be a second book because we need to know what happens.

Tuesday and Zed are sure their parents are hiding something. They have a distinct lack of extended family and they can’t seem to get straight answers from their parents about simple things.

After their parents leave for a suspicious ‘work trip’ the two siblings are attacked by two strangers with magical weapons and find themselves in a strange new world.

What secrets will they discover about their parents?

This is the start of a series right? Cause I need more to the story.

What a cute and creative story! I loved the characters - especially the dog - and the world building was excellent. The use of nursery rhymes felt a tad bit cliche, but it wasn’t that important to the story. The twist near the end was pretty predictable, but I still enjoyed it.

I listened to the audio excerpt and it didn’t really give me the idea of what the book is about, so I’d love to read the book to see what it’s about. The narrator was good in my opinion and she distinguished the different characters very well.

This book was so fun!

Tuesday and Zed Furst know their parents are hiding things from them but in their wildest dreams they could never guess what. When their parents go away for a business trip and leave them with a kindly neighbor things don't go as planned. When the siblings are forced to escape from evil villains, their parents' secrets are about to come out.

What follows is a delightful, fast-paced adventure perfect for the middle-grade reader. The characters are fun and engaging. The pacing is perfect for those of an age with little patience (and their mothers). In short, I absolutely loved it!

I highly recommend this for readers approximately grades 2-5.

This is a fun middle-grade book that I'd recommend to most 10-12 year olds that like fantasy. The beginning is funny and draws you in (I love how one of the main characters is named Tuesday June First but was born on a Saturday in March.) But the fantasy world/parallel universe plus nursery rhymes plus mystery is a very detailed plot that even confused me at times.

This was a quick, short and fun audiobook that I can recommend to anyone who likes middle-grade magic stories with dimension travels and family secrets thrown in. Tuesday and Zed are two "normal" siblings with "normal parents" who go on a "normal" business trip. When they suddenly arrive in modern-meets-medieval Falinnheim, they quickly realize that the villagers don't think their father is so normal after all. On their quirky adventure to get back to their parents, we get to accompany the siblings on a trip full of magic, mystery and secrets.

The narrator Ivy Tara Blair has a great voice that I loved listening to and I thought the author C.W. Allen did a great job bringing this new story to life!