Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

As a museum lover, I am instantly captured by the "unnatural" aspect of what this book has to offer. Who wouldn't want to look at the remains of an ancient mythical creature? The Curse of Eelgrass Bog gave me so much room for thought, especially the buildup, and the plot twist did not disappoint. All the clues were there once I started knowing where to look for them. There was a slow start at the beginning but once I started reading more about Eelgrass Bog, the more I wanted to know about this place. This book fulfilled so much of my curiosities. A delightful read for those who find delight in the most "unnatural" things.

This was a quick and fast paced read that I feel like a lot of middle grade readers would enjoy.

It’s intriguing enough to let you feel like you want to continue and keep going until the end.

The writing is just a little bit rough but I can see the author becoming truly fantastic the more books they write.

The description of this book certainly sounds strange. And it is, if you only focus on the details. Somehow, though Averling manages to make shrunken heads and skeletons made of gold sound standard and common place. The descriptions of characters and settings are straightforward and have an air of normalcy. We get simple explanations for the existence of witches and curses and that simplicity makes them easy to accept. With a rapid pace and reveal of hidden plot elements, this is a quick and enjoyable read.

4 out of 5 stars,

"Our shadows streak across the ground like wild things, like birds or monsters, and my heart glows, because whatever happens next, I am not alone."
- Mary Averling, The Curse of Eelgrass Bog

TL;DR: This was a cute MG book, very self-contained in both its plot and character/setting-wise. Overall, I felt as though the story was a bit unrealistic and lacked character development, but I enjoyed the twist overall.

MAJOR SPOILERS:

This book was definitely more self-contained than others due to the fact that Kess was unable to interact with any people outside of the main characters and was also unable to go to town/take a bus and go somewhere. I also felt as though this book did a very good job of depicting Kess, her loneliness, and how it affected both her and her daily life. I felt as though this novel lacked character development, but for the most part, I overlooked it due to the fact that this was an MG book. However, just to expand on that, I felt as though a lot of things that happened in this book were incredibly unrealistic, and that Kess, despite being an obviously lonely girl, simply did not have enough going for her, and that her falling for Lilou, who also seemed to be a very fast-changing character, albeit without any specific goal at all other than "Kess", seemed very unrealistic and seemingly done to hasten the story up.

Additionally, I felt that her older brother, Oliver, was villanized to a much greater extent than he deserved and that his decision was logical and to me, made a lot of sense considering their circumstances. I also found it frustrating that we only got Kess's POV in this novel, as I feel as though having multiple POVs or even Oliver/Lilou's POV would have been a much more intriguing read due to their respective relationships with Kess, instead of Kess herself, who I feel was simply not suited-- in a variety of different ways-- to deal with the curse and/or be the main protagonist of the story.

This book was also very confusing in that the Bog itself-- which is played up to be a major thing in the title-- is really quite dull and apart from being the name of the physical location that the book is in, is not magical or weird-- it's just as normal bog. Additionally, a lot of what happens in the book is often very illogical: for example, the witch of the bog, Ivy, is sad that everyone leaves her in the end-- but she can just leave at will and even does so at the end of the book, which didn't make sense to me.

The ending itself is very unrealistic, doesn't make sense, and none of the logistics are dealt with, but at one point I started to overlook everything logistical and logical if it was needed in this book. However, in the end, the illogicalness and lack of logistics in this book just simply couldn't be completely attributed to the fact that the book was MG.

I haven't quite discussed some of the other core characters, but to sum it all up, their existences are not very well-explained and oftentimes there are very odd, illogical, and random excuses attached to why they won't be coming along on their quest to find the bogwitch, for example, which, although confusing, I agreeably overlooked (once more).

However, the setting and world-building in this book were very nice and I very much enjoy twists, especially when time travel is involved, which was definitely the biggest bonus for me overall.

In the end, I feel as though this book felt like it was a novel that dealt with much deeper themes than a normal MG and just didn't pull it off well, unfortunately. This book dealt with some pretty existential and hard-hitting topics, and in the end, I feel as though our main protagonist was the worst character of all the lineup to be the main protagonist due to her naivete, youth, lack of character development and understanding of her situation, and the fact that she was unable to understand the existential topics and burdens that were placed upon her and Oliver.

Overall, this is an MG book. It's written like one and it's definitely meant to be one. I don't think it does a spectacular job with the themes it tries to tackle, but I understood what they were going for and it's a cute story overall with a nice twist and nice world-building.

An extraordinarily delightful and exciting Middle Grade Fantasy with a bog-load of twists and puzzles, secrets and brain fog, Nature and Unnature, this spectacular fantasy holds all the aura and pleasures of the kind of fantasy I adored in childhood, akin to the pleasures of reading John Bellairs and Madeleine L'Engle. I'm far from childhood now, but the sheer enfolding capacity of a story still reigns, and it shan't be long before I reread. Do yourself an enormous favor and READ THIS BOOK!

The Curse of Eelgrass Bog is a creepy middle grade fantasy with a central mystery that keeps the reader guessing! Kess spends lonely days trying to keep her home, The Unnatural History Museum, running while her parents are off on an expedition, all the while wondering why her brother just locks himself in the office all day. The book sets up some compelling mysteries right from the start, and the creep factor is high (Kess’s best friend is a demon head in a jar, and the museum is full of the bodies of monstrous creatures). When Kess meets Lilou, the new girl draws Kess into a mystery of her own that sends the girls into the mythical and treacherous bog. The story takes some serious twists and turns–the major one has pretty big hints spread throughout the book but still gives room for uncertainty, which is perfect for a middle grade read. And the relationship between the girls turns into the beginnings of a sweet romance. Readers will find themselves swept by the unique worldbuilding in this one–highly recommended!!

Kess Pedrock lives with her brother in a fascinating old museum filled with all sorts of natural and unnatural curiosities. With her scientist parents far away on the other side of the world conducting research, Kess has only her neglectful, somewhat abusive brother for company. Kess spends most of her time alone with her only friend being Jim (I don’t want to say who or what Jim is…but he is one of my favourite characters). Kess and Jim spend their time on the periphery of Eelgrass Bog on the hunt for unique artefacts for the museum, hoping to draw enough crowds to keep the museum afloat. One day, a young girl, Lilou, arrives, eager to use her birthday money to see all the exhibits the museum has to offer. Lilou brings with her not only the potential for friendship but also a quest to find the answers to mysteries surrounding not only the museum itself, but also Kess’s family.

I am so excited about this book for several reasons: First of all, as a reader- what a wonderfully engaging story with a fast-paced and thrilling plot and an engaging, sympathetic young protagonist. Mary Averling’s writing style is beautiful and sophisticated for a middle school book. I mean, “ bats fly hither thither like tiny black comets”...come on, how wonderful is that! Secondly, I’m excited about this book as an educator. This book would make an excellent read-aloud, individual book study and/or class study. It also lends itself as a mentor text for writing! Teachers can use a plethora of paragraphs as small mentor texts to teach literary elements, syntax, and vocabulary.

Excellent squishy parts, several moments of creepy suspense, a relatable main character, and strong themes of identity, friendship, family, and courage make this a perfect addition to any middle school classroom.

The Curse of Eelgrass Bog is a middle grade debut by Mary Averling.

I love bogs and curses so was extra excited when I heard about this book. It went places I wasn't expecting.

This book had 3 distinct stories: lonely Kess in her dusty museum with her overbearing brother, Kess getting to know her new friend Lilou, and exploration of Eelgrass Bog.

From the title, I expected there to be more emphasis on exploring the bog, so I was surprised so much of the book focused on Kess' brother and Lilou.

The book ended up being much quieter and museum-centered than I expected, which was unfortunate because the bog delivered.

The back copy also mentions Kess' only friend was a shrunken head, so I was expecting him to be more present.

I'm glad I read The Curse of Eelgrass Bog and and am looking forward to more from Mary Averling.

Wonderful story I’ve read in a long time. I loved the sibling dynamic. It was just a great story overall. I would highly recommend.
10/10

Great read! Super fun and cute. Loved the atmosphere the book created and the cute characters. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys middle grade books!

The Curse of Eelgrass Bog was such a delight! I loved the quirky, interesting characters and watching Kess uncover secret after secret. Kids will love this one!

When I saw a post from the author on Twitter, I immediately looked to see if I could have a chance to read it. Huge thanks to the publisher for the Netgalley approval. This is a great story of friendship and adventure. I love quirky characters and Kess definitely hit that mold. I loved her want to help her parents and their museum. I enjoyed the mystery of the bog and the way the story progressed. I will eagerly await another book from this author.

This was a great middle grade book. Will definitely add to my class library. It was perfectly fantastical.

A great read for younger readers. "The Curse of Eelgrass Bog", written by Mary Averling is a unique eerie tale that takes readers into Eelgrass bog to find answers. A tale of friendship and trusting in others.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group, Razorbill for providing us with this title!

Spellbinding! This book hooked me in right from the beginning. The characters are unique and quirky, modern and diverse. Averling's use of language is fluid, eloquent and magical. And the worldbuilding is amazing. I was seduced by the dark and moldering world that reeked of decay, but beamed with enchantment, mystery, and whimsy.

And there was so much nostalgia in this book for me. It's like Averling took all my favorite childhood obsessions—archaeology, shrunken heads, witches, magical underworlds, and fantastical creatures—and wrote a book just for me. ...But who doesn't love that stuff, right?!

My heart is pitter-pattering because I just fell a little in love. Great book.

12-year-old Kess lives in a rundown museum of strange objects on the shores of Eelgrass Bog. She spends her days looking for bones from the mythical beasts who once lived in the bog, in hopes of restoring her museum to its former glory. She lives in quiet isolation, with only her reclusive brother Oliver and a talking pickled head for company. But, her burgeoning friendship with Lilou, a new girl in town, sets her off on a quest to break a curse, uncover a secret society, and finally venture into the Bog.

This was such a excellent, atmospheric middle grade with writing and characters I LOVED! Gorgeous writing that didn't sacrifice substance for form, and an eerie twist I didn't see coming!! One of my new favourite middle grade reads.

I followed Mary Averling on Twitter, before the X era, and was very excited to see her book on NetGalley! Thanks so much for approving my request!

This debut novel is well-written. Very interesting setting, clear stakes, humour, horror, great voice, interesting plot, sympathetic characters...

I DNFed it only because of the font. NetGalley app usually lets me to change font settings in most of the books. Unfortunately, this format didn't allow me to zoom in and I struggled to read the text despite wearing glasses. Other than that, no complaints.

A wonderful MG fantasy!

The Curse of Eelgrass Bog the magical story of a young girl who lives on the edge of a cursed bog trying to keep her family’s dilapidated museum, accompanied only by a talking head in a jar up and an annoying older brother while their parents are on a mysterious expedition to Antarctica. When a curious girl shows up poking at secrets of their past, they end up going deep into the bog and the Cursed World to uncover some shocking truths. I loved the exquisite and imaginative world building and Kess is someone readers will root for.

Bogs, snakes, and witches! Oh my! Also museums and first crushes and pickled head bffs!

(Personally, I'm a huge fan.)