I really enjoyed this book. Full disclosure, I am a big fan of Maureen Johnson's books, but I do feel like I then also have high expectations. I wasn't sure how I'd feel reading another murder mystery of hers after the Stevie Bell books.

I like that Marlow just kind of happened into being a detective. She's awkward and clumsy and very relatable. Also really appreciate the way. Maureen Johnson writes queer characters. None of it feels overdone or being done to be quote" trendy. They're just all very real people but added to it being a great June pride month read.

📖📖 Book Review 📖📖 The summer of 1932 ended is absolute heartbreak for Morning House when two young lives ended far too early. Nearly a century after the terrible tragedies, the house has opened for tours and what follows is a hauntingly beautiful young adult mystery that will delight readers of all ages. Told in dual timelines and perspectives, Death at Morning House is a wonderfully atmospheric read and a poignant reminder that the feelings and themes of young adulthood span across time and generations.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Review is on Goodreads and will be posted on instagram closer to publication date and on Amazon when published!

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC of this novel. This was a great YA thriller that switches between two timelines in one stately house on an island on the Canadian border. The storyline of the original owners was more engaging, but I really loved the present day protagonist Marlowe (yes, the name is a bit on the nose). She is funny and self-aware and the kind of person you want in a teenage sleuth. The mysteries here aren't really the focus of the book, though. They feel a little secondary. The Thousand Islands setting was marvelous, and the house and the island does most of the heavy lifting for the creepiness factor. All in all, a great summer read and a lot of fun.

Marlowe is so relatable so reading her inner dialogue felt like I was just hanging out. This book is an amazing YA mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s for the eARC! This book was so much fun! It was face paced, and well written. The main character Marlowe was so relatable. She takes a summer job in a mansion on a secluded island after a date gone horribly wrong. It was a good, solid young adult murder mystery and I had a great time the whole time I was reading. 5/5 kept me thoroughly entertained

Maureen Johnson proves once again that she's the queen of YA Mystery.

Poor Marlowe accidentally burns down her parents friend's cottage on a first date. To get away from her intense embarrassment, she takes a job as a tour guide on an island where some mysterious deaths occurred in the 1930s. I absolutely loved Marlowe's internal dialogue - so real for us socially awkward types. 🥰

Very good modern twist on/homage to an Agatha Christie book called Crooked House.

I stayed up until 2am to finish this one, which I rarely do anymore.

Special thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for the advanced e-reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a DNF for me. I was so excited and eager to read this. But I found it hard to follow and a bit confusing. I know the chapters were separate time lines but they weren’t written with a bit of distinction. So for me it wasn’t a pleasurable read.

Maureen Johnson does it again I loved reading this book. Her books are great thrillers that really have you flipping through the pages fast so you can find out the ending. I'm always sad when I come to the end of her books and anxiously await the next one. Grab this for your final summer read or save it for upcoming spooky reading season, either way put this one your tbr!

Ugh this is a masterpiece, perfection. I knew Maureen Johnson wouldn't let me down, YES. Usually dual plotlines are a hit or miss with me, but in this case, they 100% enhanced the book. Exploring the POVs of both the original and new residents of the house allows readers to fully explore the setting of Morning House and the mysteries that engulf it. I also really appreciated the way LGBT relationships were shown in the book; it was integrated naturally, without making a big statement on representation, thus drawing most focus to the mystery and bigger themes that are central to the point of the book.

I loved Death at Morning House! I’ve previously read Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious books and this one was just as good! It was spooky and summery what a perfect combo!

Maureen Johnson does it again with a twisty murder mystery you cannot put down. As always there is so much depth and layers that all connect. Death at Morning House will leave you gasping, crying, laughing. Marlowe goes through so much heart ache, she is a complex character who definitely needs a big hug. I will never thing of petrichor the same again.

Maureen Johnson absolutely neverrrrr misses in her books! I’ve read so many, and this one is another on her long list of 5 star reads! The way she’s able to write characters, add comedy, and keep you guessing is the absolute best! Can’t wait to recommend this on my feed!!

i am a huge fan of maureen johnson, especially of her "truly devious" universe so imagine the shock i felt when i got approved for a standalone not connected mystery novel of maureen's... I GOT SO EXCITED AND THIS LIVED UP TO SAID EXCITMENT

If you are looking for a great who done it, clue style mystery this book with queer representation, then this book is for you. This is a dual timeline story with events happening in 1932 and events happening in the present.

In July of 1932 the Ralston family suffers two deaths and quickly leaves their manor. The youngest, Max, died of a drowning in the morning and by night fall the oldest, Clara, had fallen from the roof, both appearing to be an accident. In the present we follow Marlowe. While on her dream date with Akilah, Marlowe accidentally burns a house down from an exploding candle. Following the embarrassment of the fire and needing an escape she decides to follow an opportunity and be a tour guide at Ralston Manor, the same manor where the events of 1932 took place. When Dr. Henson, the tour manager and local historian goes missing, it appears that history could be repeating itself. Were the events in 1932 an accident as it appeared or is there a secret that has been hiding within the walls of the manor that Dr. Henson could have discovered. It all started with an exploding candle that would lead to the unraveling of an unsolved decades old mystery.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperTeen for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was a fun and suspenseful ride! Honestly, Maureen Johnson never disappoints me. This book is about Marlowe Wexler, who takes a job as a tour guide at Morning House, a mansion built on an island in the 1920s and abandoned shortly thereafter. Oh, and the deaths. Did anyone mention the deaths? Maybe this job isn’t such a gift after all. Morning House has a horrific secret that’s been buried for decades, and now the person who brought her here is missing. All it takes is one clue to set off a catastrophic chain of events.

The book switches between the perspective of Marlowe and the family that built and lived in the house in the 1930s. Both mysteries come to a head by the end of the book, and the twists and turns were a shock to discover. If you like fun and witty mysteries that all take place on one island, then definitely grab this one when it comes out on August 6th!

maureen johnson mysteries are honestly such a fun time, they never let me down.

death at morning house follows a dual timeline, in the current day we follow marlowe starting a new job as a tour guide at a mansion with a tragic past, and what looks to be more tragedy on the way. then we go back in time to morning house in the 1930s, following the family who lived there and the two children who died mysteriously.

this was a slow starter for me. i liked the characters, although not all of them were super developed (see: tom), i was a fan of the setting on a little island full of history, and i enjoyed the mysteries both in the past and in the current day. and actually the way the romance went at the end really threw me, but i’m not super mad about it tbf even if it wasn’t what i was wanting/expecting. plus it’s sapphic so that’s a win!

if you’re already a fan of the truly devious books (like me) then you will probably like this! it’s a very similar vibe - though i will admit it’s been like 3 years since i read the box in the woods - so i could be wrong, but it was just nice to be back in a maureen johnson book, and now i really want to make sure i get to nine liars asap!!

Thank you so much @NetGalley and @HarperCollins for this arc.

This read was very atmospheric and I loved the vibes. I feel like this is the perfect read for the summer when you want something mysterious. The cast of characters were very diverse and I could really feel the differences in their personalities as I was reading. I also really enjoyed the dual timeline of this story, it added some extra mystery.

Maureen Johnson is such a good storyteller and gives her stories such great atmosphere and characterization. I can’t wait to see what else she comes out with.

I enjoyed this book, although not as much as the Truly Devious series. I wanted more character development within this mystery, but it was still a pleasant read.

I thought the book was a little slow, I was interested in where the book was going but it didn't meet my expectations.
Marlowe is known as the girl that burned down a house. It wasn't entirely her fault, she had a candle lit and it exploded... The girl she was on a date with when it happened and she definitely isn't going to want to see her anymore, so Marlowe was in a little bit of a funk. When her teacher offered her a position as a tour guide of a mansion on an island, Marlowe decided to take it. All the other teenagers on the island were locals, but they were all pretty welcoming. The mansion, Morning House, that Marlowe is working at has a dark past. Will Marlowe be able to discover its secrets? She also senses that some secrets are not from the past.

Always going to be a huge fan of Maureen Johnson and this book does not disappoint! I liked how it went back and forth between time periods. A great summer time mystery!