A Misfortune of Lake Monsters

Gr 9 Up–High school senior Lemon Ziegler is in a tough spot; she desperately wants to leave her small Pennsylvania town to go to college, but she can’t because she’s been chosen to continue her family’s secret business of faking lake monster (Old Lucy) sightings. Loyal to cantankerous Pappap, and aware that the town’s economy might collapse if Old Lucy ceases to appear, she resigns herself to a life of periodically donning the Old Lucy costume and appearing in Lake Lokakoma. When animals and people start going missing, Lemon knows for certain that it’s not the work of Old Lucy and vows to find out what’s really happening with the help of her best friends Troy and Darrin, and Amelia, a mysterious gossip who’s new to Devil’s Elbow. This is a perfect creature feature with a touching romance in the mix thanks to Troy and Lemon’s slow realization that they are far more than friends. The characters are real and complicated and supremely likable, and the monster’s threat to the town, its residents, and Lemon’s friends and family keep the book moving quickly and tensely. Wolverton cleverly pulls the Jaws tactic of keeping the monster hidden until it must be revealed and that works well with the conspiracy theory theme that runs throughout the novel. This is a must-read for fans of cryptids, Roger Cormans, and Stranger Things.