Buckle up your seatbelts, ladies and gentlemen, because Serious Moonlight is here to steal your hearts (and make you want to binge-watch Sherlock all over again).
Serious Moonlight, Jenn Bennett’s latest YA contemporary, follows a young woman about to embark on a mystery with the one person she never thought she’d see again after a very short and awkward encounter months ago. Romance and detective shenanigans ensue and might end in a huge revelation that will cause some serious problems. Are you hooked yet?
Unlike Bennett’s previous works that set up the premise fairly quickly, this plot takes a good while to unfold. The pacing changed dramatically though as the book hit its halfway mark. As Birdie and Daniel go on stakeouts, illegally investigate hotel rooms, and even trail their target all over the illustrious Seattle setting, they fall in love with each other. So, essentially, Serious Moonlight is about two characters solving a mystery about a famous and elusive novelist’s secret comings and goings at a hotel they both work at. But it’s so much more than that.
I’ve said this before in my author spotlight of Jenn Bennett earlier this year but Bennett excels at creating memorable, out-of-the-box characters. Birdie Lindberg was no exception. Birdie, a teen who has lost her mother at a young age and was raised in parts by her grandparents and her late mother’s best friend Mona, is a closeted narcoleptic who is obsessed with detective stories and always on the lookout for a new mystery to solve. Despite Birdie being a unique character, her struggles are very universal – how to navigate your life when grief smothers you, how to be friends and even fall in love with a boy when you’ve never had a relationship before and were somewhat sheltered during your upbringing, never making lasting connections to anyone outside your family.
Admittedly, it took me a while to warm up to Birdie. The novel starts out a bit convoluted; Birdie’s actions don’t entirely line up with how she is portrayed in her stream of thoughts but as the novel progresses, her behaviour makes more sense and you get to know her through her internal struggles. At times, Birdie felt like an onlooker of her life rather than an actual participant and I think that’s what makes her so relatable.
Now, the romance. Birdie and Daniel Aoki meet in a very unconventional way for a young adult novel and without spoiling too much, it definitely causes some miscommunication. Nevertheless, I feel the need to point out one major detail that in part earned this book its stellar rating.
So often in YA, sex is romanticised in a very beautiful, but sometimes harmful manner. Not every first sexual experience is pleasant or has tremendous meaning and it has been a fear of mine that young teens may be led to put even more pressure on themselves in that area after reading about picture-perfect moments in novels. Safe to say, I loved how Bennett approached this societal issue – her voice never rang didactic as she portrayed sex in a very healthy and open way in Serious Moonlight. It’s never shooed under the rug; instead, Birdie talks openly about it not just with Daniel but also with Mona. Being the result of her mother’s accidental pregnancy, Birdie is very aware of safe sex lectures – but this novel also focuses on the emotional implications of an intimate relationship and it was handled so positively. More of that in YA, please.
Of course, the romance itself was amazing as well. Daniel is such a lovable character – he’s half-Japanese, lost his hearing in one ear due to a magic trick gone wrong in his youth, and has his own demons to contend with throughout the novel. But he’s also funny and charming, wooing Birdie with clever references to famous detectives and making her open up about her own insecurities.
Besides the main attraction (the investigation into the reclusive writer’s secret dealings in the hotel Birdie and Daniel work at), the secondary characters fleshed out this story and even offered their own little mysteries one wanted to get to the bottom of. There are clues strewn throughout the narrative and yet I was almost blindsided by some of the revealed secrets that left me rolling my eyes at how I hadn’t picked up on the very obvious clues before. This will have Nancy Drew lovers in a frenzy when they pick up the novel, I can already tell.
All in all, the mystery plotline develops slowly but packs a punch as it unfolds and some hidden truths from the characters are revealed that derail not only their investigation but also their romantic entanglement. I don’t know what it is about YA moving in on the mystery genre lately, but I am so here for it. If you’re a fan of good old-fashioned detective stories, watched Veronica Mars religiously or read every Agatha Christie novel, you’ll be delighted to read Serious Moonlight. There are so many references to famous detectives and stories and it made me smile when I picked up on them. Bennett’s writing is superb as always; her descriptions of Seattle made the setting of the story feel so real and authentic. This novel, in its entirety, really had me feel like I was watching an old-timey detective movie and it contributed a lot to make this such an enjoyable read.
So, whether you’re new to Bennett’s stories or a long-time fan, I encourage you to pick up Serious Moonlight if you’re a lover of mysteries, swoon-worthy romances and quirky characters that you can relate to on a spiritual level!
Serious Moonlight hits shelves on April 16th and it will be available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
Will you be reading Serious Moonlight? Have you read it already? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
After an awkward first encounter, Birdie and Daniel are forced to work together in a Seattle hotel where a famous author leads a mysterious and secluded life in this romantic contemporary novel from the author of Alex, Approximately.
Mystery-book aficionado Birdie Lindberg has an overactive imagination. Raised in isolation and homeschooled by strict grandparents, she’s cultivated a whimsical fantasy life in which she plays the heroic detective and every stranger is a suspect. But her solitary world expands when she takes a job the summer before college, working the graveyard shift at a historic Seattle hotel.
In her new job, Birdie hopes to blossom from introverted dreamer to brave pioneer, and gregarious Daniel Aoki volunteers to be her guide. The hotel’s charismatic young van driver shares the same nocturnal shift and patronizes the waterfront Moonlight Diner where she waits for the early morning ferry after work. Daniel also shares her appetite for intrigue, and he’s stumbled upon a real-life mystery: a famous reclusive writer—never before seen in public—might be secretly meeting someone at the hotel.
To uncover the writer’s puzzling identity, Birdie must come out of her shell…discovering that most confounding mystery of all may be her growing feelings for the elusive riddle that is Daniel.
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