Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts

Description: Tuesday Mooney is a loner. She keeps to herself, begrudgingly socializes, and spends much of her time watching old Twin Peaks and X-Files DVDs. But when Vincent Pryce, Boston’s most eccentric billionaire, dies—leaving behind an epic treasure hunt through the city, with clues inspired by his hero, Edgar Allan Poe—Tuesday’s adventure finally begins.
   Puzzle-loving Tuesday searches for clue after clue, joined by a ragtag crew: a wisecracking friend, an adoring teen neighbor, and a handsome, cagey young heir. The hunt tests their mettle, and with other teams from around the city also vying for the promised prize—a share of Pryce’s immense wealth—they must move quickly. Pryce’s clues can't be cracked with sharp wit alone; the searchers must summon the courage to face painful ghosts from their pasts (some more vivid than others) and discover their most guarded desires and dreams.

Review: When the death of Vincent Pryce, one of Boston's most wealthy and eccentric man drops dead at a fundraiser, he leaves behind an epic treasure hunt through the city with clues inspired by his hero, Edgar Allen Poe. Groups of mystery solvers come together in hopes of finding the big prize and splitting the riches amongst each other. One those is our heroine, Tuesday Mooney, best prospect researcher on Boston General Hospital's fundraising team, a "bizarro know-it-all tall girl" with the aura of a grown-up Wednesday Addams. Despite her reputation as a formidable, reclusive goth vibes, Tuesday embraces her introverted lifestyle. She actually does have friends, but she keeps them at  arm’s length. Her friends include her current best friend Dex Howard, a gay, karaoke-obsessed financier who is perpetually unlucky in love; Tuesday's neighbor Dorry Bones, a motherless Somerville teen who looks up to Tuesday as her role model; and Abby Hobbes, a Ouija board–wielding classmate who disappeared during Tuesday's teenage years and whose ghost haunts Tuesday incessantly. The Pryce treasure hunt is exactly what Tuesday is looking for in order to break out of her banal life and if she can exercise her detective muscles, solve the puzzle, and win a big cash prize-even better. The hunt is not what it seems as she comes into contact with the Arches who do not have a friendly relationship with Pryce and her partnership (or propective relationship) with the strange but charming tycoon Nathaniel Arches sink or buoy her chances of success?
  I absolutely loved Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts. It is a genre-bending, highly entertaining, and enthralling mystery that dips into the supernatural but without losing sight to real life problems. All of the characters are dealing with issues of their own ranging from loss to self-acceptance to struggles with intimacy. While there is an over-arching Pryce mystery, there are also mysteries within the Arches family and the disappearance of Abby Hobbes, Tuesday's best friend. I loved following Tuesday and her pals as they ran all around Boston uncovering clues about Poe to solve the crime. There were also plenty of 80s and 90s references that I relished in the book that gave the story character and did not make it feel so dated. I also liked the slow burn of possible romance between Archie and Tuesday. Racculia's writing is funny, poignant, charming, and romantic all at once. Almost all of the mysteries are nicely wrapped up and kept me turning the pages and on my toes. I really hope we get to see these characters again in a new book.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Words of Caution: There is strong language and sexual situations are mentioned. Recommended for Grades 10 and up.

If you like this book try: Mr. Penumbra's 24-hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan, Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan