The Monster Hypothesis by Romily Bernard Pages: 304
Published by Disney-Hyperion on December 10, 2019
Genres: Middle Grade, mystery
Source: Finished Copy from Publisher
Welcome to Bohring-home to 453 people, 2,053 alligators, and one monster curse.
Correction: home to 454 people, now that Kick Winter is living in the swamp Hollows with her Grandma Missouri, the town (fake) psychic. Bohring is anything but boring for Kick who has already blown a hole through the kitchen floor, befriended a chicken-eating gator, and discovered that the town's hundred-year curse is upon them.
It's the Bohring curse and all the kids are about to become monsters-or so the legend goes. People are worried-except for Kick. She knows there's a scientific explanation for everything, especially curses and monsters. But Kick is the new kid in school and she's determined to make a name for herself . . . by pretending to be psychic.
According to her calculations: one teeny-tiny life + (fake) psychic skills = popularity. But when kids start disappearing and glowing creatures start showing up, Kick's theory quickly evaporates in a puff of foul-smelling swamp gas. Can Kick use her (real) science smarts to prove the curse is a hoax? Or is it just-maybe-sort of-somehow possible the curse is here?
Author Romily Bernard weaves a fast-paced middle-grade mystery filled with humor and scientific intrigue, set in a perfectly eerie Southern town.
The Monster Hypothesis is a middle grade mystery by author Romily Bernard. I really enjoyed this book. I don’t read many middle grade stories anymore, and the ones that I do I am very picky with. This one pleasantly pleased me. It was fun, interactive and engaging. I think this would be an excellent book for younger readers to pick up as they move into the middle grade age group, and I think the story is well done enough that it will capture and hold the attention of older readers as well. Based on my enjoyment of the Monster Hypothesis, I can’t wait to read more books from Romily Bernard.
In The Monster Hypothesis, we meet our main character Kick. Kick is on a mission to prove that the monstrous curse that plagues her town is nothing but a hoax. I enjoyed Kick. She is smart, feisty, adventurous, scientific and logical and was a fun characters to lead the readers on her adventure. I loved the scientific voice and reason that Kick brings with her as she tries to debunk the curse. And the atmosphere of the book was absolutely perfect. It is set in a swamp town, one where I could very easily picture as teeming with all kinds of monsters and creatures. Romily Bernard did a fantastic job making this book feel spooky at times, and the rich descriptions brought the swamp town to life.
The combination of Science with the supernatural element of psychics (fake or not) and monsters was a really fun combination. I had a blast with The Monster Hypothesis. The characters were strong, the plot/adventure was a ton of fun and the world was very engaging. I think this book will be a hit with readers of all ages. Not to mention the mystery kept me guessing until the very end. I absolutely loved “solving” it!
To enter, fill out the rafflecopter below to win: 3 winners will receive a hardcover of THE MONSTER HYPOTHESIS, US only.
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Tour Schedule:
Week One:
| 12/2/2019 | Popthebutterfly Reads | Review |
| 12/3/2019 | Mythical Books | Excerpt |
| 12/4/2019 | Sometimes Leelynn Reads | Review |
| 12/5/2019 | Lifestyle of Me | Review |
| 12/6/2019 | BookHounds | Excerpt |
Week Two:
| 12/9/2019 | Ogitchida Kwe’s Book Blog | Review |
| 12/10/2019 | For the Love of KidLit | Excerpt |
| 12/11/2019 | Little Red Reads | Review |
| 12/12/2019 | Life Within The Pages | Review |
| 12/13/2019 | Book Briefs | Review |
Week Three:
| 12/16/2019 | Adventures Thru Wonderland | Review |
| 12/17/2019 | BookishRealmReviews | Review |
| 12/18/2019 | fictitious.fox | Review |
| 12/19/2019 | Paper safari | Review |
| 12/20/2019 | Nay’s Pink Bookshelf | Review |
Week Four:
| 12/23/2019 | She Just Loves Books | Review |
| 12/24/2019 | Hurn Publications | Review |
| 12/25/2019 | Two Chicks on Books | Excerpt |
| 12/26/2019 | Character Madness | Excerpt |
| 12/27/2019 | Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers | Excerpt |
Week Five:
| 12/30/2019 | Two Points of Interest | Review |
| 12/31/2019 | Fyrekatz Blog | Review |
About Romily Bernard
Romily Bernard graduated from Georgia State University with a literature degree. Since then, she’s worked as a riding instructor, cell-phone salesperson, personal assistant, horse groomer and exercise rider, accounting assistant, and, during a very dark time, customer service representative. . . . She’s also, of course, now a YA novelist.
So don’t let anyone tell you a BA degree will keep you unemployed.
Romily currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia, and Find Me is her debut novel. It placed first in the 2011 YA Unpublished Maggie Awards (given by Georgia Romance Writers) and won the Golden Heart Award for YA Romance from the Romance Writers of America in 2012.
It sounds like it would be a fun read!
Pick me please! Yippee!
Thanks for the giveaway!