hm.

In the interest of fairness i really don't...anyway. this is the wrong book but it's always the wrong book. there's always a more interesting book buried inside the novels i read but this one actually legitmately told the wrong story actually for real inside the actual book, in the least interesting way possible. like how am i supposed to possibly care about the hidden town and the love affairs of phds in the midst of a murder mystery? It's important context, but the stakes are so high and then to describe youthful misadventures in the same tone, nAY a more serious tone as actual murder, is perplexing.

in the first third, there's some tension, some excitement. i understand the premise enough early enough that i'm playing along, in spite of my misgivings about the flat characters and flatter prose find out who wants the map and for what, but the villain's intention, his motivation, is so clouded and confused that once we are In On the Mystery I'm just left...perplexed. Perplexed. Most perplexing ARE the decisions that Nell's parents make, and I'm just not buying that they didn't, in fact, put everyone in more danger. There's a hundred things I can think of that would make this a better book. It's just so mediocre. Sad.