Ratings6
Average rating3.9
A middle-grade mystery series that's spooky, creepy, and filled with gothic twists! Meet the Sinister-Winterbottom twins, who solve mysteries at increasingly bizarre summer vacation destinations in the hopes of being reunited with their parents—or at the very least finally finding a good churro. “An absolute delight. If I have to die in a waterpark, I want to die in this one.”—Holly Black, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Cruel Prince "Wickedly weird. . . . Will appeal to anyone who loved A Series of Unfortunate Events." —The New York Times Meet the Sinister-Winterbottoms: brave Theo, her timid twin, Alexander, and their older sister, Wil. They’re stuck for the summer with their Aunt Saffronia, who doesn’t know how often children need to eat and can’t use a smartphone, and whose feet never quite seem to touch the floor when she glides—er—walks. When Aunt Saffronia suggests a week pass to the Fathoms of Fun Waterpark, they hastily agree. But the park is even stranger than Aunt Saffronia. The waterslides look like gray gargoyle tongues. The employees wear creepy black dresses and deliver ominous messages. An impossible figure is at the top of the slide tower, people are disappearing, and suspicious goo is seeping into the wave pool. Something mysterious is happening at Fathoms of Fun, and it’s up to the twins to get to the bottom of it. The mystery, that is. NOT the wave pool. Definitely NOT the wave pool. But are Theo and Alexander out of their depth?
Featured Series
3 primary booksSinister Summer is a 3-book series with 3 released primary works first released in 2022 with contributions by Kiersten White.
Reviews with the most likes.
I loved Wretched Waterpark!
At first, I wasn't entirely sure of it as it had some stereotypical adults-writing-kids things (not knowing/recognizing a phone on the wall, Wil being addicted to her cellphone), but I got over it pretty quickly!
The vibes were beautiful, and I'm now in love with the idea of a gothic waterpark. I could easily envision Theo and Alexander floating down the lazy river in their coffin raft and lounging in the cabasoleum.
The mystery of the waterpark kept me guessing for a good amount of time. I'm excited to see where the series goes as the supernatural touches develop and we discover more about what's happening to the Sinister-Winterbottom family.
Be warned, I'm now marathoning Scooby Doo and have the urge to reread A Series of Unfortunate Events. The comp titles were spot on! I'm sure this will be a hit with readers who like mystery and a little spookiness.
I'm off to read Vampiric Vacation!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I previously read The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein and really enjoyed it. When I saw Wretched Waterpark come up on NetGalley, I had to have it
3.5 stars
The narrators were rather unreliable, leading to a lot of info not being shared with the readers.
Very quick read.