The Grim Grotto (original 2004; edition 2004)

YEEESSSSS. ( )

When this series came out, I was a huge fan. It's now been a long time since I've read them, so this review won't have any specifics. The humor and characters were a huge draw, along with the continuation of the overarching story about the Baudelaire's parents. ( )

Slightly less development, but for the first time a truly unexpected twist. ( )

While this novel was still entertaining, I must admit that I was expecting a little more from this late stage of the series. It really just felt like filler, wasting time to delay the Baudellaire's arrival at the Hotel. The story was a bit slow to start and it took a long time before Olaf and his henchpeople made their presence known.

Yet, at the same time, I did like the way that this novel continued to blur the lines between Good and Evil. Although the schism in the VFD previously seemed quite clear cut, this novel shows that both sides have done questionable things. The novel also manages to maintain tension pretty well, especially as one of the children is put in mortal peril and the others are forced to race against the clock to save them. The story also provided some surprising character development for a certain long-term villain, which was quite surprising. I'm very curious to see where this will go in the final two volumes.

All in all, this wasn't the best volume but I am curious to see what will happen next. Hopefully, The Penultimate Peril will be a bit more exciting. ( )

I got back into the series again partway through this one. ( )