The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues by Beth Lincoln, illustrations by Claire Powell
Publisher: Dutton Books
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 338 pages
Published: August 20th, 2024
Source: Purchased
Shenanigan Swift has resumed her quest for Grand-Uncle Vile's long-lost treasure by scouring the lake. Meanwhile, Felicity is in Paris and Phenomena is engrossed in a secret project. Suddenly, news arrives that Felicity has been invited to stay with the Martinet's (the French branch of the Swift family tree) at their hotel, prompting Aunt Schadenfreude to exclaim that "she's all but dead!" You see the Martinets and Swifts have been engaged in a heated war for over a century, disputing which of their families came first. Concerned for Felicity's safety, Shenanigan, Phenomena and Uncle Maelstrom head off to France and while there become entangled in a mystery involving a series of elaborate art museum heists. Could this be the infamous Ouvolpo, the world's most famous art thief?
A Gallery of Rogues was one of my most anticipated sequels for this year. I so adored the first book for its use of language, wordplay and dictionaries and I loved that the second book continued with this theme. This time examining the roots of French, English and Spanish words and how there are links between some words in other languages. How words in one language influence the words of another culture and often get adopted into that language (like how chauffer, and deja vu have become common place in the English language). And how French words like "Pharmacie" and "Framboise" are spelled similarly in English and Spanish. I've always been a fan of languages and words, and Gallery of Rogues is filled with such wonderful words, like "Haughty" and "Ostentatious" that make ya feel all decadent reading them aloud. Just absolutely love it!
I hope you'll check out all the other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge's blog HERE