Ghosts of Greenglass House - Christmas Middle Grade Review

Goodreads:  Ghosts of Greenglass House (Greenglass House #2) by Kate Milford

Rating: Liked It (3 Stars)
Source:   Library

Description:  Welcome back to the irresistible world of Greenglass House where thirteen-year-old Milo is, once again, spending the winter holidays stuck in a house full of strange guests who are not what they seem. There are fresh clues to uncover as friends old and new join in his search for a mysterious map and a famous smuggler’s lost haul.

Genre: Middle Grade

Why I Picked This Book:   I thoroughly enjoyed Greenglass House so I was curious about the second book.

My Impression:  I really loved the whimsical fantasy atmosphere the author created in the first book set at Greenglass House - an out of the way inn with stunning and mysterious stained glass windows, a shady past, and at times an even shadier clientele.  In the first book I was pulled into the weird and wonderous world with secrets in every corner and two interesting children in the midst of a big adventure. I loved the mention of ancient holiday traditions and think this could be great to discuss all kinds of different winter and holiday traditions as they have evolved through the ages.  

Unfortunately, this one fell a bit flat for me.  There's a huge focus on a group of visitors that suddenly show up at Greenglass House, the traditions around them and the traditions around the fictional place that the characters reside in and it all started feeling a bit disjointed.  There was so much going on that it got a bit challenging to really connect to any character or any plotline which kept me from feeling really hooked into the story.  I think my primary issues was that 452 pages this book just felt too long and it felt like the author was cramming so many extra details in to fill all the pages that the story lost a bit of its punch.

That said, there was a lot I liked about this story.  Even though I didn't really feel connected to the story I still enjoyed the writing style and it was never a difficult book to read.  I also really loved how communications is encouraged between Milo and his parents and other adults.  I also really liked how Milo's anxiety is addressed and how he is learning (and sometimes struggling) to deal with it.  Most of the characters are smugglers or connected to smugglers but this is handled in such a way that it feels like folklore and not like a gray morality is encouraged.  As a parent I would have no issue with my child reading this from about age 8+ depending on reading ability.  

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  I would!  Even though this wasn't a total winner for me I do really enjoy this author's writing style.

Would I Recommend this Book?  I would recommend Greenglass House by this author and if you really love it then you many want to continue with this one but this is definitely not the one to start with!