Book Review: The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels by Beth Lincoln, illustrated by Claire Powell

Posted on April 9, 2024 at 6:21 am by Gene Ambaum

The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels by Beth Lincoln, illustrated by Claire Powell. Dutton Books for Young Readers, 2024. 9780593533239. 352 pp.

Most of the Swifts have odd names you’d find in a dictionary, and, once named, they know their roles.

Shenanigan Swift lives in a strange, 17th-century manor, her family’s ancestral home, with her Aunt Schadenfreude, Uncle Maelstrom, Cook, and her two older sisters, Phenomena and Felicity. She’s been quietly mapping the place for years in an attempt to find the treasure hidden there by Vile Swift.

Inheritance Swift arrives and announces she’s called for a Swift Family Reunion. Relatives are soon milling about, ready to tear the house apart to find the lost fortune. After Aunt Schadenfreude explains the rules, she also announces that in three days she’ll be choosing her replacement as family matriarch. Then someone tries to kill her.

Shenanigan vows revenge. Plus she needs to beat her relatives to the treasure. The mystery that follows involves more deaths, a duel, deception, suspicion, a secret room, a library full of traps, and a cousin who refuses to use their dictionary-given name.

It’s great fun and not nearly as adult as all of that “murder” might make it sound. Lincoln’s storytelling skills are top-notch, and Powell’s illustrations add to the book’s Gorey-esque feel. (Her art reminds me of Warwick Johnson-Caldwell’s in the best way.) This is a mystery kids and adults will love, and I’ve already given it to a few friends and family members as a gift. A sequel is due out later this year.