Title: ELIZABETH WEBSTER AND THE COURT OF UNCOMMON PLEAS

Author: William Lashner

Pub. Date: October 15, 2019

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 320

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD

Welcome to Elizabeth Webster’s world, where the common laws of middle school torment her days . . . and the uncommon laws of an even weirder realm govern her nights.

Elizabeth Webster is happy to stay under the radar (and under her bangs) until middle school is dead and gone. But when star swimmer Henry Harrison asks Elizabeth to tutor him in math, it’s not linear equations Henry really needs help with-it’s a flower-scented, poodle-skirt-wearing, head-tossing ghost who’s calling out Elizabeth’s name.

But why Elizabeth? Could it have something to do with her missing lawyer father? Maybe. Probably. If only she could find him. In her search, Elizabeth discovers more than she is looking for: a grandfather she never knew, a startling legacy, and the secret family law firm, Webster & Son, Attorneys for the Damned.

Elizabeth and her friends soon land in court, where demons and ghosts take the witness stand and a red-eyed judge with a ratty white wig hands out sentences like sandwiches. Will Elizabeth’s father arrive in time to save Henry Harrison-and is Henry the one who really needs saving?

Set in the historic streets of Philadelphia, this riveting middle-grade mystery from New York Times best-selling author William Lashner will have readers banging their gavels and calling for more from the incomparable Elizabeth Webster.

With Halloween just around the corner, this is the just the book to sit down with! Since historic Philadelphia is a place I have visited and walked in many times, I especially enjoyed the setting. Write more books in Philly! The rich lineage behind Elizabeth’s last name, and her heritage also a layer of history which could be studied. Story wise, I was interested and engaged all the way through. The pacing is great, characters have a synergy together and there are enough plot twists and turns to hook readers.

Content

There is some content which fits older readers more than middle grade. The author adds some elements of crime, psychological profiles and graphic descriptions which may be disturbing to young readers. There is also mention of adultery. Until the last chapters it reads like MG, but a bit mature for that genre in the wrapping up and dream sequences.

Overall, I hope this is series, because I would love to read more of the Webster adventures. I was pleasantly surprised!

About William:

William Lashner is the New York Times Bestselling creator of Victor Carl, who has been called by Booklist one of the mystery novel’s “most compelling, most morally ambiguous characters.”  The Victor Carl novels, which have been translated into more than a dozen foreign languages and have been sold all across the globe, include BAGMEN, KILLER’S KISS, FALLS THE SHADOW, FATAL FLAW, and HOSTILE WITNESS.  He is also the author of GUARANTEED HEROES, THE BARKEEP, which was an Edgar Award nominee and a Digital Book World Number One Bestseller, THE ACCOUNTING, and BLOOD AND BONE.

Writing under the pseudonym of Tyler Knox, Lashner is also the author of KOCKROACH, described as “roaringly entertaining,” by Publisher’s Weekly, and “an energetic tour de force,” by USA Today.  As Tyler Knox he has written a number of book reviews for the Washington Post Book World.

Lashner was a criminal prosecutor with the Department of Justice in Washington D.C. before quitting the law to write fulltime.  A graduate of the New York University School of Law, as well as the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, he lives with his wife and three children outside Philadelphia.

William Lashner Photo © Sigrid Estrada

Website | Goodreads

Giveaway Details:

3 winners will receive a finished copy of ELIZABETH WEBSTER AND THE COURT OF UNCOMMON PLEAS, US Only.

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Tour Schedule:

Week One:

10/1/2019- Pandora’s Books– Excerpt

10/2/2019- Southern Girl Bookaholic– Review

10/3/2019- Shelf-Rated– Review

10/4/2019- BookHounds YA– Excerpt

Week Two:

10/7/2019- Odd and Bookish– Review

10/8/2019- EatingbetweenthelinesINC– Review

10/9/2019- Little Red Reads– Review

10/10/2019- History from a Woman’s Perspective– Review

10/11/2019- Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers– Excerpt

Week Three:

10/14/2019- Books_andPoetrii– Excerpt

10/15/2019- Jena Brown Writes– Review

10/16/2019- Nerdophiles– Review

10/17/2019- Savings in Seconds– Review

10/18/2019- The Reading Corner for All– Review

Week Four:

10/21/2019- Books a Plenty Book Reviews– Review

10/22/2019- Wonder Struck– Review

10/23/2019- Smada’s Book Smack– Review

10/24/2019- Novel Novice– Excerpt

10/25/2019- fictitious.fox– Review

Week Five:

10/28/2019- Fyrekatz Blog– Review

10/29/2019- Two points of interest– Review

10/30/2019- Fictitiouswonderland– Review

10/31/2019- PopTheButterfly Reads– Review