Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson

Nominated for the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery of 2025, Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson is set on the fictional Ralston Island in the Thousand Islands archipelago of New York.

In this river, in a section where the two countries are within touching distance, there is an area called Thousand Islands, even though everyone there will tell you that there are over 1,800 islands. Only a few of these islands are very big. Most are hilariously small. All you need to be classified as an island there is to be above and surrounded by water and to have one tree. It counts if you used to have a tree. This was the only thing I remembered from our trip: little spots of land with houses like candy sitting on them, surrounded by water like green glass. [p. 32]

In the contemporary timeline, Marlowe Wexler is our narrator. She is a young woman dealing with personal issues who takes a summer job as a tour guide on secluded Ralston Island. The historical timeline introduces us to Clara Ralston and her family, living in Morning House in the 1930s. One of the aspects of the book that I love is the likeability of both Marlowe and Clara. Marlowe is “self-deprecating, shy, queer, a little clumsy, and good-hearted (Goodreads), while Clara is a caring big sister, strong swimmer, and loyal member of a rather eccentric family.

Maureen Johnson is an expert in creating an atmosphere that foreshadows sinister revelations, and Death at Morning House is the perfect venue because it has that creepy haunted mansion vibe.

When Dr. Henson left me standing on the balcony, I made my way back alone, retracing our path to the second floor. I stared up at the dome for a long time, until my neck hurt and I got dizzy. There was something about the colors, the faces.

Identical faces of some woman with oversized blue eyes and a rumble of gently curling brown hair, all rendered from shards of glass. Only rich people would put a ring of light-beaming faces with wide, staring eyes on their ceiling. It was like an overcaffeinated audience of clones was watching everything from the sky. But it was the sun at the center that got me the most — the hard power of it, the way it was so orange that it was brown, like it had burned itself up. The overall effect was not soothing if you really looked at it, but the light was nice. [p. 67]

The plot of Death at Morning House introduces the reader to three deaths: two that took place in the past and one in the present. There are plenty of obscure clues, twists, and red herrings. The themes of loss, grief, deception, friendship, rivalry, dysfunctional dynamics, confinement, and eugenics fit nicely within the plot and never slow its pace.

If you are searching for a great locked room mystery a la Agatha Christie or have read and loved Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious series, try her standalone mystery Death at Morning House.

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