Review by jinxiejenna - The Monsters of Templeton

jinxiejenna 's review for:

The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff

4.0

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Willie Upton comes back to her hometown of Templeton, NY after having an affair with her professor. Things ended…badly and she is looking for the comfort of home. When she arrives her once free loving hippie mom, Vi has become a born again Christian. Her best friend, Clarissa, is in San Fransisco is suffering with Lupus with her boyfriend and caretaker Sully.

Willie is a descendent of the founder of the town of Templeton, and her mother still lives in one of their generational homes. The town has also kept a pretty well documented history of their family. Until, of course, Vi finally tells Willie the truth of her paternity. She’d spun a fun tale about a commune in the 70’s where they practiced free love but in reality it was a man she’d known her whole life…still living in town. Except Vi refused to tell her daughter who it was, but Willie refused to let it go. We follow her through a deep dive of her family history- uncovering secrets and conspiracies until she finds her real dad.

Oh and while all that’s going on? The town is notorious for having a lake monster in Lake Glimmerglass. When Willie arrives home, the monster is found dead and confirmed to be real.

I enjoyed this book. The beginning was by no means slow, I just felt like I didn’t care so much yet. However about 10 chapters in I was really enjoying myself trying to figure out the mystery with Willie. Other than the fact of her paternity I enjoyed the historical fiction vibes we were given during her ancestors’ POV. It held my Interested pretty well. I did get to a point where I knew we were getting close to the answer and was excited to keep reading. I did guess the father but it didn’t take away from the book at all.

My only complaint is that Glimmy, the lake monster, and the random house hauntings were unneeded plot just to add some sci-fi/Lovecraft vibes in there.

Overall I enjoyed it and have very little to complain about. I’d absolutely recommend giving it a read.

Content Warnings