Myrtle, Means & Opportunity

 

Myrtle, Means and Opportunity / Elizabeth Bunce
New York : Algonquin Young Readers, c2023.
360 p.

This was both a highly anticipated read for me, and a sad one in a way -- because it's the last in the wonderful Myrtle Hardcastle series. This time we find Myrtle and her intrepid governess Miss Judson heading up to Scotland, to investigate the surprise inheritance of a Whole Scottish Estate which Miss Judson has just received. 

Myrtle is a tad worried; will this Whole Scottish Estate turn Miss Judson's head and make the Object in her father's drawer at home unnecessary? (spoiler: it does not). 

The mystery revolves around a few things: Why was the estate left to a distant relative like Miss Judson? What about all the staff currently working and living there? And is there a dastardly plan for a developer to take over her whole island for a power plant? There are murders, ghosts, traitors, secret partnerships, and hidden motives. But in the end Myrtle's brainpower, along with Miss Judson's heart, lead them in the right direction to uncover everything and still come out happy in the end. 

This story ties up the series neatly and with great satisfaction for all of the characters we've come to know throughout the five books. There is some Scottish humour and some new characters for readers to love -- and some to despise! It's a fun read with the trademark footnotes and jokes found in all of the stories, but also has a heart. Myrtle's fears that she might not be the most important thing in the world for Miss Judson anymore make the reader feel for her; we are also fans of Miss Judson and don't want this duo to come apart. 

The mystery has some twists and turns, and a riddle, and a young boy whom Myrtle befriends and helps to solve the riddle -- bringing clarity to the inheritance and a way forward. 

I felt it was a solid conclusion to a series that I've really enjoyed. I'd recommend this series to any adventurous reader in the middle grades, but also to adults who enjoy an entertaining historical mystery that has jokes we can appreciate. Such a fun set of characters!