I'm not typically a big YA reader, but I couldn't resist The Starlet Letter because I love a good historical fiction mystery, and after slogging through a few longer books, I was looking for a lighter read. The book tells the story of Vivian and Viola, 18-year-old twins living in 1930's Manhattan. Their high-society family has fallen on hard times during the Depression and they share their home with several tenants, setting the stage for an eccentric set of supporting characters. When one of their tenants is kidnapped, Vivian and Viola take it upon themselves to solve the mystery before the police do. Their sleuthing requires a slight suspension of disbelief and the story is a bit whimsical at times, but overall it was a fun and enjoyable story.

I found myself frustrated at the end, feeling that there were some loose ends that Mathison left untied, but I'm hopeful that some of these will be resolved later, as this is the first in a series of 5 books. I'll just have to read those as well!!

The book immediately immerses you in this atmosphere of history and sends you on an adventure along with the main characters. This book captured me from the first page. It was very interesting to watch the development of the story and the detective line. The authors really managed to capture the atmosphere of New York in those years. If you like old detective stories that you probably read as a child and waited with enthusiasm for how the book would end, then you will enjoy this book. There was a wonderful atmosphere in the boarding house which I enjoyed very much. This story reminded me of one of my favorite series, Flavia de Luce's, that I have read. Vivian and Viola, twins, will try to find the answer to the main secret. They will search, they will guess, they will create absolutely incredible ideas and all this together. I really liked it. It seems crazy at times, but I still love it. I was also very intrigued by the allusion to the scarlet letter. Thank you, NetGalley for this book.

The Starlet Letter is a departure from Mathison's previous styles but is still a great read. Fans of Enola Holmes and Nancy Drew will appreciate the Van der Beek twins. Set in New York's post-depression era, 18 year old upper-class twins Viola and Vivian live with a twisted family history and an eclectic mix of tenants. When their latest tenant, a washed-up Ziegfeld Follies star goes missing, the twins are on the case and are joined by a sergeant who takes a keen interest in Vivian.

The writing does jump around a lot between the Van der Beek's family history and each twin but it doesn't detract from the engaging story. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC!

A quick light read. I found it difficult to keep the two main characters straight and had trouble following the different perspectives. The setting of a boardinghouse in the 1930s is promising with some interesting characters.

What a cute little mystery. Twin sisters Vivian and Viola Van der Beeck who are so different in many ways yet they can read each other like no one else. Living in their family home called Canary House along with their parents and a array of borders these twins seem to find trouble wherever they go. Now they find themselves looking for one of their borders Babs Le Roy.. Miss Le Roy is a Ziegfeld Follies star which the twins find exciting. Little do they know that Miss Le Roy has been hiding a little secret that gets her into big trouble. Even though the twins try not to get to involved with Miss Le Roy they cannot help it once she goes missing.
Vivian and Viola find themselves involved with trying to find Babs. There is a ransom which is paid but yet no Babs. The twins were not going to give up even when they meet up with a gangster or two, one who loved Babs. A broke theater producer and a sinister preacher. Throw in a few detectives and a love lorn police sergeant and you have the makings of a real who done it.
As I was reading this book I felt like I was in an old black and white style movie. The history behind the time period Canary House and the curse surrounding the Van der Beeck family made me want to keep turning the page. I love the characters of the twins. Being so different they could read each others minds and would do anything for each other. They were quite determined to find Bab's and tie up the mystery surrounding her secret.
I enjoyed this book and give it 3.5 stars. It was well written and the characters were very comical and interesting. Especially the characters of borders that lived in the Van der Beeck family home. Hoping Ms. Mathison will continue with this book as a series. I can see that Vivian and Viola could be solving many mysteries to come. I can also see a real love interest for one of them..
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC and Ms. Mathison for this little mystery. Looking forward to more adventures.

This one was a bit of a miss for me. Maybe it would be better for young adult readers? I really like the idea of a crazy boarding house full of characters, even down to the housemaid and cook. And add in a mystery where a semi-famous Follies dancer staying in Canary house goes missing? I like the short chapters and the setting of New York in the 30's. But the style of writing was hard to get into - I would describe it as madcap with the 3rd person narrator darting into the past or explaining some minor character's background - and the mystery itself finished underwhelmingly with the twins making assumptions that were difficult to follow. Additionally, the 18 year old twins, Vivian and Viola, blended together for a long time for me. I finally figured out which one was which - one is very bookish and the other is the rebel/fearless sister - but their names are so similar and the perspective never stays with just one. If they had alternated narrating chapters or if we'd just stuck with one the whole time, it might have been better. We do spend a little more time with Vivian but that's also because of the love story aspect. The ending was visually incredible - but the resolution of who did what for why is a bit of a stretch. I'm not sure I would read another installment of this.

This was a really fun read. Lots of humor and quite original for this type of book.
The authors note said she lost her agent because of this book and I think that is a pity as it is a really good read, well paced, and well written.

I have to admit, when I picked up this book, I failed to realise it is a teen and young adult read. Once I adjusted my expectations, it was a lovely, light mystery! The leading ladies are wildly different in personality and skill set but, circumstances require them to work together accompanied by new friends in order to overcome their enemies and stay safe! Love, mystery, adventure, and more, this book is jam-packed from start to finish. For the right audience, it’s a four out of five!

Content warning: an allusion to sexual conduct, otherwise clean romance

The Starlet Letter might well be one of my all time favorite reads. Right away you are drawn into the historical and social forces at work in the lives of the main characters, Vivian and Viola Van der Beeck. They are twins with delightfully different personalities. The mystery of the disappearance of one of their family's boarding house residents, Babs Le Roy, would never be solved without their dogged, courageous and creative involvement. And the ongoing questions and sometimes disturbing mysteries of their family history hinted at in an old diary continue to demand their attention. The characters in the story are carefully written with a compelling lighthearted understanding of the quirkiness of being human. I highly recommend this book. It is a wonderful read.

I really liked this and thought that the mystery was really good. And the story line was so good and original I thought. I lived the twins and can't wait to see what they get into next.
I just reviewed The Starlet Letter by Julie Mathison. #TheStarletLetter #NetGalley
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This quirky, light-hearted historical mystery is a perfect tonic for a snowy afternoon or rainy day.

The young protagonists have very over-developed imaginations and a rich sense of adventure. The reader needs a strong sense of whimsey and acceptance of the absurd, but the writer knows just what she is delivering. . . A light-hearted, romp through Manhattan during The 1920’s.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I found this book to be very interesting (even if I have never read The Scarlet Letter, I knew enough about it thanks to the movie 'Easy A') and rather enjoyable to read. I want to know more about what is going on as I enjoyed reading about the variety of characters in this book.

Wonderfully developed characters and a pace filled plot that keeps you guessing until the lady page.

this was a really good! I liked the characters, and they were super well-developed. the plot was super cool and fun to read, and the writing was also smooth and easy to understand
highly recommend

3.5 Stars

The writing style took me right back to some of my favourite reads, and authors, from when I was a young girl, and I felt the same excitement as I did back then, each time the story progressed.

It’s a great little ‘whodunnit’ with lots of vibrant suspects and two, unusually young, yet very likable, private detectives on the case.The atmosphere of the depressive era is conveyed well without the characters or story being too dark or glum and the portrayal of Dad’s ‘ShellShock’ is extremely sad.

The story overall was really well done, although the ending didn’t captivate me as much as the investigation throughout the rest of the book did. Saying that though, and while trying not to give too much away, the ending didn’t disappoint at all. There’s so much more going on in this book than just the main mystery, that I didn’t mind any perceived weaknesses in this part of the story.

Granted, there were times when I feared I was missing out on references, or a certain level of understanding, due to never having read ‘The Scarlet Letter,’ but I think, for the most part, the similarities were explained well.

Would I recommend this book? - Yes I think it’s worth making your own decision on, especially if you are a fan of this genre. You’ll meet some great characters in a vivid world and you’ll probably be left waiting for book number two just like I am.

This book was not on goodreads for me to leave a review, but I did share it in my Facebook group.

Well written, Quick and easy read! 3.5 stars!

The Starlet Letter is a mystery set in the 1930s. The main characters are teenage twins that love to sleuth. Their family has been hit by The Great Depression and they've opened their home to borders. One of the new borders is a famous Ziegfeld star that mysteriously disappeared from the limelight but has come back. The star is abducted and the twins make it their mission to find her... This was a fun book and full of history.

This was a great start to the Canary House Mysteries series, it does a great job to the historical mystery genre. It worked well as a plot and it had what I was looking for. The characters were what I was hoping for and I was invested in the mystery going on. It left me wanting to read more in this world and from Julie Mathison.

"Detective Flanagan, was it?” she said politely from where she stood nearby. “Miss Le Roy joined us on the evening of September 17, at approximately 8:40 p.m. and I believe you’ll find she took up lodgings here soon after her return from upstate New York where she had been living with her family of origin, that being a fact she took pains to hide upon her arrival.”