Who Could That Be at This Hour? by Lemony Snicket

After six long years, Lemony Snicket, America's favorite, secretive accordionist/author, has returned with a fresh series. Much as his Series of Unfortunate Events (if you haven't read that series, I can't recommend it enough) was a love letter to, and send-up of, the gothic novel, this new series, All the Wrong Questions delves deep into the murky world of noir. Crammed full of nods to noir conventions and liberally peppered with shout-outs to the literary and filmic greats of the genre, the book moves at a fast clip and, like the Series of Unfortunate Events, is unstoppably entertaining.

The book begins in The City where a young Snicket is about to embark upon his apprenticeship in a secret organization. He ends up in a strange sea-side town in search of a small black statue of a creature -- a search with which even the local librarian, Dashiell, can't help. The young Snicket quickly meets with noir characters, all his own age. A reporter who asks more questions than Snicket can ever answer, a team of taxi drivers (Pip and Squeak, one works the wheel the other the breaks) who are happy to be paid in literary advice, and a femme fatal with "hair so dark it made the night look pale." As young Snicket investigates, each answer he unearths, ignites more questions, and as he delves deeper into the mystery of who stole the statue, more questions about his own life arise and a sinister criminal mastermind named "Hangfire" reveals himself. Can Snicket help those he has promised to assist? Can he find the stolen statue? And, most pressingly of all, can he return to the city to help the associate he unexpectedly had to leave behind?

Mr. Snicket's representative, Daniel Handler, has announced that there will be four books in the All the Wrong Questions series, each title being a different question. The next book in the series, When Did You See Her Last? was released on October 15, 2013. Want to get caught up on the series before reading book two? Then stop by the library and pick up Who Could That Be at This Hour? today!