Why Am I Drawn To This Series??? - The Maple Murders Review

TITLE: The Maple Murders (Riverdale #3)
AUTHOR: Micol Ostow
PUBLISHER: Scholastic
PUBLISHING DATE: October 15, 2019

FROM GOODREADS: 

Riverdale is clamoring with excitement over news that an old town tradition is suddenly being revived: the Riverdale Revels.

The festival supposedly has a long history, dating back to the town's settlers' first successful maple tapping. But there's no record of the Revels anywhere. Archie, Betty, Veronica, and Jughead think there must be more to the story. And when a skeleton is uncovered in a 75-year-old time capsule on the first night of the festival, they know they're right. 

But a dead body in a maple barrel isn't the only drama surrounding the Revels. The Royal Maple pageant (open to all Riverdale teens) is in full swing, but "accidents" keep befalling the contestants, including the gang's friends. 

Someone is clearly trying to put an end to the Revels once and for all -- but who? And more importantly, why? Can Archie and his friends put a stop to the sabotage before someone puts a stop to them? This original novel features a story not seen on the show! 

MY THOUGHTS: So I pretty much am addicted to Riverdale and while I will admit this series isn't really that deep and probably aren't for people who don't follow the show, I will continue to read them as long as I can grab them from the library - or really really cheap.  Like free cheap.

In this installment, the town of Riverdale is trying to bounce back from some of the tragic incidents that have recently happened.  They decide to revive the Riverdale Revels, a celebration which hasn't happened in years.  As part of the celebration, the mayor has decided to dig up an time capsule buried over 75 years ago.  However, no one was prepared for the dead body with comes out when they release the contents.

Once again we have all the favorite cast - including Jughead which EVERYONE knows is dear to my heart.  Kevin, Toni and Cheryl are a little more prominent in this novel than the first two but primary because there is a pageant taking place and they are all involved.  I also continue to love how the books are told in a mixture of narratives, diary entries, newspaper articles, memos and texts.  The mystery in the novel is interesting but not really mind-blowing.  However I will add that the fun thing with this series is that it happens between the seasons of the CW television series.  So the tales are redundant but it does help if you have an idea what has happened on the show.

If you love Riverdale and even if you have teens who are enjoying the show and you want to get them to read more, than I recommend this series.  For hardcore mystery lovers who are considering it strictly for the mystery aspect, then you might want to find something else.

RATING: 3 PAWS