A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Reptile Room

The second instalment in Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Reptile Room see the Baudelaire orphans away from Count Olaf and with a new guardian. Filled with a coconut cream cake, reptiles, interesting lawn decorations, and murder, this is where the series begins to take shape. 

After foiling the dastardly Count Olaf’s plan to marry Violet and seize their fortune, the Baudelaire orphans are whisked away to live with a new guardian, a herpetologist named Uncle Monty. Upon arriving at their new home, its seems that fortune has smiled on the children, for the house is interesting, their guardian is friendly and kind, and they can each spend their time doing what they love most. But their happiness is short lived when Uncle Monty’s new laboratory assistant arrives, turning out to me someone whom the Baudelaires wished never to see again. 

Just as easy to read as The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room gets a little darker and we see the characters evolve a little, not to mention we get an idea of what the series entails: every book, the Baudelaires with a new guardian, the evil Count Olaf arriving in various disguises, trying to steal their fortune, and the burden of foiling his plans falling to the children. It all seems rather dull, repetitive, and predictable when it’s written like that, but The Reptile Room was just a precursor to the various memorable characters we’ll meet in coming books, and that’s something to look forward to. 

The central conflict in The Bad Beginning, Count Olaf’s plan to steal the fortune, was just a taste of what horrific and mature schemes lie ahead. Where, in the first book, there was not so much violence to be sure, The Reptile Room really illustrates how dangerous and ruthless the villain is. In this book two murders are committed, not to mention Olaf’s constant threatening the children with a long knife. It has to be said that these are not really children’s books, but books for a little more mature audience, definitely in double digits. 

Filled with action, schemes, coconut cream cake, reptiles, nasty accidents, and the most unhorrific zombie movie of all time, The Reptile Room is just as gripping as its predecessor and just as quick and easy to read. Love it.