The Slippery Slope by Daniel Handler - Book Review

Unlike the colorful palette of the previous book, this one displays colder, paler tones. Character development for characters like Sunny is evident in the way she is treated and how she reacts to the situation she is in.

Despicable characters back from The Austere Academy make an appearance again to torment the orphans, even though they are still wearing disguises. Count Olaf, on the other hand, shows a new side to him.

A side that quivers at the sight of new villains, which proves that there are more dangerous people in the world than someone as greedy as him or as spoiled as Esme. The two new villains who are labeled as the Man with a Beard but No Hair and the Woman with Hair but No Beard prove that the philanthropist VFD has more dangerous enemies than Count Olaf.

Klaus and Violet try to stay alive after Count Olaf left them in a moving Caravan that was speeding dangerously on a cliff. With their apt talents, the two siblings manage to rescue themselves and stop the caravan in time, but they have to walk the road up to the Mortmain Mountains to find Olaf and rescue their baby sister from his clutches.

The struggle between good and evil persists inside them as they go to extreme lengths in this book to save their sister. They manage to capture one of Count Olaf’s henchmen to exchange for their sister. They feel extremely unsettled as they ask themselves once again: are they actually the good and decent people they claim to be? Or are they just like Count Olaf?

Many people favor this installment over any other book in the series, as they discover later a key character that they once thought dead from the previous books. The little games and riddles left by VFD are certainly entertaining, but if you like to find answers immediately for mysteries, then these books are not going to satisfy you.

The buildup is so slow, as you’re being given little pieces of information as the story progresses, but in reality, this allows the reader to enjoy the unique writing style of the author and look up what inspired his references. The Slippery Slope was, again, teeming with danger, but it demanded that readers sit back and enjoy the ride instead of seeking answers.