Sunday, September 11, 2016

The 2007 Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys Super Mystery Series

Early in my reading of the Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers series, I decided to read the six titles in the 2007 Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys Super Mystery series and purchased the titles that I needed.  I later regretted this decision.  Since I had built the set, I read the books anyway.  That is... I tried to read them and was partially successful.

The set consists of the following books.

1.  Terror on Tour
2.  Danger Overseas
3.  Club Dread
4.  Gold Medal Murder
5.  Bonfire Masquerade
6.  Stage Fright

As I began reading Terror on Tour, I was dismayed that the book opens in the middle of an action scene in which the Hardys are wrapping up a case.  I grew so sick of those scenes from the Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers series.  I thought I would be past those annoying scenes.  Somebody please save me!

The next chapter features Nancy and her friends.  As I read this chapter, I quickly remembered how much I enjoy the premise of the Nancy Drew Girl Detective series.

On pages 40 and 105, George calls the Hardy Boys dorks.  I cannot express how much I appreciate that.  The Hardy Boys are the Undercover Brothers version in these books, and they are dorks.  They are also idiots and the very worst incarnation of the Hardy Boys.

The parts of the text featuring the Hardy Boys have too much discussion and information about the rock stars.  I was bored.  I only enjoyed the parts of the book that feature Nancy Drew.

The mystery is lame and uninteresting.  The book is worth reading only for the interesting interaction between Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys.

Danger Overseas is a travelogue, so I found it boring.  I did not like it.

In Club Dread, the sleuths solve a mystery in Florida.  On page 6, the text states that Nancy forgets to eat while on a case.  I can understand not eating all day when busy, since I have done that, but forgetting to eat?  Like, wouldn't Nancy get hungry eventually?  This is the type of detail that makes the Girl Detective series flawed.  It's not logical.  Even though I like the Girl Detective series a lot, the series does go too far in depicting Nancy's imperfections.

I enjoyed Club Dread.  I guessed one of the culprits early in the book and was interested in how it would work out.

I also enjoyed Gold Medal Murder, although it's just good and nothing special.

Bonfire Masquerade opens with Nancy wrapping up a case.  Oh, no!  Now we get an action scene at the very beginning with Nancy.  Even worse, the book then switches to the Hardy Boys who also are wrapping up a case in another action scene.  I'd rather get on with the real story.

The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew do not cross paths until halfway through the book, which is odd.  Around that time, I quit reading the book.  I found it boring.

Stage Fright also opens with Nancy wrapping up a case and then the Hardy Boys wrapping up a case.  Again, this not interesting to me.  This book also bored me, and I did not read most of it.

Overall, I did not like this series.  I was already stressed by the horrible Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers trilogies, and this series added to my stress.  Ugh.

I am glad that I read the first book, however.  I found it useful to remember exactly how much I enjoy the Nancy Drew Girl Detective series, which helped me realize how much better it is than the Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers series.

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