Nancy Drew Diaries #27 Vans & Villains, or How to Fix This Mess

Publisher's summary:

When George wins an exciting contest from her favorite van life influencers to transport their camper van from Chicago to Los Angeles, she naturally invites Nancy and Bess along to live out her van life fantasies for seven days.

But things quickly go sideways for the girls, from bad weather to mechanical problems, leading to personality clashes in a small, closed space.  Worse yet, Nancy feels like someone is following them.  Could someone be trying to sabotage the trip?  Or is Nancy so used to solving mysteries that she's starting to see villains where there are none?

Nancy had better figure it out quickly if their road trip—and their friendship—is going to survive the chaos.

First off, #vanlife is mentioned enough times in this book that it should have been used as part of the title.  I used AI to alter the title to Van Life Gone Wrong.  Much more appropriate.

This book has very few characters, which makes for a better story.  It has a simple plot and is easy to follow.  I found it to be light, enjoyable reading.

I do have a minor quibble with George's behavior.  She doubted in Nancy's belief that something was off.  I get tired of Nancy's friends doubting her.  Instead, the girls should have had a united front.  They could have called the sponsors with their concerns, and the sponsors could have doubted Nancy's assessment of the situation.

I have only read the Nancy Drew Diaries series once per year as each new title has been released.  This means that I can't compare the current story that well to previous stories, due to the time lapse.  I went through all of my blog reviews and made quick notes, as I was curious about a few things.

That was in January.  At this point, I actually don't remember what I was curious about, since the previous paragraph was written over four months ago.  Still, I can present the brief notes that I made.

#1 Nancy loves clothes.  George eats lots of food and is rude.

#2 Bess is girly.

#3 okay

#4 good

#5 very good

#6 very good

#7 liked but obvious sabotage

#8 forgetful Nancy, didn't like

#9 sabotage, childish

#10 sabotage, so-so

#11 sabotage but other flaws fixed, very good

#12 sabotage, very good

#13 Nancy gets nervous, shaky voice.  Good but tiring.

#14 very good

#15 Nancy is scared, queasy, stupid; referred to series as "epic fail"

#16 terrible, my review speaks for itself

Christmas Story - very good

#17 great book, no problems

#18 Nancy weak at times, weak story

#19 boring

#20 odd coded language, boring book

#21 excellent

#22 very good

#23 full of series book lore, overall good

#24 sabotage!!! boring

#25 too many characters, boring

#26 so boring

#27 pleasant reading

My takeaway is that the Nancy Drew Diaries series was all over the place.  It could never settle on what it was, and it floundered from start to finish.  What a disappointment.

You'll notice that I'm using past tense.  I've heard that the Nancy Drew Diaries series has ended.  Another incarnation is likely in the works.  I have no additional information, but I can tell you what I think needs to be fixed.

1.  Get better writers or manage the franchise better.

Simon & Schuster publishes some really good books for children.  Most of the books that are great were written by authors whose names are on the books.  That isn't going to happen with Nancy Drew, since ghostwriters are always used.

It's critical that the ghostwriters are more skilled than the group used for the Nancy Drew Diaries series.  I don't know how to solve that problem, since ghostwriters aren't paid much.

The bigger problem is Simon & Schuster's loose handling of the franchise.  The Nancy Drew Girl Detective series, although flawed, was pretty consistent.  The Nancy Drew Diaries series was wildly inconsistent, and that is because someone dropped the ball.  

The ghostwriters must be given clear guidelines that they must follow.  The characterization must be consistent across all books.

2.  Quit treating Nancy Drew like a helpless female.

Nearly 10 years ago, I wrote Gender Inequality in the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys Books.  Here is the beginning of that post.

While reading the Hardy Boys Digest series, I realized that the modern Nancy Drew is constrained by her gender.  The Hardy Boys are allowed much more interesting adventures, since they are boys.  The Hardy Boys get to be truck drivers, volunteer firefighters, and tightrope walkers.  In one book, they even get to use machine guns and drive a tank.

Nancy Drew gets to investigate museum sabotage, fundraiser sabotage, zucchini smashing, any other lame sabotage that Simon and Schuster can create, and the occasional disappearance.  The Hardy Boys get lots of sabotage as well, but they also get all the more interesting types of sabotage stories.

This means that the modern Hardy Boys books have more varied adventures than the modern Nancy Drew books.  This is baffling, considering the trend in society towards gender equality.  For some inexplicable reason, Simon and Schuster is taking Nancy Drew in the opposite direction, choosing to keep Nancy Drew in a strict gender-defined role that limits her ability to sleuth while allowing the Hardy Boys to have exciting adventures.

Simon & Schuster must correct this problem. 

3.  Go back to third-person point of view.  

We don't need Nancy Drew to be relatable.  There's nothing wrong with third-person point of view.  Honestly, it's less confusing for the type of story expected of the Nancy Drew franchise.  Nancy Drew stories aren't supposed to be about romance or deep feelings.  The stories should focus on interesting mysteries, and third-person point of view is sufficient.

Third-person omniscient would be the best approach, especially for the Hardy Boys franchise.  I could never tell the difference between Frank and Joe and kept having to flip back to the beginning of each chapter to figure out which brother was featured.  

4.  Quit relying solely on sabotage and give Nancy Drew more interesting plots.

We are sick of sabotage.  A quote from my post, Comparing the Nancy Drew Diaries to the Hardy Boys Adventures is apropos.

I noticed that all of the Hardy Boys Adventures books would work as Nancy Drew Diaries stories.  Most of them have very little action.  Almost every Nancy Drew Diaries book is sabotage, and several stories feature very boring sabotage plots.  Not as many Hardy Boys Adventures books are sabotage, and most of the sabotage books are creative sabotage that is engaging and interesting.  As a result, most of the Hardy Boys Adventures stories are better quality than the Nancy Drew Diaries stories.  Several Hardy Boys stories are extremely creative and suspenseful.  The better story ideas are being used for the Hardy Boys Adventures series.

Several of the Hardy Boys Adventures books read in a similar fashion to young adult dystopian fiction.  Perhaps the publisher thought that the content is too dark for Nancy Drew and more suitable for boys.  If true, that's a shame, since dystopian novels are quite popular today and are read by both boys and girls.  Those kinds of stories should not be limited to the Hardy Boys, when lots of girls read dystopian novels.

Taking a dystopian approach would improve the Nancy Drew franchise considerably.  I'm not talking about anything supernatural or having to do with aliens.  I'm thinking more in terms of organizations that are doing unethical research.  We could have AI running amok (which isn't a stretch, since AI is already out of control).  Cyberbullying would make for a compelling topic.  One of the highpoints of the Nancy Drew Girl Detective series was The Identity Mystery Trilogy, in which Nancy investigates cyberbullying. 

The Hardy Boys Adventures series featured a network of tunnels under Bayport.  I'd love to have something like that in the modern Nancy Drew books.  

The stories need to lean into modern intrigue and amp up the danger.  

If Simon & Schuster would fix just these problems, then the Nancy Drew series output would improve considerably.  I could even forgive Nancy continuing to take excessive bathroom breaks so long as the stories improve.

Nancy Drew Diaries #26 Superstitions of "The Scottish Play"

Publisher's summary:

When Ned is cast in a stage production of Macbeth, led by the famous but peculiar director Bear Larouche, Nancy volunteers to help with the set.  She's also allowed to sit in on a few rehearsals, where she gets an earful from the director about theater superstitions: never say "Macbeth" out loud—only refer to it as "The Scottish Play"—never wear blue, no peacock feathers onstage, and so on.

The play is off to a promising start until Ned breaks the most important rule and accidentally says "Macbeth" in the theater.  And then accidents begin happening during rehearsals.  It quickly goes from odd to scary, and the director is ready to cancel the show.

Nancy might not believe in superstition, but she does believe in intuition, and hers is telling her that the cause behind these incidents isn’t a curse, but someone in the cast.  It's up to her to find out who before opening night.

When I read a book, how much I enjoy the book is influenced by what I just read.  Unfortunately, I read Don't Go to Sleep by Bryce Moore immediately before reading this book.  Don't Go to Sleep will likely be my favorite read of 2025.  For that reason, my reading experience with this latest Nancy Drew Diaries book was doomed from the start.

So, I read this book on the day of release.  When I finished, I thought about how I always do a review.  I wasn't interested.  I did not want to write anything about the book.  I mean... the book bored me.  What's the point?

Let's do it anyway.

Nearly the entire book bored me.  I quickly decided to speed-read the book so that my torture would end as quickly as possible.

How can they come up with so many boring books?

I found the subplot with Bess to be much more interesting than the main plot.  Yay, Bess!  The main plot didn't interest me until nearly two-thirds into it, and then it got boring again.

I do have to acknowledge that the books no longer mention Nancy's restroom habits.  I'm glad for that.  Nancy isn't depicted like an idiot.  The case is decent, although it's boring sabotage, and I never cared.

As I read, or rather, skimmed the book, I considered whether it was something that would appeal to children.  It very well might.  The director is eccentric, and children might get a kick out of that.

The book is okay, but it didn't do much for me.

Nancy Drew Diaries #25 What Disappears in Vegas...

In Nancy Drew Diaries #25, What Disappears in Vegas..., Bess and George's cousin Veronica is getting married to extreme sports enthusiast Xavier Redd, and as a close friend of the family, Nancy has been invited to the wedding.  Given the groom's big personality and love for the extreme, the wedding will take place in Vegas, and the couple plan to take advantage of local sporting opportunities in the week leading up to the big event.

Not everyone in the family approves of Veronica's fiancé, though, especially because of the risk-taking behavior Xavier has introduced her to.  And when one of the couple's sporting stunts almost ends in a serious accident, it's not clear whether it’s an unfortunate coincidence or whether someone really wants to stop the wedding from happening.

Still, the day of the wedding arrives.  But when it comes time to exchange vows, the bride is nowhere to be seen.  Is this just a case of cold feet?  Or has one of the wedding guests created a cold-hearted plot?  One thing’s for sure—Nancy won't rest until she finds out.

The above summary was provided by the publisher.  I find it curious that the publisher's summary makes the plot sound like sabotage.  We joked about it last year when the summary was first released.

On June 14, 2023, I wrote this:

Nancy Drew Diaries #25, What Disappears in Vegas..., will be published early next year.  The synopsis begins, "Bess and George's cousin Veronica is getting married..."  STOP!  Allow me to guess.  The wedding isn't going as planned.  Could it be sabotage?  Surely not, right?  But if it is, Nancy will find out! 

Just about every Nancy Drew Diaries book is sabotage, so having the summary indicate that this story is sabotage is kind of funny, since it continues the trend.  The odd thing is... this book is not sabotage.  Why make it sound like sabotage?

Before I decided to use the publisher's summary, I wrote my own brief summary.  Here is mine:

Nancy and her friends travel to Las Vegas for the wedding of Veronica and Xavier.  Veronica is Bess and George's cousin, and Bess will be one of the bridesmaids.  Xavier owns Redd Zone, an extreme-sports complex in Chicago.  All of the wedding events include extreme sports like BASE jumping, and Xavier films everything for social media.  After an accident during one of the sports stunts, Veronica mysteriously disappears.  Nancy and her friends search for clues.

This book has way too much exposition.  The plot is mostly exposition up until page 70 when the suspense and mystery finally begins.  The disappearance does not occur until page 99.  I read these books to see what they are doing with Nancy Drew, and I will read the book regardless of whether it is good or bad.  In this case, I was mostly bored with the story until page 65.  When I reached page 65, I made this note to myself:  "finally, some tension on page 65."

I was still a little bored with the story between pages 70 and 99.  From page 99 on, I was interested and engaged.  The story is 255 pages long.  This means that I was nearly 40% through the book before I was interested in the plot.  The reason Nancy Drew has been successful for over 90 years is because the plots have always started off fast.  The readers get hooked by an interesting plot within the first chapter, often on the very first page.  Instead, this book starts very slow and plods along until the mystery begins.

The book also has too many characters.  I had trouble keeping track of them.  It's not necessary to give the reader the names of everyone who comes in contact with Nancy.  For instance, we don't need to know that the cab driver is named Mario.

I'm a little bewildered that Bess is described on page 1 as liking to "drive fast, take risks, and ride every roller coaster in a hundred-mile radius."  On page 7, Nancy thinks to herself, "Sometimes it's hard, loving a daredevil."

I correctly deduced the culprit early in the story, long before the story becomes interesting.  It's fairly easy to figure most of these books out.  

These books tend to describe technology in an awkward fashion.  From page 140:

I scrolled down through the list of messages, looking for the little paper clip icon that denotes an attachment.

I feel like the text should simply have stated, "I scrolled down through the list of messages looking for an attachment."  I felt like I was reading a book from more than 25 years ago.  Books from back then always had awkward explanations of technology. 

A passage on page 157 gave me pause.

George looked at the assembled crowd.  "I wouldn't say Macy's," she said.  "I'd say more... JCPenney?  Sears?"

That was where I stopped.  My reaction was, "That's odd to mention Sears..."  I then saw the next line.

Bess frowned at her.  "Sears doesn't exist anymore, George," she said.  "Anyway, what are you getting at?"

"I'm trying to think of places my grandma shops," George replied.

Ah, I see.  When my local Sears store closed in 2017, I went by one time to see if there were any good deals (there weren't).  All of the customers were using walkers or wheelchairs or were walking very slowly.  Most were extremely elderly.  It was a sad and depressing experience.  

I rate this book as overall good.  It is kind of boring, during the first part of the book, and then very good later in the story.

Nancy Drew Diaries #24 Captain Stone's Revenge, or The Sailing Club Sabotage

Nancy, Bess, and George travel to Vermont to stay at the Gemstone Islands Resort on Lake Champlain.  Nancy's friend, Grace, owns the sailing club, which is about to have its grand opening.  Nancy and her friends soon learn that strange events have happened.  Could someone be sabotaging the sailing club?

I decided not to use the publisher's summary, because it pretty much tells the entire story except for the ending.  That right there indicates a problem.

When I am reading a book, I am strongly influenced by whatever I just finished reading.  I recently read through all the Harry Potter books, which are outstanding.  Nothing can compare to Harry Potter.  I'm still jazzed by it and have been spending time in the Harry Potter subreddits.  No Nancy Drew Diaries book can compare to Harry Potter, so that undoubtedly influenced my opinion.  Even so, I don't think this is that good of a book.

I hadn't read the publisher's summary when I started the book, which is just as well for the reason I already stated.  Despite not reading the summary, I knew on the very first page that it was sabotage.  

Once I was a few pages into the book, I asked myself why I was reading it.  Why am I continuing to support this series?  I don't know.  Every story is the same.

I found this book to be quite bland, lacking description and characterization.  The book is just words on pages telling a story of sabotage for the umpteenth time in the Nancy Drew franchise.

This part of my review of Nancy Drew Diaries #10 A Script for Danger is relevant.

It's like Simon and Schuster is playing Nancy Drew Mad Libs.  Each book must center around sabotage, and they switch around names and places, making up another generic sabotage story.

That really is what they are doing.  Each book is the same story.

Nancy and her friends travel to __________ to visit Nancy's __________ at their new __________.  The __________ is having problems.  Perhaps someone is sabotaging the __________.  Nancy must find the saboteur before it is too late.

This is so boring.  The book never gave me reason to care.

Since the folks at Simon & Schuster cannot come up with any interesting Nancy Drew stories, perhaps the time has come for them to introduce the supernatural in the books.  Let's get some werewolves and vampires involved. 

Look, I am joking, but not completely.  While I don't want the supernatural in the books, I do want an interesting plot that isn't the same recycled sabotage.  The franchise needs new life to be breathed into it.  It is possible to write an engaging story that is not sabotage.  It really is, Simon & Schuster!
 
In fairness, Simon & Schuster has fixed most of my complaints about the Nancy Drew Diaries series.  I took a list of how the books should be from one of my old posts.

1.  The case is urgent.

Fail - I didn't feel any urgency.

2.  Nancy doesn't go to the restroom.

Pass - no restroom.

3.  Nancy's sleuthing abilities aren't belittled.

Pass

4.  Nancy is confident.

Pass

5.  Nancy has above average abilities.

Not sure.  It might have more been writer's magic.  I don't see how she guessed the solution to the treasure.

6.  Technology is used properly.

Pass

I am glad that those problems have been fixed.  Now we have just one lingering problem: sabotage.  Could we fix that as well?  Pretty please?

My closing statement in my review of Nancy Drew Diaries #13 The Mystery at Grey Fox Inn could be applied to this book.

This is a good book overall, but I've read this same story a few dozen times and have grown tired of the predictable plot.

As I read Captain Stone's Revenge, I was never remotely interested in the plot.  Nothing about the book appealed to me. 

.......................................................
The above commentary was written in January.  I was puzzled when early reviews were favorable.  I wondered why other people liked the book when I didn't.  A couple of later reviews were decidedly lukewarm.  Nevertheless, I still wondered if I was being too harsh.  Perhaps I expect too much of S&S.  I didn't think so, but I decided to hold this post until after I was able to read Hardy Boys Adventures #25 The Smuggler's Legacy.  I finally read that book this week.

At least I now know that I wasn't being unduly harsh.  I went into The Smuggler's Legacy expecting the worst and was pleasantly surprised.  I'm not the problem; the creative team at S&S is. 

I leave you with this: A better ghost writer makes for a better product.  The Hardy Boys Adventures series overall has better ghost writers than the Nancy Drew Diaries series.  That and the Hardy Boys Adventures series tends to avoid sabotage.  It's disappointing that the Nancy Drew Diaries series is stuck with ghost writers who only know how to write about sabotage.

Nancy Drew Diaries #23 The Blue Lady of Coffin Hall

In Nancy Drew Diaries #23, The Blue Lady of Coffin Hall, Nancy helps Ned investigate a haunted library, which he plans to feature in his podcast.  The spirit of Harriet Coffin, known as the Blue Lady, is said to be haunting the tower room of Coffin Hall.

The ghostwriter of this book is well-versed in series book lore.  Easter eggs are scattered throughout the text.  The tower room in the library and the librarian's name, Irene, are obvious nods to the Judy Bolton series.  The name Harriet is a nod to Harriet Stratemeyer Adams of the Stratemeyer Syndicate.

The Blue Lady has a glowing dress, which reminds me of the revised text version of The Mystery at Lilac Inn.

The reader learns on page 45 that Bess has started carrying poetry books around with her.  She reads her favorite lines to her friends.  This reminds me of Wilma in the Kay Tracey series.

I also noted some names, words, and phrases that loosely reminded me of various series books: weird blue light, automatic ghost-alert system, and hoaxers.  They could be just coincidence, but I believe that the ghostwriters who place series book lore into their stories also use words and phrases that they know will make the readers think of certain books and stories.  One ghostwriter placed words referring to the original 56 Nancy Drew books all through one of the Nancy Drew Girl Detective books.

The cover art pays homage to the Nancy Drew television series from The CW.  Nancy wears a scarf, carries a shoulder bag, and is wearing a locket.  Take a look at this press photo from episode 3.01 of CW's Nancy Drew in which Nancy can be seen with the shoulder bag and scarf.  She is also wearing the locket, but it is almost completely hidden by the scarf.

Whether Harriet Coffin's ghost is real is left unresolved.  This is similar to The Kachina Doll Mystery.  It could also be considered a nod to CW's version of Nancy Drew, which has leaned hard into the supernatural, unlike any past version of Nancy Drew.

The culprit is quite predictable.  Without getting into the specific details, something gave it away early in the book, so I knew the identity of one of the culprits from near the beginning.

The characterization of Ned is off.  He's depicted as a bit too scared.  That said, the inconsistency with Ned fits in with the continuing inconsistency of the entire Nancy Drew Diaries series. The tone and characterization change with each book since the series apparently has quite a few ghostwriters and little oversight from the editors.

I found the ending to be odd and a bit confusing.  After I finished, I couldn't figure out exactly what the deal is with the culprits.  I also couldn't decide if this book is sabotage.  I would say that this book is not true sabotage, but it could be interpreted as having a sabotage aspect.  There is other stuff going on.

I make note of whether the Nancy Drew Diaries books are sabotage because it has been an overused plot device for many years and has gotten old.  This book doesn't come across as true sabotage, so it isn't tiring like the blatant sabotage books.

I felt that this was a pretty good book right after I finished reading it.  I must say that now that some time has passed, I feel that the book is just good.  It's like I have a somewhat negative feeling about the book even though I enjoyed reading it.  This has happened to me before with some of the Nancy Drew Diaries books.

Each time the Nancy Drew Diaries series is mentioned on Facebook, someone asks if the books are good.  That question is impossible to answer.  I certainly can't give a blanket rating of "good" to the series.  Some books are good, some great, some stupid, and one is the worst Nancy Drew book ever. 

Fans also ask if the books are like the old Nancy Drew books.  The series cannot be like the old Nancy Drew books because it is in first person.  Aside from that, a few books are similar in a modern fashion, but the series is all over the place.  It cannot be compared to any of the older Nancy Drew books.  The set is inconsistent.  Quality control is needed, although recent books have been a great improvement.

Nancy Drew Diaries #22 A Capitol Crime

This review is from May 2021, and I forgot to publish it.

In Nancy Drew Diaries #22, A Capitol Crime, Nancy heads to Washington, D.C., to find her father.  He has disappeared from a conference, and Nancy follows clues to trace his whereabouts.

I can't say much about the plot, because there are actually two mysteries.  The original case leads into another case, and I'll leave it at that.

Not only is this mystery not sabotage, it is also of a creative type that makes it refreshing to read.  In fact, it's about what I have come to expect from the Hardy Boys Adventures series. 

I have wondered all along why Nancy Drew has been stuck in Sabotage Land for nearly all titles in the series.  The writer acknowledges this in Chapter 1 with "Usually I help find items that have been stolen or track down saboteurs."  The books that actually point out the sabotage are among the ones that are better.  I knew right off that I was reading a book by one of the very few good authors of the Nancy Drew Diaries series.

The writer has knowledge of Nancy's past history.  The reader is told that Hannah has taken care of Nancy since Nancy's mom died when she was three.  Also, Hannah is away during this story because of her sister's broken leg.  That sounds rather familiar.

Nancy does show moments of weakness, but I'm okay with this when it isn't done in a sloppy fashion like what happened in certain other books I could mention.  The writer's skill makes all the difference.  After Nancy feels faint and is embarrassed, Bess tells her, "Being brave isn't about not being scared.  It's about doing what you need to do even when you are scared."

I always appreciate the use of "telltale" in a Nancy Drew book.

The reader learns that Nancy has helped her father solve "crossword puzzles and sudoku games."  This book gives off a Nancy Drew games vibe.  Sudoku is an important part of the Nancy Drew game, Shadow at the Water's Edge.  Nancy also searches various locations for obscure clues left behind by her father.  She picks them up as she finds them.

From pages 101-102:

After getting out, I took a deep breath and walked toward the guard station.  I've solved a lot of cases, and I know that people break the law for all sorts of reasons.  Most of them are good folks who got themselves in bad situations and made a poor decision.

I appreciate it when writers put statements like the above in books.  Most people are too judgmental of everyone who commits a crime.  They also have an unfortunate habit of blaming the family, like the family had anything to do with it.  The family needs support, not scorn, because their lives have been turned upside-down as a result of a bad decision made by a relative.

We get some commentary about malls failing.

I visualized Carson Drew as Scott Wolf (the actor who plays Carson on the show on The CW).  If you've watched the show, imagine Scott Wolf saying, "Nancy, it's okay.  I'm okay."  Perfect.

Nancy decides to steal files from a police station.  This is also just like the game version Nancy Drew.  It's also like the television show.

That was where I left off when I wrote this review last May.  I did not make note of how much I enjoyed this book, but as I recall, I considered it as very good.

Nancy Drew Diaries #21 Danger at the Iron Dragon

In Nancy Drew Diaries #21, Danger at the Iron Dragon, Nancy and her friends begin learning Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at Iron Dragon MMA.  On the girls' first night at the school, a dead rat is left on the front desk.  Nancy wonders if a rival academy is trying to cause trouble.

This appears to be the typical sabotage book, but it actually isn't.  It's curious that the entire Nancy Drew Diaries series is either sabotage or appears to be sabotage.  

While not sabotage, the plot of Danger at the Iron Dragon is a familiar one that has been used in a number of series books.  More on that later.

When I first began reading the book, I didn't really notice anything other than that the book was written by a decent author, as in not written by the person who wrote Heliotrope Lane or by any of the authors who are obsessed with restrooms.  Thank goodness!

Anyway, I began to notice things as I read the book.  The book appears to have multiple obscure Easter eggs in it, unless I am drawing conclusions where there should be none.  As best I can recall, the mention of a business named Crazy Eights on page 125 was what first gave me pause.  The name may not actually be an Easter egg since it was on a matchbox that featured a picture of cards.  Crazy Eights is a card game.  However, it did get me to start paying closer attention to all names used from that point on.  "Crazy Eights" is a column written by Michael G. Cornelius for the Nancy Drew fanzine The Sleuth, so that's why it caught my attention.

Did the mention of "Crazy Eights" cause me to fall down a rabbit hole and read too much into a bunch of coincidences?  Or could the ghostwriter of this book be knowledgeable about series books and have placed clues all through the book?  

I'm not sure what I noticed next.  The name Penny drew my attention although I did not initially think it meant anything.  I also noticed how often "chuckled" appears in the book.  I ran a search on the text and found that "chuckled" is used 12 times.  "Chuckled" is used excessively in the Nancy Drew books of the 1960s and 1970s and is generally absent in the Nancy Drew books from other time periods.  How odd for it to show up so many times in this book...

I then started paying close attention to all names as I continued to read.  On page 136, the pieces fell into place, and I guessed the solution to the mystery.  Right after I guessed the solution, I made the connection to a certain book and quit reading to go pull that book off the shelf.  So...

If you plan to read this book and do not want to have the entire plot spoiled, you need to quit reading right now.  I will be mentioning the solution to the mystery as well as other series books that have the same plot.  Most of you who are diehard series book fans have probably read the other books, so I'm less concerned about spoiling them.  I feel that Easter eggs representing the other series books were placed in this book on purpose, so I do have to mention the other books.

You've been warned.  Stop reading now to avoid having the mystery completely spoiled.

Some of you might recall a question that I posed in the Collecting Vintage Children's Series Books group in January that was a bit random, and I gave no explanation for the query since I didn't want to spoil the plot of this book.  My question was, "Which series books feature bank robbers who either use a tunnel or dig a tunnel to get into a bank vault?  One title is Hardy Boys #80 The Roaring River Mystery.  I recall that there are other books, but I can't bring them to mind."

I thought of The Roaring River Mystery right after I guessed the solution to Danger at the Iron Dragon.  In Danger at the Iron Dragon, a past case of Carson's is mentioned.  It involves bank robbers, Max and Ollie Ladrao, who used a tunnel to get into a bank's vault.  The Roaring River Mystery not only has the same plot, but it also has a character named Ollie.  What a strange coincidence. 

These are the other series books which feature tunnels used to rob banks.

Ken Holt #8 The Clue of the Phantom Car
Three Investigators #5 The Mystery of the Vanishing Treasure
Three Investigators #14 The Mystery of the Coughing Dragon
Hardy Boys Casefiles #45 In Self-Defense

Hardy Boys Casefiles #45 In Self-Defense features a martial arts school, from which the robbers gain access to a bank via a tunnel.  This is another strange coincidence in that the setting of Iron Dragon actually matches In Self-Defense.

I thought more about the other books as I finished reading Iron Dragon.  Let's analyze the title, Danger at the Iron Dragon.  The title is styled like the Penny Parker book, Danger at the Drawbridge.  A character in Iron Dragon is named Penny.

The title contains "dragon," and so does one Three Investigators book with the same plot, The Mystery of the Coughing Dragon.  It is possible, of course, that "dragon" could instead refer to the Nancy Drew book, The Mystery of the Fire Dragon.  I can't rule that out.

Now, the word "iron" makes me think of the Ken Holt book, The Mystery of the Iron Box.  That isn't the book with the bank robbery plot, but another Ken Holt book, The Clue of the Phantom Car, does have the same plot.  "Iron" could be a nod to Ken Holt.

The Sherlock Holmes story, "The Red-Headed League," also features the same plot of a bank robber using a tunnel to get into a bank.  It's clear that authors who use this plot like to make a nod to Sherlock Holmes.  In the series books which feature tunnels used to get into banks, one of the robbers often has red hair.  Iron Dragon is no exception.  The bank robber in Iron Dragon has red hair, and he even fist bumps Nancy, as he says, "Redheads rule." 

In addition to the appearance of "chuckled" in this book, I also noticed an interesting passage about Nancy's concussions.

"Probably a concussion," I said, still slurring.  "I've had them before.  Liam hit me pretty hard."

Now Penny actually looked concerned.  "How many have you had before?"

I shrugged.  "I don't remember.  I might have gotten one a few days ago when I got mugged on the street."

Fans often point out how prevalent the concussions are in the older books and how odd it is that she is always okay.  It is curious that a passage mentioning concussions was placed in this book.  

Looking for Easter eggs added to my enjoyment in reading this story.  Without the Easter eggs, I would rate the book as good or between good and very good.  With the Easter eggs, the book is solidly very good.

Nancy Drew Diaries #20 The Vanishing Statue

In Nancy Drew Diaries #20, The Vanishing Statue, Nancy and her friends are invited to Duchess Strickland's party at her home.  The Duchess is very reclusive and hasn't been around other people in many years.  Nancy learns that a valuable sculpture has been stolen from the Duchess.  Nancy hopes to find the sculpture and prevent the possible theft of valuable artwork at the party.

Let's start with what I wrote immediately after I finished reading the book on June 23.

I just finished reading Nancy Drew Diaries #20 The Vanishing Statue.  I don't even know what to say at this point.  I really don't.

First, I purchased a digital copy last night after I heard that some fans are unhappy about one aspect of the book.  I like to form my own opinion before reading other opinions, so I had to get the book read.  My hardcover will arrive tomorrow, but at least I have already read the book.  I found it handy being able to highlight passages in the digital copy.  That made it easier on me.

Second, the Nancy Drew Diaries series is the most inconsistent of all Nancy Drew incarnations.  They just cannot settle down and stick with one premise/personality/whatever.  "Whatever" is a good word, in this case.

I feel deflated after reading this one.  It isn't bad; it is just a bit flat.  And strange.

As for the potentially controversial part, I think it is just odd.  There is something else that annoyed me greatly which has to do with vague coded language, but not the part that might annoy others, which also has to do with coded language concerning something else.  Just come out and say it.  Don't write in riddles.  Now I've probably got everyone wanting to read the book because of my coded language, but it's really not even a good book in my opinion.  Actually it might be, but I didn't enjoy it at all.  I think I got more out of the books that annoyed me, like Heliotrope Lane.

At present, I feel depressed when thinking about this book, as though it took something out of me.  Opinion on the book is split.  One reader really likes the book (warning - spoilers in the review) as does someone else who reviewed the book on Amazon.  The other Amazon reviewers very much dislike the book.  One reviewer on Amazon wrote, "I read over 200 Nancy Drew books, and this has to be the worst storyline ever.  Not worth the money."

I wouldn't go that far, but I found this book to be distinctly uninteresting.  The only reason I made it through the book without skimming was that I was looking for the passages that made some fans unhappy.  If I hadn't been looking for subtext, then I wouldn't have been able to read the book.  So yes, I found the book quite boring. 

I am not sure if this book features another new ghostwriter for the series.  The book was definitely not written by the people who wrote a number of the other books, but it could be a repeat author.  A character from the previous book was mentioned, so that author could have been involved.  Most of the books have not mentioned characters from previous books.  One other book that mentioned a previous character did have the same author as the other book referenced.

Even if the ghostwriter did write one or more other books, the tone concerning one character shifted dramatically, so this book is quite inconsistent with the rest of the books in the set.  This series is consistently inconsistent.

There are at least two good things about this book, most noticeably the descriptions of Hannah's cooking.  Also, Nancy is not scared.  That's always good.

One character did look for the bathroom during the party, but quite fortunately, Nancy stays away from the bathroom in this book.

I have written before that many of these books—usually the ones I don't like as much—have an obvious solution to the mystery.  I knew who took the statue from near the beginning of the story.  I realized the culprit's identity during Chapter 2.  How stupidly obvious!

The plot does have a little bit of a twist that makes the story marginally interesting towards the end.  I personally think the vanishing statue plot is pointless and that the main plot should have been crafted around the secret learned by Nancy late in the story.  That would have made the book more compelling, at least in my opinion.

I found the artist characters to be exceedingly bizarre, and that was the aspect of the book that I found really strange that took away from my interest.  One man duck walks, for instance.  He's an adult, but he acts like a child.  The characters dress really, really bizarre.  I think kids might love the artist characters, but they are way too odd for me.

I will now segue into a discussion of the coded language in this story, so the rest of this review contains spoilers about that aspect of the story.

I don't like knowing anything about a book before reading it.  Each time something potentially controversial comes up in a Nancy Drew Diaries book, I hear about it soon after publication and before I have received my book.  I prefer to form my own opinion so I know my own reaction without having it influenced by others.  I have about decided to purchase the digital copy and the hardcover copy from now on so that I can read each new book on release day before the first reviews are posted.

I was careful with my wording in the above part of this post so as not to reveal what is in the book that upset some people.  I will now say and will be specific, so quit reading here if you want to read the book first before seeing what others think.

This first part is just me and my complaint about authors who use vague coded language when describing characters that are not Caucasian.  I understand the desire to avoid labels, but the description of the character should be done in such a way that the reader actually realizes the character's race. 

On page 32, a character is described as having "curly black hair, parted in the middle."  I guess I should have realized what that meant, but I have known a few white people with black, curly hair.  So that just went over my head.  On page 143, the mother of the character with "curly black hair" is described as having a "wrinkled brown face."

Oh.

I was so annoyed.  If I am to visualize a character as African American, then please be a little better at signaling that to me.

Again, I understand why we should avoid labels whenever possible.  However, there is no point in having an African American character in the story when the reader does not realize the character's race until fairly late in the story.  This actually made me angry.  One of my biggest annoyances as a reader is when authors fail to describe characters at all:  no hair color, nothing.  I like to be able to visualize the characters as different from each other.  An author who telegraphs that information to the reader as if playing charades is not being helpful.

The other coded language has to do with George.  We are apparently expected to conclude that George is a lesbian.  This is a surprising development, since there has been no sign of that in the previous books.  For many years, some fans have insisted that George is a lesbian, and the recent comic book series depicts her as such.  So this development is not something completely outside the realm of possibility, but it has never been implied in one of the actual Nancy Drew books.  That is, if one can conclude that George's lesbianism is even being implied.  There's that problem with coded language and how it can be too vague.

If George is supposed to be a lesbian, I don't care either way.  It is a nonissue for me.  My problem is the author's coded language which attempts to signal this revelation to the reader. 

Page 68:  "I bet George is going to show up in jeans and flannel," I said.

Page 68:  "With her rumpled T-shirt and short dark hair sticking up every which way..."

Page 71:  "I never wear earrings," said George, squinting at the screen.

Page 71:  "George's closet seemed to be filled with nothing but lumpy sweaters and hanger after hanger of wrinkled button-down shirts printed with zigzags, polka dots, birds, palm tress, lightning bolts, and bicycles."

George and Nancy are also a bit flirty with each other.  Ned isn't able to go to the party, so George goes as Nancy's date.  She dresses in a tuxedo.

All this taken together, we are being led towards a certain conclusion.

I believe that the author did this on their own.  I have stated in previous reviews that I believe that Simon and Schuster is allowing the ghostwriters free rein.  There is no quality control, which has resulted in a wildly uneven series.  This is just the latest chapter in the Nancy Drew Diaries debacle.

Some people think that George is to be a lesbian from now on.  That could be, but it's odd to do it in this fashion well into the series.  We will have to see what happens.  If past history is any indication, then the next book will feature George as a girly girl who is crazy about boys.  That's how inconsistent this series is.

I found the mystery to be sorely lacking in this story.  The plot is not sabotage, but I find boring sabotage more interesting than this non-mystery story.  I never felt that I had any reason to care.  The book bored and depressed me.

Nancy Drew Diaries #19 Hidden Pictures

In Nancy Drew Diaries #19, Hidden Pictures, Nancy receives a newspaper article in the mail.  The article tells about an employee who disappeared from the Carlisle Museum—and then reappeared inside a vintage photo displayed in the museum's Christopher DeSantos exhibit!

Nancy, Bess, and George travel to Shady Oaks, where the museum is located.  Upon their arrival, the girls learn that another person has vanished, and this victim has also reappeared inside a vintage photo in the exhibit.  The photos are locked inside their frames via combination locks, which makes tampering highly unlikely.  Nancy feels certain that spirits are not responsible, and she sets out to uncover the culprit.

The entire Nancy Drew Diaries series has been plagued by the constant switching between bad authors and good authors.  Each time we get a good book, we then get a bad book, and the cycle repeats.  Since I did not like the previous book, as it bears too much resemblance to The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane, I fully expected this book to be good, which would fit the constantly changing pattern of the series.  I was correct.  And of course, this means that the next book will probably be awful.

This book has none of the problems of any of the substandard books in this series.  Since I have read the books in this series months apart from each other over the course of the last seven years, it's hard to compare how good the books are to each other.  Looking over my past reviews, I estimate that this book is one of the top five to seven books in the set, which to date contains 20 titles.

The story starts off very strong and is interesting from the very first page.  I was captivated immediately and read through the entire book quickly.

On page 28, the girls end up with an extra plate of eggs at a restaurant, due to the sudden departure of a dining companion.  "Bess happily ate them herself."  Ah, nice.  This fits the continuity of the original Nancy Drew series.  This is also a big clue that this author did not write any of the Diaries books where George eats a large quantity of food for no reason.

From page 102:

Both [Bess] and George looked concerned by the idea that I might be the next target, and I could tell that Bess in particular was remembering being kidnapped herself, not too long ago.

Bess was kidnapped in the previous title, The Stolen Show.  Normally, I would conclude that this author also wrote that book, but The Stolen Show is too much like Heliotrope Lane.  There is no way that the author of Heliotrope Lane wrote this new book, unless the author of Heliotrope Lane suffers from multiple personality disorder.

This book has no mention of the restroom or needing to pee.  Nobody smirks.

The other books in the series make mention of Nancy being forgetful or unaware of basic life details when she is focused on a case.  This often comes across as a cheap shot taken at Nancy, due to how the author conveys this information.

On page 151, Nancy suddenly realizes that it is morning, and that she hadn't noticed that they were at the police station all night long.  The way the information is conveyed is perfect and does not make Nancy look bad at all.  Nancy is just uber-focused on the case.  Well done, ghostwriter!

This story actually is sabotage for the umpteenth time.  However, this is creative sabotage of the type usually seen in the Hardy Boys Adventures series.  This type of sabotage is fascinating.

This book is very good to excellent.  I actually felt a loss when I finished, because I wanted to read another book just like it.  I enjoyed this book more than all of the books I read from October through early January.  Granted, I read many books during this time that didn't much appeal to me, but it is still impressive that this book is stronger than everything I read in late 2019.

I actually greatly enjoy modern Nancy Drew when done right.  This book is that type.

In closing, I want to explain my current perspective on the cause of the problems with the Nancy Drew Diaries series.  I recently realized that the ghostwriters must be given considerable latitude in how the stories are developed and written.  The old days of yore where the book packager exercised complete control over Nancy Drew are long gone.  The publisher is letting the ghostwriters do whatever they want.  That's the problem.

I drew this conclusion after reading Reuben Sack's posts on Instagram.  Reuben Sack is the ghostwriter for A Nancy Drew Christmas and six of the Hardy Boys Adventures books.  Reuben Sack is one of the good writers.

The Mad Man of Black Bear Mountain  Reuben Sack:  "[T]his one's set in a slightly exaggerated version of my own backyard."

A Nancy Drew Christmas  This book has the word "hell" in it, which offended some fans.  A reviewer on Amazon complained about the language as well as "lesbian, gay people" in the book, which weren't even in the book.  Sack was offended by the review and called the reviewer out on her bigotry.

Dungeons and Detectives  Reuben Sack:  "I went on a gleefully nerdy rampage with this one—D&D, comic shops, LARPing, and a Halloween costume bash at a haunted medieval castle."

The post about Dungeons and Detectives made me realize that the ghostwriters must be developing the stories to a significant degree.  The bad writers are the ones responsible for the mediocre Nancy Drew Diaries stories.  Simon and Schuster is negligent in not doing an adequate job of making sure that the series is consistently good and in line with how Nancy Drew ought to be portrayed.

Nancy Drew Diaries #18 The Stolen Show

In Nancy Drew Diaries #18, The Stolen Show, Carson Drew's old friend, Louise Alain, has broken her ankle.  She requests that Nancy come to Quebec City to take her place in the dog show.  Just before the competition, a dog is drugged, presumably so that gum could be stuck in its coat.  Nancy must find the saboteur before any other dogs are targeted.

Like Nancy Drew Diaries #17 Famous Mistakes, this story appears to be about sabotage but isn't.  The publisher's summary and most of the story lead the reader to believe that the story is about sabotage.  The same approach was taken with Famous Mistakes.  It's like the people at Simon and Schuster are turning the sabotage into a running gag.

The two words "chuckled" and "smirked" are used a bit much in this story.  Use of "chuckled" doesn't mean anything, but I thought of Harriet Adams each time since I recently read through her Dana Girls books.  Harriet used "chuckled" excessively in her writing.

Use of "smirked" in these stories annoys me.  "Smirk" means "to smile in an irritatingly smug, conceited, or silly way."  I noted use of "smirked" on pages 3, 6, 29, and 67.  Nancy is guilty of three of the smirks, and George commits one of them.  In my opinion, Nancy smirking is out of character.  It bothers me.

From page 67:

I smirked.  "You just don't like that she calls you Chuck."  

I paused when I read that sentence and considered that "I smiled" or "I laughed" would have sounded so much more like Nancy Drew and would have retained the same overall meaning.  I cannot stand the use of "smirk" in these books.

Up until page 92, this book bears some similarity to The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane.  Really, it does, and that's very bad.

Nancy is portrayed in a negative fashion, like she was in Heliotrope Lane, on at least 13 pages.

Page 5:  Nancy is nervous.  She admits that she doesn't like being "in front of huge crowds of people."

Page 34:  Nancy feels "like a clumsy oaf."

Page 52:  Nancy panics and tries "to breathe through the nausea rising in [her] throat."  Admittedly, Nancy does have good reason to feel this way at this moment, but the original Nancy Drew would have been concerned and then would have taken action.  She would have solved the problem and single-handedly kicked someone's butt.  She would not have been nauseated.

Page 59:  Nancy's heart leaps into her throat.

Page 61:  Nancy is called "la petite inspecteur" which makes her cringe.

Page 67:  Nancy is called "little girl detective."

Page 79:  Nancy experiences "self-doubt."

Page 85:  Nancy admits that she is nervous.

Page 87:  Nancy says that she is "clumsy" and a "nervous wreck."

Page 89:  Nancy's stomach does a "few uncomfortable somersaults."  Also, Nancy hates being in front of an audience.

Page 90:  Nancy wills her "stomach to stop its gymnastics."

Page 91:  Nancy's heart hammers in her ears.

Page 92:  Nancy breathes "a sigh of relief."

Some of these examples of Nancy's fear are extremely like the examples from Heliotrope Lane.  The same person might have written both books.  Could we please keep this person away from Nancy Drew?  Surely some other writer could be found.

The main reason I am so offended by Nancy being portrayed as scared is that the Hardy Boys and Tom Swift are not portrayed in this fashion.  They do experience nervousness, but the way the emotion is conveyed to the reader is very different.  The way nervousness is conveyed in the Nancy Drew Diaries series comes across as an attempt to take Nancy down a notch.  The approach is different in the other two series.  I feel like Nancy is being treated differently for some reason.  It's very strange.

George also once again likes to eat and shows up in Nancy's room with a large amount of food.  I don't get it.

On page 94, the girls give the excuse that they are going to the bathroom to cover their exit from the show.  They don't go to the bathroom, but at least this book did get in the obligatory bathroom mention that is a staple of this series.  I would have been disappointed if it hadn't.

The first 50 pages of this book are quite boring.  I had to fight the urge to begin skimming during that part of the story due to my extreme boredom.  There is no reason why the reader should have had to endure so much information about how dog shows work.  Furthermore, the conversations are boring.  Absolutely nothing interesting happens during the first 50 pages.  This part of the story should have lasted no more than around 20 pages, and even that might have been too much.

The culprit is revealed during the first chapter—not so that the average child would know.  Perhaps some adult readers new to the Nancy Drew Diaries series might miss spotting the culprit.  On the other hand, anyone who has read through all the Nancy Drew Diaries books will spot the culprit immediately during the moment of the first encounter.  The Nancy Drew Diaries books do not have diverse plots.  Simon and Schuster must have one plot outline with empty spots where different names and places can be filled in, just like Mad Libs.  One story outline is copied over and over.

While the book becomes interesting beginning on page 51, it is still below average and weak for the Nancy Drew Diaries series.  On page 95, Nancy declares that she is done being "obedient" and that she will "bite back."  From that point on, Nancy is on fire.  Notice that my list of negative statements about Nancy Drew occur no later than page 92 in the book.  It's like this book was written by two different people.  Pages 1 through 50 are boring with negative statements about Nancy.  Pages 51 through 94 are better but still have negative statements about Nancy.  Page 95 through to the end of the book have no negative statements.  The last part of the book is very good.

It's quite odd.  Nancy is in no danger during the first 92 pages of the book, yet she is nervous quite often.  She is nervous about being a dog handler.  While I can understand the average person being nervous, this is Nancy Drew (said with a lilt, of course).  Nancy Drew wouldn't be nervous about being a dog handler.

Nancy seems to have a split personality in this book.  She's nervous about a dog show, yet from page 95 through to the end of the story, Nancy does a bunch of dangerous stuff that does not make her nervous at all.  That makes no sense!

The book was written overall in the style of the The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane up through page 94, and then the book was written more like a Hardy Boys Adventures book for the rest of the story.

I don't know how good I can even say that this book is overall.  I probably would go with overall good, but I strongly dislike a good part of the book.

This book is a disappointment, since the the previous two books are quite good and this one falls down again.  The Nancy Drew Diaries books continue to be uneven in quality.  Some books are good, and other books are bad.

Several fans state that the Nancy Drew Diaries series is an improvement over the Nancy Drew Girl Detective series.  I concede that some Nancy Drew Diaries books are an improvement over some Nancy Drew Girl Detective books.  I disagree with the blanket statement that the Diaries series is more true to the character.  The way that Nancy Drew is picked at in the Diaries series comes across as a bunch of cheap shots taken for no reason.

I have questioned Simon and Schuster's intent and practices for some years.  I have even wondered whether they were trying to destroy Nancy Drew by giving the inferior stories to the Nancy Drew Diaries series and using bad authors.  While unlikely that Simon and Schuster would try to destroy a franchise that it owns, the company is at the very least guilty of neglect.

I feel that Simon and Schuster (S&S) is taking Nancy Drew for granted just like Grosset and Dunlap did during the 1970s.  Grosset and Dunlap's neglect caused the Stratemeyer Syndicate to sell its series to S&S.  The Nancy Drew books created by S&S were, in my opinion, an improvement over the final Nancy Drew books produced by the Stratemeyer Syndicate.

Nancy Drew is once again suffering at the hands of a company taking the franchise for granted.  This time, however, the franchise will not be sold to another company.

Nancy Drew Diaries and Hardy Boys Adventures Double Editions

In March, special editions of Nancy Drew Diaries and Hardy Boys Adventures books showed up at Costco priced at $10.79 each.  The books are softcover with semi-rigid covers that are designed to resemble leather.  The books have excellent quality paper.  Each book contains two stories.  The books are very nice.  Just two books from each series were available.

Nancy Drew Diaries #17 Famous Mistakes

In Nancy Drew Diaries #17, Famous Mistakes, Ned is set to interview controversial comedian Brady Owens for his podcast.  When Nancy and Ned arrive at Brady's hotel room, they find the door ajar.  The room has been torn apart!

Brady recently suggested that a woman who interrupted him during a show be mugged outside by other audience members.  Ever since, protesters have been after him and might be the ones who trashed the hotel room.  The director of the River Heights Arts Complex wants to call off that night's show due to safety concerns.  Nancy has just hours to solve this mystery.

This book is an interesting contrast to some of the other books in the series, particularly the poorly executed The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane.  In Heliotrope Lane, Nancy is so frightened that she shakes in fear throughout the book.  The Nancy Drew Diaries stories have mainly consisted of boring sabotage plots while the Hardy Boys Adventures books have had the more creative plots.  The Hardy Boys have been depicted as great at solving mysteries while Nancy Drew has not been able to solve mysteries on her own and has had trouble motivating herself.

This book corrects all of the problems.  First and foremost, the plot of this book is not sabotage.  The story appears to be sabotage and is treated as such for most of the book.  However, the book has a plot twist towards the end.  I'll leave it at that.

On page 2, Ned's hands are shaking because he is nervous.  On page 14, Ned admits that he is "freaked out."  In these books, Nancy is usually the one who shakes and is freaked out.  I found it rather interesting that Ned, a male, is the one who is shaking and freaking.  Hmm.

Page 35 contains these interesting remarks by Nancy and Ned.

"I'm sure," I said.  "Preventing sabotage is kind of my specialty."

"There is a lot of sabotage in River Heights," Ned said.

OMG.  I had already noted Ned's fear, which I found rather interesting.  After I read the comments about sabotage, I knew that the person who wrote this particular book must be aware of comments made by fans.  This person might have read this blog or could have read comments on Facebook.  Regardless, they know.  This is good.  Now, if we could only have this person write the rest of the books.

On page 47, Nancy speaks to Bess and George on the phone.

"Yeah, he's okay, but we're on a case."

"What?!"  Bess and George said in unison.  Even though I wasn't with them, I knew they were both leaning into the phone excitedly.  I may have the reputation for being a detective, but my friends have helped me on almost every case; they like solving mysteries about as much as I do.

I'll say it again:  Let's keep this author writing the books.  Please.

Technology is used a lot in this book, and it is used properly, not as some kind of joke against Nancy like in several previous titles.

The text contains no mention of pee or restrooms, which has been a problem in previous titles.  The story has no smirking or disparaging remarks made about Nancy and her sleuthing skills.  Nancy is not forgetful.

I have no complaints.  None.

The story is very modern with a modern theme, but that's actually great.  Readers of the vintage Nancy Drew books probably would not enjoy this kind of story, but the story is not aimed at them.  This story is for modern readers, and it succeeds.  If Simon and Schuster will continue with this person as the writer and with similar stories, then Nancy Drew will continue to be a viable franchise.

Nancy Drew Diaries: A Nancy Drew Christmas

In Nancy Drew Diaries,  A Nancy Drew Christmas, Nancy has just arrived at a new ski resort.  When Nancy gives the ski slope a trial run, she slips on ice and ends up with a broken leg.  Nancy concludes that the resort is being sabotaged.  She investigates, although the broken leg slows her down.

These books continue to recycle the same sabotage plot over and over.  This story changes up the plot a little with Nancy having a broken leg so her investigation is made more difficult.

This book is supposedly #18 in the series, but #17 has not yet been published.  I assume this is a special edition, but I'm still a bit puzzled about the numbering as well as some other oddities.  Only the hardcover edition has been released, and the softcover edition will not be released until late 2020.  The hardcover edition is now on back order from the publisher.

This book is better than most of the books in the Nancy Drew Diaries series.  Nevertheless, the book still has problems.

Nancy getting injured at the beginning of the story weakens her ability to solve the mystery.  It makes her dependent on other characters, like the Hardy Boys, who appear in this book.  So, Nancy is injured and needs the help of the Hardy Boys.  Why can't Nancy Drew show up in a Hardy Boys book and help them?  No, Nancy, the girl, is always the one who needs help.  I still don't understand why the people at Simon and Schuster want Nancy Drew to be a weak female.  I wrote about the sexism two years ago, and Simon and Schuster continues to propel Nancy Drew down this path.

While Nancy has been mostly cured of her severe psychological problems from The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane, she still has some issues.

On page 2, Nancy tells herself, "Keep your focus, Nancy."

On page 8, Nancy trips and falls.

On page 44, Nancy feels better because she needs Marni's confidence.

On page 49, Nancy has to calm herself.  For once, this is understandable, since she's buried underneath snow and has just broken her leg.  However, I still can't help thinking how the original Nancy Drew would be just like "whatever," dig herself out of the snow, and get herself rescued.

On page 179, Nancy pouts.  What the heck?!

On page 225, Nancy's hands are shaking, but this is also completely understandable considering the stressful situation.  I wish they'd only have Nancy shaking in scenes like this one.  If so, it wouldn't bother me a bit.

On page 266, Nancy reflects that she can't "be scared off that easily" and that anyone who thinks otherwise "didn't know Nancy Drew."  Well, there's that problem of Heliotrope Lane.  That Nancy Drew was very scared.  Regardless, it's great to see some confidence in this book's Nancy Drew.

The owners of the ski resort are Archie Leach and Grant Alexander.  They are called "Mr. A" and "Mr. G" for short.  This confused me because "A" is the first letter in Archie's first name and in Grant's last name.  I couldn't keep them straight.  Names in books should not begin with the same letter.

On page 127, Nancy feels that Clark isn't "the sharpest spoon in Chef K's kitchen."  Knife, Nancy.  Knife.

Many collectors have complained about the use of "hell" on page 85.  I actually didn't even notice it when I read the book.  It didn't register.  Nancy isn't the character who uses the word, so it's a nonissue for me.  I am much more concerned about Nancy's personality flaws than in some other character using one mild cuss word on one page.

Having Nancy in a wheelchair for the duration of the story weakens her.  This really bothered me at first and then I was less bothered by it later.  Nancy is overall strong in this book, but I find it odd that she is purposely weakened by the broken leg, causing her to need the assistance of resort employees as well as the Hardy Boys.

Bess and George don't make fun of Nancy, which is good.  Frank and Joe Hardy's characterization is consistent with their portrayal in the Hardy Boys Adventures series.  I suspect that this book was written by one of the authors of the Hardy Boys Adventures, especially since the book has some of the great humor that is present in the Hardy Boys Adventures series

That said, I still have concerns about the direction being taken in the Nancy Drew franchise.  I actually would not have such concern if I weren't reading the Hardy Boys Adventures series as well.  But's that a topic for another post.

This is what I wrote about the book right after I read it in September.

The Nancy Drew Diaries series is puzzling.  This new book, just released on Tuesday and with a dust jacket embossed with glitter, is easily the very best book in the series, in my opinion.  The preceding volume, Heliotrope Lane, is easily the worst book in the series and is one of the worst Nancy Drew books ever published.  If S&S could be consistent and publish books like this one, we'd have a really great series.  So indeed, those of you saving this book to read at Christmas will have a very nice Christmas story to read.

I felt more positive about this book in September than I do now.  In September, I felt that it was possibly the best book in the series, or at least equal to the best.  As I looked at the book to write this review, the flaws really stood out.  The problem is that I am currently reading the Judy Bolton series, and this book does not compare favorably to Judy Bolton.  For that reason, I no longer feel that positive about the book, even though I enjoyed reading it.

I reflected about this in the last few days.  My conclusion is that the Nancy Drew Diaries series does not hold up well on multiple readings, at least not for me.  The series is overall too weak.

A Nancy Drew Christmas is one of best books in the Nancy Drew Diaries series, but this Nancy Drew is not the Nancy Drew of yore.

Nancy Drew Diaries #16 The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane

In Nancy Drew Diaries #16, The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane, Willa is worried about her friend, Izzy, who has been acting strange ever since she visited the vacant Furstenberg house on Heliotrope Lane.  At times, Izzy acts like she is possessed.  Nancy agrees to look into the mystery.

I stated that the Nancy Drew Diaries series is an epic fail and called for a series relaunch when I reviewed the previous book in the series, The Professor and the Puzzle.  I knew when I read that book that the series might as well end at that point and that there was no hope.  Sadly, I was correct, and the problems plaguing the Nancy Drew Diaries series continue to worsen.

As I read this book, I noted all of the pages upon which Nancy is depicted in a negative fashion.  I include showing fear as a negative trait, since Nancy Drew traditionally does not show fear.  At least 50 pages contain one or more negative descriptive statements about Nancy Drew.  That is unacceptable, and I am quite certain that no previous Nancy Drew book has ever contained that many pages that contain negative descriptive content, not even the Girl Detective series.  This series is an epic fail, indeed.

The first four pages of the story are devoted to detailing how queasy Nancy is after watching a horror movie.  I guess the author thought that a compelling opening to the book would be to read in great detail about how upsetting Nancy's horror movie experience was.  I don't get it.

Here is a list of the 50 instances I noted in which Nancy is depicted as scared or in a negative fashion.

Page 1:  Nancy's voice is hoarse from screaming, and she wants Bess to stop talking about the movie.

Page 2:  Nancy has to grab her stomach because of the horror movie discussion.

Page 3:  George apologizes for Nancy getting freaked out.

Page 4:  Nancy has to breathe through her nose and mouth to calm down.

Page 6:  Nancy feels her "stomach leap up into [her] throat."

Page 7:  Nancy is told, "You're Nancy Drew, aren't you?  The sort-of detective?"  Nancy thinks of this as "unexpected fame."

Page 8:  Nancy tells herself that "honestly I was just happy I hadn't peed myself.  That was scary."

Page 9:  Nancy wants to go to bed instead of hearing about the mystery.

Page 20:  Nancy screams in fear.

Page 34:  Nancy is "still feeling a little shaky from the surprise."

Page 38:  Ned tells Nancy that she is "experiencing the spiked adrenaline that people get when they're afraid."

Page 39:  Frightened, Nancy jumps "straight up [into] the air, knocking [her] head on the ceiling."

Page 41:  Nancy is "trying to look (and feel) determined."

Page 42:  Nancy tells herself, "Stop psyching yourself out."

Page 44:  The house makes Nancy's heart beat faster.

Page 45:  Nancy shudders.

Page 46:  Nancy is relieved when her friends join her.

Page 47:  Nancy is again relieved to have someone with her who is not "scared out of her wits." 

Page 49:  Nancy lets George lead the way through the house.

Page 51:  Nancy is "losing it, screaming and too freaked to move."

Page 52:  Nancy has to breathe and has an adrenaline rush.

Page 54:  Nancy wants to "grab onto the doorframe and refuse to budge."

Page 55:  Nancy is "super grateful" that George goes first.  Nancy's arm is shaking.

Page 57:  Nancy shivers with fear.

Page 58:  Nancy is shaking and trying to hide it.

Page 60:  Nancy screams.

Page 68:  Nancy remarks that she was freaked out in the house.

Page 70:  Nancy admits that she was "being a wuss."

Page 71:  Nancy is horrified by a moaning sound.

Page 94:  Nancy is "trembling" and "shaken."

Page 113:  Nancy is shaking.

Page 114:  Nancy's heart gives "a little squeeze of fear."

Page 121:  Nancy feels "the same sick feeling in [her] gut."

Page 123:  Nancy shudders.

Page 124:  Nancy is shaking and also shudders.

Page 125:  Nancy shivers and tries to calm herself.

Page 126:  Nancy feels "her heart leap into [her] throat."

Page 127:  Nancy panics.

Page 128:  Nancy feels her "heart contract."  She wants to "run, screaming, up the stairs."

Page 129:  Nancy's voice is "high and shaky."

Page 130:  Nancy speaks "shakily."

Page 131:  Nancy is startled.

Page 132:  Nancy's heart falls "into [her] stomach."

Page 134:  Nancy panics.

Page 136:  Nancy feels a "flutter of fear" and is "scared witless."

Page 139:  Nancy's heart is "dancing a rhumba" as she thinks "terrified thoughts."

Page 146:  Nancy is asked, "[H]ow effective could a teenage sleuth be?"

Page 147:  Nancy feels sick.

Page 149:  Nancy feels her "heart thudding in [her] chest."

Page 150:  Nancy screams and is shaking and trembling.

This chick is pathetic.  She is Nancy Drew in name only. 

I may have figured out why Nancy is being depicted as overly scared.  The book was written in first person.  The author apparently felt that the reader would feel fear if Nancy was depicted as being scared.  The reader is told constantly that Nancy is "shaking" so that the reader will feel scared.  However, this approach fails miserably.

Second, I have long suspected that Simon and Schuster is hiring people who are either not good writers or will write for minimum compensation.  This has resulted in an inferior product.  The author is either not very skilled or not motivated to write well.  The author relies on using words like "shaking" instead of using descriptive language to describe a spooky atmosphere.  For instance, instead of simply stating that Nancy is "shaking" as she enters the basement, I would have come closer to feeling fear if descriptive language about the basement had been used, like describing the basement as having menacing shadows.

Here are some other notable quotes.  On page 9, Bess remarks about the phrase, "house on Heliotrope Lane."  "That sounds funny.  It's like one of those old mystery stories—do you remember that series with the yellow covers, Geo—."  This remark is bizarre, since Nancy Drew is the mystery "series with the yellow covers."   Statements like this pull me out of the story.  Actually, I never did get into the story, since I was pulled out of it constantly when I kept having to stop to make notes about Nancy's fear.

On page 47, George announces that "there's probably not a working bathroom" in the house.  I'm glad that they got in the obligatory bathroom mention, since the great minds behind this series think that girls love bathroom humor.

Nancy gets in a smirk on page 67.  That's another necessity in this series and one that I cannot stand.

On page 118, Nancy finally realizes an appropriate use of a cell phone to help solve a mystery.  It has taken Nancy 16 books to figure this out!

On page 129, Nancy tells herself that she needs to get answers, if not for herself then for Izzy.  This makes it sound like Nancy doesn't really care about solving the mystery.  Nancy has a continuing problem in this series of needing to motivate herself to solve the mysteries.

On page 151, Bess and George arrive to save the day.  They come because Nancy's phone supposedly went dead, and they know that Nancy always charges her phone.  Really?  This is new.  Nancy forgot to get gas in the previous book in the series.

When the summary of this book first went online, fans commented that we were finally going to get a title that was not sabotage.  I was skeptical, since haunted houses are typically some kind of sabotage.  Surprise, surprise.  While really creative, this story is actually sabotage.  This is the kind of sabotage I like, since the sabotage is not obvious, but it is still sabotage nonetheless.

Was my hardcover book worth the $12.20 that I paid for it?  The first half of the book is bad.  The second half is decent, although not written as Nancy Drew should be.  The book itself is very nice.  The cover art is quite attractive, and the book is aesthetically pleasing.  However, I look at the book in disgust.  Is the book worth anything?  I don't know.  Maybe this review is worth $12.20.

Should I purchase the next book?  I probably will because I will want to see how bad it is, but I wonder whether I should wait for a remaindered or reduced copy.  My local Half Price Books stores have lots of hardcover copies of Nancy Drew Diaries #11 The Red Slippers at half-off the cover price.  The books must not be selling well.  Gee, I wonder why?

Simon and Schuster may very well be damaging the monetary value of the Nancy Drew franchise.