#2: The Hidden Staircase; revised ed. and compare

The revised edition of The Hidden Staircase is almost completely different from the original. Characters from The Secret of the Old Clock do not appear, and the elderly ladies from the original editions are now Helen Corning's aunt and the aunt's mother. These women are more well-composed in this edition, and plan activities to cheer Nancy up as she waits for news of her father. Nancy visits the mansion (now called Twin Elms), but somewhat more "campy" events (such as a scary owl appearing in a room at night) happen, and the "ghost" is not Mr. Gombet (now Nathan Gomber ), but a man named Willie Wharton, who is loosely connected with both the railroad property case and is the "ghost"--working in cahoots with Mr. Gomber. Mr. Gomber doesn't have a servant who helps him with his wily ways, but works with tow other men.

• Nancy and her father are are on a stroll, and are almost run over by a truck, which had been deliberately pushed down a hill so that it rolled at  high speed. They had to jump into the nearby river to get out of the way.

#2: The Hidden Staircase; original text

I think I'll make a comment about the cover first. The hat on Nancy's head looks like a bad attempt to make a trendy swimming cap. Oh well, I'm not from the 1930's so who am I to judge fashion? :)

Nancy is just sitting at home, bored, when a man comes to the door. Nancy doesn't hesitate to open it, and this Nathan Gombet guy starts ranting and telling her to get her father. Nancy tells him that her father is away, and he starts throwing a fit, claiming that Carson Drew has cheated him on a property sale. Instead of slamming the door or punching him in the face, Nancy lets him in the house. He wants papers that prove that Carson "cheated" him. Nancy loses her temper and isn't afraid to call the intruder "crazy"--which he is, but if someone forcefully came into my home, I wouldn't say "yo, dude, you're crazy!" He only backs off when she manages to pick up the telephone and starts dialing. He runs off, while threatening her father.

 When Nancy tells Mr. Drew about what happened, he simply says, "Next time, don't let [Nathan Gombet] in." A typical response when your daughter tells you someone tried to steal your things and threatened your daughter, no? Nathan Gombet appears later, however, to rant at Mr. Drew personally and to threaten him.

Nancy goes to check on Abby Rowen (Nancy helped her and a few other people by finding a missing will in the first book, The Secret of the Old Clock, review\recap coming soon). Miss Rowen has a visitor, an elderly woman named Rosemary who lives with her twin sister, Floretta, at a Civil War era family mansion. Nancy stays at the mansion, because the women have had things stolen and seen mysterious shadows and heard unexplainable music. Oh, and by the by, Mr. Gombet offered to buy their house for much less than what it is worth. More mysterious things happen, and Nancy searches for hidden doors but is unsuccessful. She also gets a warning message to leave the Turnbull estate. Meanwhile, Mr. Drew, returning from business matters in Chicago, stops at a station where he is supposed to meet Nancy. Mr. Gombet meets him--and tricks him into believing that Nancy is ill and had to be taken to his (Gombet's) home. Carson ends up captive in Gombet's basement. Ironically, later that night, Nancy sneaks out to search the Gombet house and subsequently ends up captured herself. But in true Nancy Drew fashion, she finds a hidden door that Gombet didn't know about, and manages to get into a tunnel, and eventually ends up at the mansion. Mr. Drew is found, Gombet is arrested, and all's well that ends well.

Tidbits:

• Alison Hoover from The Secret of the Old Clock shows up and brags about her sister Grace's new "electric sewing machine".
•  When Nancy asks Floretta when she noticed her diamond barrette was missing, Floretta answers that it was after "the iceman" had delivered ice. I get ice delivered too--by an ice machine in the fridge. :-p
• Nancy says: "I think Dad was wise to suggest that I take his revolver. And I'll bring plenty of ammunition, too! Enough to annihilate an army!" Guess it's true that the Nancy of the revised editions is the Nancy I remember from childhood--perfect, collected, smart and meticulous in every way and hardly ever making mistakes!
• Alison Hoover also gives Nancy a whole chicken and some eggs as a gift. Nancy puts it in the "electrical refrigerator". Ok, question--wouldn't a NON electrical refrigerator simply be called an ice box? Anyone...?
• Nathan Gombet's accomplice is a fat, angry, cruel "negress" who makes sure Nancy stays captive. But later, when Nancy leads the police to the Gombet house so they can arrest her as well, she comes out and threatens the main policeman with a gun. Get a load of this quote!: "You git, white man! Or I'll fill yo system full of lead". Um, yea. The policeman eventually take her by surprise as they don't want to directly shoot her.

P.S.:
I need to vent some anger...I read Twilight and found that there were a few good points that I enjoyed. So I thought, there's nothing to lose--why not try the second book (New Moon)? I was wrong. There was something to lose--MY TEMPER! I. Hate. That. Book. Sorry...gotta let it go somehow!

#38 The Mystery of the Fire Dragon

Nancy Drew is on a case--which will find her in both the USA and in Hong Kong! This is the first book I've read where she solves the case first in one country and then the other. Anyway, for fun I put the Norwegian cover up. (Image is from Series Books.com website)
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The plot of this basically involves a group of strong-arms and a couple of women. Nan's aunt Eloise, who lives in NY, tells her that her neighbor's granddaughter, Chi Che Soong, is missing. Nancy to the rescue! Also, the granddaughter's possible abductors are also involved in a smuggling ring. How original.

So I'll just list some of the crazy things that happened to Nancy and friends. The plot skips around too much to really "snark" without being too long.

• When Nancy first gets into the hallway where Eloise's apartment is located, a gigantic firework goes off. It's probably meant to scare Chi Che's grandfather, but of course, something crazy has to happen to Nancy soon.
• Chi Che goes to Columbia U. Nancy helps George disguises George as Chi Che, to see if George, as Chi Che, can get any inside info from students. Later, George is almost kidnapped b/c she looks like Chi Che. The real Chi Che was captured. The captors think George is the (not) escaped Chi Che. Brilliant, Nancy.
  
• Now Bess is missing. Yawn.
• Mr. Drew just happens to have a case in Hong Kong; this time it is a debate over a will (so he's working international now?) and Ned is taking a college course in Hong Kong! How convenient.
• Near Hong Kong, Nancy is waiting for a flight that will take her to inland Hong Kong. A girl who looks like Chi Che is standing outside a small plane. This girl says she really is Chi Che and that Nancy must come into the plane to talk about a message Nancy has to give to her grandfather. They can ONLY talk in the privacy of the plane! Stupid Nancy falls for this and is kidnapped.
• Nancy uses lipstick to write 'SOS' on the airplane window. The pilot of Navy plane that sent after Nancy sees it and forces the kidnappers to land. It must be pretty bright lipstick! Incidentally, the real Chi Che was on the plane, too! Happy ending!

#40: The Moonstone Castle Mystery, P1

Compliments to Series Books for Girls for the cover.

Once upon a time, a teenage girl named Nancy Drew got an unmarked package. Inside was a beautiful moonstone. There is a printed note that reads "from a well-wisher". Nancy goes to the post office to find out about the sender. George and Bess are, of course, with her, and they note a man in an ugly plaid suit. He is following Nancy! Boy, doesn't Nancy ever get a day where she isn't followed? The man runs off before the girls even get a chance to report him.

Meanwhile, Mr. Drew has another case. He must find a young woman whose parents died in an accident when she was a little girl. The girl, whose name is Joanie, wasn't seen after the accident. The parents' estate is just gathering dust! The girl's grandparents were missionaries in Africa when Joanie was just over two years old. They want to find their granddaughter. Cue Nancy Drew to the rescue!

The Drews have another watchman at the house, just in case the spy comes by. Sure enough, Mr. Drew sees something in the night, and both he and the watchman chase the mysterious man, but don't catch him.

Not long after, Carson gets a call from his client, Mr. Bowen. He's gotten a threatening message: Anyone who goes to the town where Joanie was last seen to attempt to solve the mystery is in danger! He begs Nancy not to go. Nancy is all, "Oh, it would be wimpy to ignore a serious warning!" and he's all, "Ok, that's fine, just remember the warning, okay?" 0_0

Nancy, Bess and George are soon in Deep River. There's a castle in it! From the hotel, Nancy trains her binoculars on the castle. It is so friggin awesome!

Mrs. Thompson, the hotel's owner, comments that if the girls want to know more about the castle, they should go to the Brass Kettle restaurant. There's a gossipy elderly woman, Mrs. Hempstead, who hangs out there a lot. Mrs. Hempstead tells them that odd, tragic events happened around the castle. The original builder abandoned the project without adding the last turret, but someone is still paying tax on the castle.

George does some sleuthing, following a suspicious-looking man, Mr. Seamen (don't giggle!). She loses him, but soon someone realizes that someone else is following her. Meanwhile, Nancy and Bess delve a little more info related to Joanie's mysterious vanishing. Oh,yeah, Joanie's last name is Hornton.

George and Nancy swim across the moat around the castle, despite a mysterious voice warning them to go back. Once across the moat, the girls explore the castle. Nancy manages to get to the area where the drawbridge can be manipulated, and learns how to make it go up and down.

The girls tie the bridge down with some wire and rocks, and meanwhile discuss some car tracks they found near the castle. This is a sure sign that something's up--because anyone visiting the castle is suspicious. Except for them (rolls eyes). Later, Nancy reflects that maybe they've been tampering with private property (securing the drawbridge), but George scoffs it off. They need to save the world!

Later, Nancy's car is stolen, but Nancy, Bess, George and Bess's new "interest", Alan Ryder, go to a picnic and have fun, and forget about it for a while. The picnic is for Alan's grandmother's birthday, and Alan was just so taken by Bess that he invited all three girls to the picnic.

And after the picnic is a cliff-hanging boat ride. Will the girls crash and drown in the river?

Find out in PART TWO.

#4: The Mystery at Lilac Inn

This was one of the dull ones, but I remembered when I reread it, what a fairly b*tchy character it had. :)

Nancy Drew and Helen Corning are canoeing to Lilac Inn. Along the way, they stop by the riverside backyard of a mutual friend, Doris. Doris is startled. She claims that another friend of theirs told her she saw Nancy a few minutes ago at a drugstore. But that's the least of Nancy's worries when the canoe hits something and capsizes! But there is nothing around that could've caused the boat to flip! Right?

At Lilac Inn, the girls greet Emily Willoughby. Emily is going to marry Dick Farnam and they will take over the inn. Because taking on a small business right after marriage is a great idea! Dick's best man, John, gives Nancy and Helen a tour of the inn. When girls go to the to meet Emily's Aunt Hazel, they overhear her arguing "I can't loan you more money, Maud!"

Maud is the know-it-all social director, who controls Aunt Hazel as if Aunt Hazel was dog. When the Drew house is burglarized (one in many burglaries over the course of the series), Aunt Hazel drives Nancy home and Maud invites herself along. She asks Nancy about Mr. Drew. "I'd love to meet your father. I understand he is a widower." Giggle. Nancy replies that Carson is busy with his job. "I see. No time for a social life," [Maud] said sarcastically. Oh, burn, Nancy!

Nancy's charge plate from Burk's Department Store has been stolen, and she is accused of stealing thousands of dollars of goods there, (turns out, by her double). Luckily, she has vouches for her good name--because she's Nancy Drew, perfect and flawless in every way! Chief McGinnis is always a convenient backup.

For her twenty-first birthday, Emily is inheriting her deceased mother's twenty unset diamonds. Emily tells everyone around her when she'll get them, and that they will have a dinner where Emily will receive the gems. Wise move, Emily.

Bang! As she stares at the sparkly diamonds, the lights go out, and when they come back on, the jewels are gone! Then Nancy finds out there is a sliding panel in one wall and that is how the thief slipped between rooms unnoticed. How original.

Well, a few days later, they find the diamonds and the case on the grounds. But when they are appraised at a jewelry store, it turns out that they are...get ready for it...fakes! Gee, didn't see that coming.

Nancy goes out skin diving in the river (she was going to meet John there, but he doesn't show up) and sees....a shark? But there is no time to think about that. Suddenly a spear almost hits her, landing in the lens of the camera she took with her. When she returns to the inn, John asks her why she didn't come to their meeting place to go to the skin-diving dock together some time ago. John had met another Nancy, who had made this arrangement.

After ghosts, bombs in cottages, and rocks thrown at Nancy's convertible, everyone's pretty edgy. Now they also have a shy, nervous little waitress now. The waitress' name is Jean, and she warns Nancy about Maud. Unfortunately Maud quits after a fight with Helen, before Nancy can question her. It turns out, however, that Maud was just being mean to Nancy because she was jealous, and Maud took her sadness from her husband's death out on Hazel. Aww.

One day, Nancy goes to the river to start solving the mystery regarding the shark and spear. After getting some excellent (and much-too-convenient) leads, Nancy finds Jean near the river! Nancy follows and Jean goes into an old shed. Before Nancy can decide what to do, a miniature sub rises from the river--Nancy's "shark"!

Then all the formulaic stuff happens. Nancy is caught from behind! A cloth is tied over her mouth! She is dragged to the shed! Jean is there, along with another man, the gardener at the inn. The man who caught her, the gardener, and Jean discuss what to do with Nancy, and drag her to the sub! Horrors!

Jean is really actress Gay Moreau. She has been playing as Jean (and Nancy...and an imaginary person, Mary, but it would make this post too long to try to add that part of the plot here) in order to get the jewels. She's also vengeful against Mr. Drew, because he once prosecuted her in a check forgery case.

There is no indication of the real reason for the sub, or for taking Nancy into it it (wouldn't the usual shed tie-up have worked as well?), except as a plot device. Another plot device happens; as "Jean" snidely tells Nancy all about how she and her accomplices worked together to get the diamonds. Their theory is that explaining the plot will torture Nancy, as Nancy now has no power to bring Jean and crew to justice. (But Jean doesn't know she's in a Nancy Drew book! ;)

Then the sub hits a log and a fire starts in the engine!"Jean" and the men flee, leaving Nancy bound. In a very deus ex machina moment (I use this phrase sooo much in these posts), River Heights police in boats come just in time to get Nancy out. Carson was getting worried about Nancy's absence.

When Gay and her accomplices are captured, Gay is wearing her Nancy Drew disguise AND has Nancy's license, causing people to doubt the real Nancy. She almost fools Carson until he gets up close to her (I guess Nancy's and Gay's voices and mannerisms are so similar that they even trick a father!). To prove herself to the police, Nancy grabs Gay and wipes off part of her makeup. All the bad guys/girls arrested and the world is at peace. The diamonds are found in the river (they were in the sub) and the world is at peace.
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I never did like this one, but I admit, it is one of the few of the rewritten originals that gets so close to actually having a murder/death. I know this probably isn't one of my better posts, but this was such a choppy plot.
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Extra Fun Tidbits, Non-Essential to the Story:

• A meal served at Lilac Inn: Beef broth, creamed chicken on toast, peas, salad and iced tea. Um...yum? Sounds nice and light. But the beef broth alone sounds odd, and the the name "creamed chicken" just hints of a strange consistency. But it turns out to be this in most recipes online.
  
• A great quote from Nancy: "I have a feeling the thief substituted these fakes for the real diamonds." Well, duuuur.
  

#26: The Clue of the Leaning Chimney

For fun, I have included the Danish cover for Leaning Chimney, courtesy Series books for Girls.

It was a dark and stormy night...

Nancy is driving with Bess on a shortcut on a lonely road when she almost runs over a man; Nancy goes to help. To her amazement, threatens her. Nancy stays and tries to give him a package the man dropped. She is threatened again but doesn't move until Bess practically drags her back into the car. Nancy did see what was in the package, which fell open: a vase with a dragon pattern. Bess says it sounds A LOT like a vase in her cousin Dick Milton's pottery shop! Bess calls Dick the next day to tell him to check it out. The vase is gone! And dang, the vase was lent to Dick by his friend Mr. Soong, an older Chinese man.

Dick wants to find a legendary pit of super-special clay used to make china. He overheard this in a random conversation; this valuable clay could be found near a "leaning chimney".

Nancy goes into Masonville, where Dick heard about the leaning chimney--and finds a crooked chimney. The homeowner lets Nancy explore the attic, and Nancy sees a man exiting the attic through a secret panel. The man gets away, but the police investigate the attic. Behind the panel are priceless vases!

Nancy and George look for clues by the lonely road again, but run into suspicious men. This time, Nancy gets away but a George is tied up and the two men disappear.
The men dropped a porcelain bowl. Wow, another extraordinarily convenient clue! 

 Oh...and Mr. Soong wants Nancy to find his missing friend, Eng Moy, and Eng Moy's daughter, Lei. They came to the USA so Eng Moy could study new pottery methods...and haven't been seen for five years.

A fake-pottery market suddenly springs up, and just in time Nancy finds the real leaning chimney on an old mine and smelter. On some days, the chimney has a weird iron symbol on it. There is a high, impossible-to-enter fence around the building, and a woman who claims she's from an exclusive cult, threatens Nancy and George as they try to get in. The usual antics happen--Nancy is nearly trapped, she is is rescued by George, then Mr. Soong goes with them to explore the weird grounds.

They discover that the place is the site of a forgery operation-- Chinese people forced to work, making genuine-looking, fake antique pottery! And among them? Eng Moy and Lei!

Nancy and Mr. Soong hide until they can safely go to Eng Moy and Lei. Lei is despairing about her horrible life. All her and her father's attempts to escape failed. She actually says that their only way to escape is to "end it all!". This rather grim allusion is unusual in the original Nancy Drew books.

Mr. Soong and Nancy come out, and try to disguise themselves as workers so they can plan an escape. No dice--but our old friend Deus Ex Machina comes along. Nancy manages to escape (climbing over the fence of the complex with a ladder they brought, used, and left on the fence), runs out to the road, and stops a State Trooper vehicle which just happens to be stopping by.

In the end, the workers (who were lured to the illegal pottery operation with promises of a better life) are free. The man who had escaped through the panel in the old house, and was also the same one who ran across the road with the vase in the beginning AND rented the attic is captured. This Mr. Carr was responsible for most of the operation, and had a clever (for a mass-market juvenile book series) plan for stealing antique ceramics to copy, and resell the copies as antiques. A brother was in "cahoots" with him.

I've read almost half the Nancy Drew's, and this is one of the most ridiculous!

#36: The Secret of the Golden Pavillion

(Cover from Series Books for Girls)

Nancy Drew is randomly flying in a helicopter above her house (it seems this happens a lot), and a burglar is climbing into the third story! (Since when do the Drews have a third story? Unless they mean the attic?)...

So Nancy has the pilot radio the tower, which then alerts her dad. A briefcase containing papers on one of Mr. Drew's new cases was taken from their house! Gaugh. If I lived next to the Drews, I'd move!!! They must get robbed every freaking week!

So the newest case is about a Hawaiian/Japanese man, Mr. Sakamaki. He's just inherited a beautiful estate in Hawaii, but two claimants have shown up. Suspicious, my dear Watson! Sakamaki also notices a mysterious 'ghost' who dances in--yes--a golden pavilion on the property. He wants Nancy to help solve the mystery, and says she can go to Hawaii with friends (and they're fresh from solving The Haunted Showboat!). Nan is worried about the expense, and 'Mr. Saka' says he'll finance it. Mr. Drew says he'll agree to that on one condition--Mr. Saka's generous offer will be his lawyer fee. Come on. I'm sure Carson would rather have his daughter go off traipsing in Hawaii, than to have money to invest or spend or whatevs.*insert sarcasm*

Nan and the gang stay at the home of Mr. Saka's friends, the Armstrongs. They do the typical Hawaiian things, surfing, swimming, wearing leis, eating tropical fruit, and watching and eating pig roasted on a spit :p . Nancy learns to hula, and is almost instantly perfect at it, of course. Yawn.

The ghost appears, there is a chase, blah, blah, blah. Meanwhile, Nancy and the gang are being chased by the sneaky members of the 'Double Scorps', a frightening gang. One of its members even knocked out Mr. Drew in his office!!

They visit craters, volcanos, etc. George nearly falls off a cliff and takes Nan with her, but the boys save them.

Well, after a series of random, disconcerting adventures involving the Double Scorps, they're arrested. Turns out the ghost was just a dancer who knew a secret entrance beneath the pavilion and went back and forth among the estate. Duh. And there was supposed to be an treasure on the estate! Surprise. Not. The Double Scorps somehow found out about it, made up an elaborate plan, and somehow they found out Mr. Saka had hired Carson....and then they found Nancy was on the case too, and so on.

Really, how do these people randomly find out about opportunities to swindle?

• This book was originally published 1959, when Hawaii was made a state. It was republished 1985, but NOT rewritten. Hannah Gruen frets about volcanoes exploding all the time, and how primitive Hawaii will be, and Nancy says "Hannah...it's time you learned about our new state of Hawaii" :p
• Despite the emphasis in the above quote that Hawaii is just part of America now, it is constantly written like some freaky foreign country...
  

#42: The Phantom of Pine Hill

This is one I never read as a kid, and it was hilarious. As in the WHAT??? kind of hilarity. It was one of the most predictable and laughable Nancy Drew mysteries ever. I'll keep this review short and just point out some of the hilarity. It was one of the few Nancy Drew books I (really) disliked and can completely "snark".

• The culprit was introduced very early and did some very suspicious\silly things, leaving the complete plot obvious to the reader. By the middle of the book I knew most of the solution!
• There's a sweet elderly lady to be saved! Surprise!
  
• Bess flunks another diet :) George quietly sets most of the conclusion to the mystery in motion with little help from Nancy and a lot of help from Bess!
  
• Ned dresses up as a Native American chief for an Emerson college parade. Snigger.
  
• This one has the classic secret passages. In fact, it's oddly similar The Hidden Staircase.

So it was predictable and boring, but I liked that Nancy had more of a social life in this one. Also, the cousins had a big part in the solving the mystery. So, it was lame, but had its good points.

Check out the cover. Ned in a completely awful Indian costume. Nancy in a dress. A dress? Really? Hiking around to find clues in a dress sounds a like it would be a bit awkward. Oh, well...maybe she's practicing to be elegant for when she goes overseas in The Mystery of the 99 Steps.