A Scent of Violets - a Queen-Size Gothic

After reading The Scent of Lilacs by Carolyn Wilson, I happened across this book, which also features the scent of a flower in its title.  Obviously, my curiosity got the best of me, so I had to find a good copy of it (which I eventually did on eBay).  This particular book is "A Queen-Size Gothic," which was a line of gothic paperbacks that Popular Library started in the early '70s to compete with the plethora of gothic books on the store shelves.  These queen-size gothics were advertised as "a new idea" that offered "the very best in novels of romantic suspense, by the top writers, greater in length and drama, richer in reading pleasure," as stated on the back of the book.  In fact, the publisher went on to promote them as "READING FIT FOR A QUEEN."  That is certainly some very rich hype to live up to - leading me to wonder, could they do it?

A Scent of Violets does have the standard gothic tropes: a young, naive woman ... a foreboding house in the middle of nowhere ... a mysterious family with dark secrets ... horrifying cries in the middle of the night ... and a supernatural legend surrounding the marsh lands between the house and the nearest village.  But the normal hint of romance between the young woman and at least one of the men in the story is completely absent from this book.  There is no romance here; instead, the author opens the story with our young heroine, Linnet Grey, wondering if she was going to lose her student teaching job at the Academy for Young Girls.  An orphan, Linnet has no family, so if she loses her job, she will have no one to turn to and nowhere to go!  Fate intervenes, though, when Linnet sneaks off to see a play starring the up and coming actress, Chantel Legris.  There is something familiar about the actress, but Linnet has no time to ponder, because she is kidnapped outside the theater and taken in the dead of night to the dark mansion known as Willerby!

I give the author credit for giving readers a fresh take on the gothic tropes.  I certainly was not expecting a kidnapping to get the story started.  And then for poor Linnet to find herself in a secluded mansion with people she does not know, yet who all seem to know her - and detest her!  Who is this person they are mistaking her for, and what did she do to make them hate her so?  When parts of the house seem familiar to her, Linnet begins to wonder if she is losing her mind - had she really lived here before and simply forgotten?  Was she really the person they claimed she was?  Or was she the daughter of a sailor, whose parents died tragically at sea, leaving her alone in the world to survive at an all-girls school with a matron who clearly thought very little of her?  And what is that fleeting light that flashes by her window at night, going out into the marshes before disappearing?  And who is behind the woeful cries coming from the closed-off tower, the door to which is kept locked?  And where is the scent of violets that she keeps smelling in the halls coming from?  Are there ghosts haunting the halls of Willerby, and will Linnet soon be joining them?

I love the fact that Linnet is somewhat timid, having been trained at her school to adhere to orders given; yet, at the same time, she has a backbone, and she is not afraid to stand up to the mysterious and handsome Marcus Bellamy, who insists she is his arrogant, detestable ward who ran away two years ago to avoid her responsibilities and to hide from the damage she has caused.  I also loved the young little made, Cissie, who ends up becoming Linnet's only friend in that lonely, old house - afraid of the housekeeper, Mrs. Price, but willing to eavesdrop at doors and warn Linnet of what she overhears!  And I was actually surprised when the author introduced another young man into the picture - Rupert Manning, a friend of Bellamy's who has come to the house to provide advice on how to handle Bellamy's ward.  He turns out to be a sniveling little coward who is more caught up in his loyalty to his friend to see what is happening right in front of his own eyes.  Which leaves Linnet to once again fend for herself.

The author is Ruth Fabian, which is one of the many pen names used by British writer Aileen Armitage Longden.  She wrote more than forty novels that were published between 1971 and 2005, many of which were historical romances and gothic in nature.  A Scent of Violets is a mixture of the two, as it is set in 1882, providing a historical setting for her gothic terror.  Despite having two possible love interests (Bellamy and Manning), the title character in the story does not find herself attracted to either of them, even though she recognizes the handsome physical traits of both.  Thus, Fabian (Longden) is able to provide readers with a tale that features a very strong female protagonist who does not need a man to rescue her or save her from the frightening situation into which she is thrust.  She creates her own plans for escape, she faces the supernatural sounds and sights on her own, and the ultimate sacrifice that gives way to her freedom is a choice she makes all on her own.  And this is what makes Linnet a very likable character that the reader is anxious to see freed from her Willerby cage.

The cover is beautifully painted, but there is no indication as to who the artist is.  The young woman on the cover is reminiscent of Lara Parker as Angelique in the original Dark Shadows television show - that cascading blond hair, that blue dress.  And that dark mansion behind her could easily stand in for Collinwood.  Would love to know who the artist is, just to see what other work he or she has done and how it compares to this piece.

RATING:  10 violet cachous candies out of 10 for an outstanding gothic novel that provides all the right elements without the unnecessary romance thrown in!

Vicki Barr Air Stewardess Mystery # 12 - The Clue of the Gold Coin

Here we go with another first - the first Vicki Barr book I've ever read.  I've had the complete series for some time, mostly due to a wonderful friend who lives in Australia who was able to locate some of the last books I needed to complete the set; however, I have just never gotten around to reading them.  Since I made the decision to start reading some of these various series I've had sitting on my shelves, and since this one happens to be set in Florida, I figured I might as well start with this one.  And yes, it was not an easy choice, since I'm a stickler for reading series in order (in fact, I usually won't read any books in a series until I have all the books in the series!), but it's time I started breaking tradition and trying some new things.  So with all of that in mind, I sat down to see what all the hub-bub is about when it comes to this blonde-haired stewardess!

The Clue of the Gold Coin is the 12th book of The Vicki Barr Air Stewardess Series (I note that they do not refer to it as a "mystery" series, but seem to focus more on the career aspect of her being a stewardess).  The book is written by Helen Wells, who wrote eleven of the sixteen books in this series (according to Jennifer White's website, Wells wanted to pursue other projects, so she quit writing the series after book 4, at which point the series was written by Julie Tatham; however, Wells came back to write the series starting with book 9 - Vicki Barr Air Stewardess Series).  It seems these same two authors also took turns writing the Cherry Ames nursing stories around the same time period.  

In any event, this book find Vicki receiving a Florida run as her latest assignment, for flights going back and forth between New York and Tampa.  Vicki is thrilled, since it will allow her to escape the cold and enjoy the sunshine and beaches of Florida - but, of course, what she does not expect is to be thrust into the middle of a mystery (one would think that these amateur sleuths would realize that no matter where they go, they are always going to stumble across a mystery...).  It starts on the plane with an elderly man who appears sick and the slick travel agent who seems nice enough to assist the man. But when the elderly man leaves behind a brochure for Ybor City, Vicki begins to wonder if he was sending her a message.  Well, soon enough, she discovers she is in Tampa right as the Gasparilla festival is about to begin, so she is able to share in those festivities - but a damper is put on them when she learns a crate of priceless gold coins that were shipped down to Tampa from New York on the very plane she came down in have disappeared!  A trip to Ybor City only leaves Vicki with more questions than answers, as she not only sees the old man and the travel agent, but meets a debonair business man by the name of Raymond Duke (referred to by many as simply "the Duke"), all of whom seem to know each other and are desperate to keep Vicki from finding out exactly how.  Throw in an FBI agent who is working the case, an airport warehouse employee that Vicki helped get the job there, along with the young man's cranky supervisor, and you've got yourself a rather complicated case to solve.  After all, how were the gold coins that were placed in a protective container and shipped inside of a sealed container - all of which was carefully monitored in New York and unopened until the festival committee received it and opened it - suddenly turn in to worthless pieces of metal?!

For my first Vicki Barr mystery, I will say I picked the right one.  This mystery was extremely well written, and it even had me questioning things as I went along.  There is one rather subtle clue that Vicki sees while in Ybor City that gave away (to me, at least) how the gold coins were switched out, but of course, she does not pick up on that right away.  If she did, it would have been a pretty short mystery!  Instead, it isn't until she takes a small jaunt down to Havana with the family she is staying with in Tampa that Vicki figures out exactly what has been going on, who is really involved, and how they managed to steal all of that gold.  The final chapters include a rather interesting chase scene involving not cars, bicycles, or even on foot - no, this chase scene involved two airplanes! - one taken over by one of the crooks and the other being flown by none other than Vicki Barr as she fights to keep the other plane from taking off the ground!  It was actually pretty intense, and I would love to see that scene played out in a live action film.

As for the locale, Wells had either visited the Tampa area at some point or she did some extensive research, as she does a pretty good job of nailing down the area.  From the Tampa International Airport (p. 4) to the description of Ybor City (p. 33), and a number of things in-between, she makes the reader feel like they are actually there.  And her history of Gasparilla (pp. 17-18) is accurate - and having lived in Tampa for eight years, I can attest to just how much impact that festival has on the Tampa Bay area!  And the illustration that crosses over pages 80 and 81 depicting a drawbridge raised so that the ship, Ye Mystic Krewe, can come into the Bay, resembles the Cass bridge, which has a railway drawbridge next to it.

Now, I will say some of the actual details in Ybor City were changed (likely to keep from being accused of directly using actual places and names without permission).  The Granada Restaurant that Vicki visits in Ybor is most certainly the fictitious name for the Columbia Restaurant, probably the most famous restaurant in Ybor City (Columbia Restaurant).  While reading the description, it is easy to tell that she is describing the Columbia, with the bright mosaic tiles on the floor and wall, and the fountain in the foyer, as well as the arched doorways (p. 86).  The book indicates the restaurant is on Fifth Avenue (p. 85), but the real restaurant is actually on Seventh Avenue.  Additionally, when Vicki learns the Duke's house is on Columbus Drive at the corner of Thirteenth Street, it is said to only be "two streets up" (p. 91).  This is a bit of a misnomer, as Columbus Drive is actually eight streets up from Fifth Avenue, not two.  But these are minor details that definitely do not detract from the story at all.

Humorously, Wells also makes a quick mention near the end that "a light rain was falling, one of those sudden showers so peculiar to southern Florida that seem to come out of nowhere and stop as suddenly..." (p. 160).  This pretty much proves Wells visited at some point, as Florida is very well known for those sudden showers that come and go very quickly, particularly in the early afternoons (usually as you are just getting ready to leave work!). 

Another humorous moment is when Vicki is in New York with her apartment mates, and they play a game of charades.  Vicki is left pondering how to act out the line, "A horse ... a horse ... my kingdom for a horse!" (p. 70).  This is a line from the Shakespearean play, Richard III (Act 5, Scene 4, Line 13); however, it is also a line from Ken Ludwig's farce, Leading Ladies, when two con-men put together a horrific play-within-a-play combining scenes from various Shakespeare plays - and a line that I actually had to say when I was playing the part of Jack Gable in that play!  Thus, when I read the line in the book, I could not help but laugh out loud (and also repeat the surrounding lines I had in the play!).  It brought back some wonderful memories.

 

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not make mention of the cover art for this book.  I am not sure who the cover artist is, but it is uncanny how closely this art resembles that of Rudy Nappi for the original text cover of Nancy Drew #30 - The Clue of the Velvet Mask, which was published in 1953, just five years prior to this one.  In both covers, the title character is dressed in Spanish garb, with a red dress and a black lace head covering.  In both covers, the female sleuth is holding one hand up to her chin.  In both covers, there is a man that she is staring at, whose back is to the viewer.  In both covers, the man has a black cape.  And in both covers, there are costumed revelers in the background.  This naturally raises the question of whether the artist for the Vicki Barr cover was influenced in any way by Nappi's cover to Velvet Mask, because the similarities are just too great to overlook.  If it is, indeed, nothing more than a coincidence, then I'd have to say this is a bigger coincidence than any I've ever seen in the myriad of series books, whose mysteries are greatly dependent on coincidences for these young sleuths to be able to solve the mysteries!

As indicated above, this book was certainly a fantastic introduction into the world of Vicki Barr.  I do like the title character, I enjoyed Well's writing, and the mystery was not easily solved, even for an experienced reader.  All of these things combined made it a very good read, and I look forward to reading more of her adventures.

(SIDE NOTE - our beloved and esteemed Michael Cornelius has written a scholarly paper about Vicki Barr, which was recently published in the collection, Beyond Nancy Drew: U.S. Girls' Series Fiction in the Twentieth Century - Beyond Nancy Drew - definitely provides some interesting insight into the character of Vicki Barr and the series as a whole.)

RATING:  10 solid gold replicas of the Gasparilla pirate ship out of 10 for an extremely engaging, well-written series book mystery!

A Zebra Mystery Puzzler #5 - You'll Die Laughing

With this fifth Zebra Mystery Puzzler, we circle back to that red-headed Hollywood gossip columnist, Maxine "Max" Reynolds, who cracked her first case in the first book in this series.  Author Marjorie Grove (a/k/a Martin Grove) takes this smart, savvy sleuth across the pond to England in this second murder mystery, and so readers have the opportunity to follow Max as she ventures around London trying to solve yet another murder.

You'll Die Laughing sends Max over to England by her bosses in order to get the scoop on an older comedian who is making a comeback in a new television show.  But before she can even get on the plane, the actor is murdered - his throat slit from ear to ear! - and her trip goes from covering a comeback to solving a murder!  Unlike the first book, where Max actually discovered the body and saw the scene of the crime, this time she not only does not see the scene of the crime, but she doesn't even know what the victim looks like.  However, someone is clearly wanting to help her, because before she leaves for England, she receives a strange telegram that simply reads:  "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" (p. 20).  An odd clue, since anyone who has ever taken a typing class knows that sentence is one that uses every letter of the alphabet.  And even more odd is the fact that Max can't figure it out, but her somewhat boyfriend, Rob Allan, is the one who points her in the right direction.

As with the first book, despite the murder being announced early in this one, Max does not actually become involved and start investigating until well after the first half of the story.  Instead, Grove gives us incessant details about the roads Max takes to get around Los Angeles and Hollywood, the food she orders at the restaurants; and even once she arrives in England, the reader is treated to considerable information about the roads and locations.  At least we do get some entertainment in the form of Max and Toothie (Pamela Tooth, her secretary) - their banter is so much fun to read, I almost wish Pamela was at her side the entire time.  Perhaps in a future mystery, we'll get that treat!  We also get to experience more of Max's bosses, the owners of TeleFilm, the show business daily for which Max writes - one is a domineering woman who is clearly in complete control, and the other is her happy-go-lucky husband who seems oh-so-happy to let his wife run the show.  

I give Grove credit for crafting a much better mystery in this book than in the first (even though that one was not bad, it was not quite as convoluted as this one).  Since we don't get to "see" the murder in the book, the only glimpse we have is that depicted on the cover (which is off, since Max was never at the crime scene and never saw the body - yet that apparently did not stop the publisher from having the cover artist depict such a scene!).  There is a glaring clue on the cover that also appears in one of the internal illustrations, so I do at least give them props for that, as it did help me as I was trying to figure out what was going on with this one.  There is quite a bit of craziness going on, as Max meets a man on the flight over the ocean who claims to be a reporter himself, and she finds a slight attraction to him, even agreeing to go out with him.  But then she meets the person who sent the telegram and finds herself a pawn of a British spy who wants to use Max's investigation for their own purposes.  Then she learns that the reporter is lying to her, and there is a possibility he is an intelligent agent for an enemy country!  And if that weren't confusing enough, she discovers the comedian who was killed could have been an agent as well!  Grove keeps the reader guessing as to who is telling the truth, who is really an agent and who is not, and what in the world is really going on here, but by the time you reach that sealed chapter at the end, it all starts to make sense (and the killer becomes apparent...).

The book utilizes a number of actual locations in England - from Heathrow Airport (p. 87) to the Savoy Hotel (p. 88) - and I have no idea of the directions from the airport to the hotel are accurate, but considering how detailed they are, I'm going to guess that they might well be!  The Savoy does have a side that faces the Strand as indicated in the book (p. 88), and it does overlook the River Thames as also stated in the book (p. 89).  From what I found online, the Savoy does appear to be quite the ritzy hotel (The Savoy London), so I have to wonder if perhaps Grove stayed there at one point.  Another location that was real (it has closed since this book was published) is The Grove pub that the British spy sets up a meeting with Max upon her arrival in London (The Grove), which was located on Beauchamp Place, as it is said in the story (p. 94).  In addition, there is the Inigo Jones restaurant in Covent Garden (p. 114), which closed not long after this book was published, named after the famous architect (Inigo Jones).  Perhaps Grove gets so caught up in his details about these real locations, he can't help but provide the most accurate directions on how to get there!

The internal illustrations are only a tad bit better than the illustrations in the first Max Reynolds mystery, but the accuracy has definitely not improved.  Max is drawn with the absolute worst, unfashionable hairstyles that make her look considerably older than she is; and the action depicted is certainly off - such as the illustration on page 169, which shows a man standing, holding a folded paper with a huge seal on it; in the actual story, he is sitting at the table with Max, and the document he pulls from his jacket pocket could not be anywhere near the size of the paper in the illustration.  Also, the drawing on page on page 200 show Max leaning against the bar, while a man is mixing a drink behind her - and in the foreground is a box containing mixing tools; yet, in the story, Max is relaxing in an overstuffed chair and notices the bar tools when the man moves some bottles around at the bar!  Definitely not accurate at all!  And let's face it - the Max shown in this final illustration is by far much prettier, much sexier, and definitely much younger than the Max drawn in the earlier illustrations in this book.  There are no signatures on any of the illustrations, or on the cover painting, so there's no way to know who did the art.

I definitely liked this mystery better than the first Max Reynolds' story, and I'm hoping it's a sign that her mysteries only get better and better as the series goes along.

RATING:  9 bowls of chilled cream of watercress soup out of 10 for a not-so-easy to solve murder mystery that was definitely an enjoyable read!

Hurricane Nurse - a Berkley orginal romance novel

I am not one for romance novels, but I happened across this book at the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair a few years back.  I remember being curious about it, because with "hurricane" in the title, I figured it must have a Florida setting.  The price was a bit on the high side, so I passed it up.  The next year, I saw that the seller had the same book at the same price - meaning it clearly was not selling for the price he was asking, so I held off.  When I hit the book fair this year, you guessed it - the book was still with the seller, having not sold now for three years.  I made an offer, which the seller took, and I became the proud owner of a nurse / romance novel set in the southernmost part of Florida.  Now the question became - would I enjoy the book?

hurricane nurse (and yes, the title is actually spelled with small letters, not capitals) does not actually begin in Florida; rather, the reader is introduced to Betsy Stockwell and her father, Dr. Cal, in their hometown of Atlanta, where Dr. Cal is quite the famous surgeon at the local hospital.  When he has a serious heart attack, Besty is told her father must go someplace to convalesce where he can get plenty of rest and sunshine - hence, he is shipped off to Blue Heron Cay just off the Florida Keys (NOTE - there is no such place as "Blue Heron Cay," although, as we all know, the Florida Keys, and Key West in particular, are very real places).  Betsy, whose mother died when she was young and who is very close to her father (gee, what titian-haired detective does that sound like?), feels duty-bound to go with him, and thus, she must postpone her planned marriage to Dr. Paul Norbert, who is a bit hurt, but understands and promises to wait for her (yeah, like we don't already know that's not going to happen...).

Based on the title, I was expecting that once Nurse Betsy arrived in the Florida Keys, a horrific hurricane would come through, and she would be put to the test with her nursing skills helping out people injured due to the horrific storms that swipe through the area.  I mean, the cover gives the idea that in the middle of the storm, a shirtless man is carrying an injured woman to Betsy, so that she can administer first aid during the dangerous conditions.  The actual story, however, deals very little with the hurricane that does eventually come through - a hurricane that does very little damage.  There is a young girl who is injured when she crawls under her house trying to rescue her kitting just as the storm hits (this would be the young girl in the arms of the man on the cover - but in the story, the man is not shirtless, and Betsy is not outside waiting for him); but that is truly the only "drama" associated with the hurricane.

The main gist of the story is the hate/love relationship between Betsy and the island doctor who is watching over her father's recover, Dr. Mark Everett.  While Dr. Everett is congenial and friendly with Dr. Cal, he is aloof and downright rude to Betsy from the get-go.  She immediately resents the man to the point of almost hating him.  But, of course, as with any typical soap opera romance story, Dr. Everett has a secret in his past that, when Betsy learns what it is, paints the man in a whole new light, and she soon finds herself falling for him despite her fiance back home.  When Dr. Everett admits his own feelings for her after the hurricane, Betsy is torn, but she decides to remain true to Paul, and she returns home to Atlanta with her father after he is deemed fully recovered.  Of course, as can be expected, during her absence, Paul has fallen for Betsy's best friend, leaving Betsy free to back to Dr. Everett - but is it too late?  Has he already fallen prey to a bombshell vixen down in Key West, or does he still want to make her his wife?

Other than flying into the Key West airport, and brief mentions of Miami, there is very little detail at all about Florida, which was disappointing.  And the lack of any real hurricane drama also left me with a bad taste in my mouth regarding the book and its deceptive title.  The one part of the story I did rather find amusing were the residents of the Inn there on Blue Heron Cay where Betsy and her father stay.  The owner, Davanna (no last name), is a gruff woman who has a heart for starving artists who are trying to make their big break (but none of whom are talented, so that big break is likely never to come).  There was the "tall, thin, emaciated looking woman" named Mavis, who is a poet; the "short, intense, bald man" name Allan, who considers himself a composer; the "middle-aged, rather fluttery woman" named Gertrude, a self-proclaimed artist; and the "lank, bearded young man" named Slug, who has no job, no talent, and no patience for those who do work in the real world (pp. 34-25).  It's definitely a motley crew of residents, and it was somewhat engaging to see Betsy's first reaction to them, but gradually watch as she becomes not only accustomed to their idiosyncrasies, but eventually feels they are a part of her own extended family. 

With regard to the hurricane, Davanna makes mention that the hurricanes do not usually come through there until late September (p. 62); however, Florida's hurricane season is typically from June through November, with August through September being the "busiest" months.  And looking back at the hurricanes that went through the Keys prior to 1961 when this book was published, it seems most of them hit in September (making Davanna technically correct in her observation).  And when the eye of the storm reaches the Cay (p. 66), you gotta give Davanna credit, as she warns Betsy that the calm is deceiving, as the storm will come back with full force as soon as the eye passes over.  I just truly wish the hurricane had made a bigger impact in the story, to give some level of credence to the title.

 

The author is Peggy Gaddis,  who was rather popular back in the day with her nurse romance novels.  She was a rather prolific author, with a writing career spanning thirty years.  While she wrote a number of books under her maiden name of Gaddis, she also wrote under a number of pseudonyms, such as Gail Jordan, Joan Sherman, Carolina Lee, Georgia Craig, and several others (including some male names).  I do have a couple of her other books, so when I do get around to reading them, I'm hoping they will be a bit better than this one.

The cover art is painted by Harry Bennett, who provided cover art for a large number of romance, gothic, and mystery paperbacks over the years.  You can find out some of the artist's history at this website:  Harry Bennett - Artist.  And, coincidentally enough, I actually own one of Bennett's original paintings, which was used for a young adult novel called The End of Innocence, published in 1972.  I would love to track down the original art for hurricane nurse, as that cover is definitely much more dramatic than the story inside!

RATING:  6 battered, spray-stained yachting caps out of 10 for at least throwing in a bit of mystery surrounding the island doctor's past to provide some drama to the story.

Betty Gordon on No-Trail Island (Book 14 in The Betty Gordon Series)

Since I'm on a kick of reading books set in Florida, figured I'd check out another Florida-centric series book, this time from a series I have not yet read - Betty Gordon.  I've had the complete 15-book series for some time, and recently was able to upgrade the final book in the series to include a dust jacket (which gives me the complete series in dust jacket, now); however, I've never read any of them - until now!  And usually I would start by reading the series in order, starting with book one - but I decided a change was in store, and I picked up the next-to-the-last book in the series to see just how much of Florida actually appeared in the book...

Betty Gordon on No-Trail Island has a very odd start to the story. Normally, we get an introduction to the characters as they are preparing for a celebration, or they are attending a function or meeting someone that is going to lead them into the mystery they are set to solve for the story.  In this book, though, we get introduced to the title character through all of her friends at Shadyside School as they "oh" and "ah" over the numerous bouquets of flowers being delivered to Betty Gordon's room - all because the young girl "was convalescing from a heavy cold, which had developed into a serious attack of influenza" (p. 4).  In fact, Betty is so sick, she is likely going to be stuck at the school over the Christmas holidays and be unable to join her Uncle Richard and his ward, Bob, on their holiday vacation!  I don't think I've ever read such a despondent opening chapter to a series book as this - but, being only the first chapter, and knowing the mystery takes Betty to Florida, it is pretty much a given that she either miraculously recovers in time or she finds a way to make the trip even though she is sick.  The answer turns out to be the latter...

The story follows Betty and one of her school chums, Bobby Littell (and yes, that's a girl named Bobby - somewhat reminding me a bit of George from the Nancy Drew books - Bobby makes no apologies for her boyish name, and it is a bit confusing for the reader sometimes as the ward of Betty's uncle is also named Bob), as they are taken by Uncle Richard Gordon and Bob Henderson down to Florida to visit the widow of one of Uncle Richard's old school friends.  It seems she is having some legal trouble regarding the property she and her husband owned, and she has invited him and his family down for the holidays to stay with her on her houseboat.  Uncle Richard believes the Florida weather will do Betty good, and Betty (and Bob, as well as his friend W.M. Brown who comes along for the trip) can't wait to see what the mystery is.  It is at this point my hopes started to rise, as I waited to see what parts of Florida this motley crew would travel to before arriving at their final destination in Fort Myers.

Oddly enough, the trip begins with the Gordon group traveling down U.S. Highway 1 (p. 25), which in reality runs along the East Coast of the United States, going from Maine all the way down to Key West, Florida.  As they travel down the East Coast, the author provides a sort-of travelogue of places the group stops along the way (p. 25) - Fredericksburg, which is descried as being the home of Barbara Frietchie (a name I was unfamiliar with, but when I looked it up, it seems she was a Unionist during the Civil War, and her name became popular due to a poem by John Greenleaf Whittier written in 1863 - and it seems she is from Frederick, Maryland, so not sure why the author refers to it as "Fredericksburg"); Richmond, Virginia, that state's capitol; and then Columbia, South Carolina (for which no added description is given).  The first mention of their arrival in Florida is when "three days later the group took in the sights of the famous Silver Springs, near Ocala, Florida.  They tarried long enough to take advantage of the glass-bottom boat trip through the historic spring..." (p. 25).  This actually surprised me, as I was not aware the glass-bottom boat rides were around back in 1931 when this book was published - but, sure enough, some research revealed those famous glass-bottom boat tours were first given in the late 1800s!

For those who aren't from Florida, the Silver Springs park is located right outside of Ocala, Florida.  Thus, when Betty and her crew leave the park, "hoping to reach Fort Myers before dusk" (p. 26), they were looking at a four-plus hour drive to get there (taking into consideration that the roads and speed limits back then were not the same as they are today).  On their way to Fort Myers, they make a quick stop in Riverview (p. 27), a city that is just south of Tampa, about half-way between Silver Springs and Fort Myers.  Even with this stop, the next chapter indicates "[i]t was about dusk when the travelers, tired but happy, reached the picturesque southern town of Fort Myers, with its rare palms and lovely tropical shrubbery" (p. 29).  So, taking into consideration the time and distance, plus the stopover in Riverview, Betty and her friends wold have needed to leave Silver Springs around noon or earlier, since the sun normally sets around 5:30 p.m. or so during the month of December in Florida.  That would not have given them much time to enjoy their visit to Silver Springs!

Regardless, once they reach Fort Myers, they stay put and do not visit any other location in Florida.  Mrs. Harvey Britton, the widow of Uncle Richard's friend, is currently living on a houseboat on the Caloosahatchee River (p. 24) due to a dispute regarding the land on No-Trail Island that she and her husband owned (or, at least, thought they owned - the deed was never recorded, and after Mr. Britton died, his widow was unable to locate the original to prove her ownership interest in the island!).  Caloosahatchee River is a real river that runs from the Gulf of Mexico, right through Fort Myers, and on to Lake Okeechobee, a very large lake in the middle of the state.  While there are some island that can be found along the river (such as Legacy Island, Midway Island, Beautiful Island, Buzzard Roost, and Havens Island, as well as an island containing the Caloosahatchee National Wildlife Refuge), there is no such place as "No-Trail Island."  The book does not define a specific location for the island, other than it is located in the river not next to Fort Myers.  For a good portion of the book, the houseboat stays moored not far from the island, as Betty and her friends travel back and forth in small rowboats to the island to explore the property Mrs. Britton claims to own and to look for the missing deed.

This is not to say they don't also explore a bit of Fort Myers, although most of that is done in passing.  There is mention of the young people going into Fort Myers to explore the "City of Palms" (p. 49), which is a nickname the city has had for more than a century.  Looking up the reference, I found that this nickname comes from the fact that Thomas Edison, who lived in the city, is reported to have planted two hundred palm trees along the roadway from the downtown area to his house located on the Caloosahatchee River - and today there are more than two thousand (!!) palm trees that line McGregor Boulevard, some of which top over 75 feet high.  And speaking of Edison, as the teens return to the houseboat, Betty thanks her uncle for driving them "past the homes of Mr. Edison and Mr. Ford this morning" (p. 50).  Thomas Edison was not the only legend to live in historic Fort Myers; Henry Ford and his wife also lived there - having purchased a home in 1916 right next to the Edison estate!  Thus, the author clearly knew some of the local sites and included the references in the book.

While there is one brief mention of Tampa, where Mrs. Britton's niece lives, the remainder of the book focuses more on the mystery, with the Gordons and their friends facing off against Jake Belcher and Link Calfort, who claim to own all of the property on the island, despite Mrs. Britton's protests to the contrary.  There are a number of confrontations and some mysterious incidents, including the houseboat losing all of its electricity and W.M.'s two dogs being poisoned (from which they both died!).  Betty makes friends with a local Indian woman who resides with her husband on a nearby reservation, and after saving the squaw's daughter (pp. 70-71), the woman and her husband become indebted to Betty, ultimately helping the Gordons put out a fire and fighting off the villainous Calfort. Of course, the deed is finally located - by pure chance in the last chapter after a fire burns up the rug on the houseboat floor, revealing a secret compartment that contains not only the deed, but also thousands of dollars in cash.  Betsy's belief that Mrs. Britton was telling the truth all along is vindicated, her health is fully restored, and the Gordons and their friends leave Florida knowing all wrongs have been righted.

The story is rather enjoyable, and I think the "danger" of Florida with regards to alligators and snakes is played up a bit more than what is real, but I'm sure for people who have never lived in Florida and know nothing about the area, it does make for some exciting drama. 

The author, Alice B. Emerson, like so many children's series back in the day, is merely a pseudonym.  According to Jennifer White's website (The Betty Gordon Series), the series was written by four different authors, with this book being written by Eunice W. Creager.  Doing some research, I was happy to discover that Mrs. Creager was born in Kentucky, but her family shortly thereafter moved up to Indiana!  It seems Mrs. Creager wrote titles in both the Betty Gordon series, as well as the Ruth Fielding series; she also wrote some titles in the Six Little Bunker series under the Stratemeyers' house pseudonym of Laura Lee Hope.  Interestingly enough, Mrs. Creager had two daughters - one named Alice (same as the author) and one named Betty (same as the book's lead character).

Based on this book, I have definitely gained an interest in this series, so when I am looking forward to the day when I will be able to start at the beginning and read the series from beginning to end!

RATING:  8 sheet-covered ghosts out of 10 for a fairly decent mix of travel, adventure, mystery, and fun set in the Sunshine State!

The Hardy Boys: The Skyfire Puzzle (Hardy Boys Mystery Stories # 85)

I figured it was about time to change things up a bit with the vintage children's series books that I read, and I thought I might take a look at some books set in Florida - starting with one of the Hardy Boys Mystery Stories.  Now, anyone who knows me knows that I have never really been a fan of the Hardy Boys.  Growing up, I preferred Nancy Drew because I felt her books were more mystery and the Hardy Boys' books were more adventure - and I loved the mystery.  Yes, I have read and fairly enjoyed the most recent iteration of the Hardy Boys (Hardy Boys Adventures); but they are a far cry from the original books.  However, if I was going to choose a Hardy Boys to read, I guess one set in my own home state would be a good one to choose - at least, so I thought.

The Skyfire Puzzle was published in 1985 by Simon & Schuster, and was the last Hardy Boys book published before the series was put on hiatus for two-and-a-half years so that S&S could start up the new Hardy Boys Case Files aimed at an older audience.  Written by Neal Barrett, Jr. (who apparently also wrote book 83, The Swamp Monster), the book is definitely a precursor to that Case Files series, as it features some much more adult themes and violence.  The Hardys are bit more intense in this story, they have a lot more high-tech equipment, and there is a level of romance, similar to what I saw in the wo Nancy Drew books that were published at the same time.  

The story actually opens similar to the first reboot series, The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers - the boys are smack-dab in the middle of an adventure, and the reader is thrown into the middle of it.  In this instance, Frank and Joe are with their father and Chet in the Georgia swamps, trying to capture some corporate criminals; but these criminals mean business, and they turn the tables on the young detectives, going after them with machine guns and trying to run them down with their cruiser.  It is not until they get back to their hotel that the boys (and the readers!) are introduced to the real mystery.  Harry Stone, head of NASA security at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida (p. 21) has tracked them down, as he needs the Hardys' help.  The upcoming launch of the shuttle, Skyfire, is being plagued with trouble, and Stone's capabilities as head of security is being questioned.  The shuttle is set to launch the very expensive Longeye telescope satellite into space, and if the launch doesn't go off, or worse, if something truly disastrous happens, it could result in a huge financial loss to the company financing it all. Enter: Nat Cramer and Pete McConnel - Cramer is the project specialist for the company that developed the telescope, and McConnel is his own personal security agent.  They are supposed to be working hand-in-hand with Stone, but at every turn, it seems all evidence is pointing to Stone's inability to prevent the sabotage, and McConnel is only too happy to point that out.

The mystery itself is not really that difficult to figure out, even though the author does try to mislead the reader by having Stone, as well as Stone's assistant Lew Gorman, framed for a lot of the problems that are plaguing the shuttle launch.  There is even the red herring of an international agent who is spotted on the scene.  Ultimately, Frank and Joe are invited to go up in the shuttle when a few of the civilians intended to go back out at the last minute (how fortunate for the Hardys, eh?).  It is rather unrealistic how quickly they are "trained" in how to adapt to a space mission like this, although there is a somewhat suspenseful scene when Joe is trapped in a centrifugal force module that is accelerating beyond what a normal body can take (p. 58).  In the big finale, Frank actually has to take a spacewalk in order to confront the villain and get him to confess to what is really going on here.  The last chapter is basically nine pages of dialogue as Frank and Joe give an overly detailed explanation of the villains' plans, how they pulled off what they did, and their ultimate goals in their criminal activity.  

I was hoping there would be more details of Florida and Kennedy Space Center in the book than what there was.  There is a quick mention of Mosquito Lagoon as they drive past it (p. 26) - the lagoon is a part of the Canaveral National Seashore.  As far as the Space Center itself, the boys visit the NASA centrifuge lab (p. 50), tour a detailed mock-up of the shuttle (p. 84), and see the Vehicle Assembly Building (p. 86); but otherwise, there are no accurate descriptions or details about the facility itself, raising questions as to whether the author had actually ever been there or was simply writing the story based on general information gleaned about the Center from research.  The boys do visit a restaurant called "Champs Elysees," named after a famous boulevard in Paris, but there is no real restaurant by that name in Florida; the only French restaurant in the area is Cafe Margaux, which does not match the description of the restaurant in the book.

There are a few interesting tidbits I picked up on while reading the book.  Early in the story, Joe is using a remote controlled airplane to try and spy, and the plane is called Blackhawk.  I smiled at this reference, as the Blackhawks are a team of World War II pilots from Quality Comics, and later DC Comics.  I also thought it odd they indicate Joe's weight as 155 pounds (p. 54).  I'm not sure if I've ever read a Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys book where any of the characters' weight is specifically given.  Finally, one of the astronauts on the plane is named Brett Hilton (p. 133).  The second I saw that name, my mind immediately went to Bret King and Chip Hilton, two series books characters, and I wondered if the author was merely giving a quick nod to the two mostly forgotten names.

 

The book was originally published by Simon & Schuster under the Wanderer imprint, with cover art by Richard Williams.  This book, and the previous one, were the first two to feature the "checkerboard" cover format that lasted for a number of volumes.  This particular cover shows Frank and Joe in the shuttle, apparently when they were using the shuttle's computer to try and gain information about the criminals.  When Simon & Schuster moved away from the Wanderer imprint, the book was re-published with later printings under the Minstrel imprint with new cover art by Paul Bachem.  This second cover art features Joe working the controls, while Frank is outside in space, taken somewhat from the climactic scenes when Frank goes out to confront the villain.  I was fortunate enough a few years back to purchase the original cover art by Bachem, and it's interesting to note the original art has the artist's signature, but when Simon & Schuster used the art, they removed the signature on the actual cover of the book.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the character of Harry Stone.  When he first appears in the story, the author is quick to point out that the Hardys had already met Mr. Stone previously when they assisted him in a previous mystery, Sky Sabotage.  That was only six books previous to this one, being published just two years prior in 1983.  I did not even realize there was another Hardy Boys book set at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and particularly one so close to this one.  I will admit I took a quick run through of that book, and the Florida references are not only more vague than this book, but they are also erroneous in their distance from one place to the other.  In that book, the boys follow a suspect from Kennedy Space Center to Gainesville and then on to "Fantasieworld" (an obvious pseudonym for Disney World) with a chase that only takes them a few hours round trip.  This is wholly unrealistic, as it would take more than two hours from KSC to Gainesville, and then another hour and a half from Gainesville to Disney - and that same amount of time to get back!  I did chuckle, though, at there references to a number of things within the amusement park:  the Outer Space Planet (a/k/a Space Mountain); the Deep Sea Submarine Ride (a/k/a 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea); the Bear Dance (a/k/a the Country Bear Jamboree); the Island Pirates boat ride (a/k/a the Pirates of the Caribbean); and the Haunted House (a/k/a the Haunted Mansion) (p. 107-08).  There is even discussion of the "network of underground tunnels" that the staff use (p. 108), although Disney employees I have known have confirmed it is not really under ground; rather, it is the first story, with the actual park built above it on the second story.  In any event, the book has the boys travel to Lake Okeechobee (p 158), with a brief reference to Stuart, Florida (p. 159), which is on the East Coast of Florida, just east of Lake Okeechobee.  As I only skimmed this book, I can't really say with any certainty whether I would have enjoyed it.

I suppose the fact that I am not a big Hardy Boys fan, my opinion of the book was probably tainted from the beginning.  Did I hate the story?  No, not at all.  Did I enjoy it?  There were moments that I thought were enjoyable.  But did I find it to be a good mystery with a lot of suspense?  I would have to say no.  As I said above, the villains are easy to spot from the moment they first appear, and all of the intense scenes of gunfire and sabotage are sort of dulled by the fact you know the Hardys and their friends are not going to be seriously hurt.  And, of course, I was really hoping for more details about Florida and Kennedy Space Center than what I got.  I guess this just reminds me why I'm not a big fan of the Hardy Boys.

RATING:  5 shiny disks filled with hallucinogenic crystals out of 10 for at least putting Florida and Kennedy Space Center somewhat in the spotlight for the world to read!

The Pathfinders Society, Vol. 3 - The Legend of the Lost Boy

With this graphic novel, we reach the third and final book in the saga of the Pathfinders Society.  It's been a fun, three-book ride, and this last book provides readers with a conclusion to the five kids' quest to uncover the truth behind the Merriweather mystery and the alleged "treasure" that the family was trying to find, as well as whatever really happened to Henry Merriweather all those years ago.  While each book has had its own self-contained portion of the tale, there is an over-arching story that makes for some interesting reading.

The Legend of the Lost Boy picks up shortly after the end of book 2, The Curse of the Crystal Cavern, as the kids - Kyle, Beth, Harry, Victoria (Vic), and Nate - find themselves mysteriously transported back to 1962.  Nate has had a very strange dream, where he finds himself on the ship, The Lost Boy, and a mysterious stranger warns him he must hurry because the path is fading.  What that means, however, is unknown - Nate just knows that time is running out.  The kids are concerned about finding a way back to their own time, and they eventually enlist the aid of Mildred Merriweather (who they knew as an elderly woman in their own time, but how is a pre-teen in this time) to help them out.  Which involves getting a cranky old man named Gideon, who used to be a pathfinder himself, to lead them to the ringing rocks.  He is reluctant, only agreeing to do so once they find a map that shows the way.   It's a dangerous trip down a treacherous river that seems to fight against them, and then a race against time to find the right rocks to "ring" before a deadly wind dragon takes them away.  And once they hit that right combination of rocks?  Well, let's just say the story gets really interesting from there...

Writers Francesco Sedita and Prescott Seraydarian stay spot-on with the characterization, and it is fun to read the interaction among the characters as they face new challenges in this book.  The story moves quickly, but not so fast that the readers feels like he or she has missed anything.  Steve Hamaker does a fantastic job with the art, although I will say something I noticed more in this volume than in the previous two is that it seems all of the eyes of his characters are opened wide nearly all the time, as if they are surprised or in shock.  I think that has a direct affect on the expressions of the characters, so there does not seem to be much variation from which the reader can tell the emotional state of the characters just from the art.  Thankfully, the art mixed with the dialogue and story help keep that from becoming too much of an issue.

Overall, this has been a fun series, and while the story provided a very satisfying conclusion, I do wish there were more stories to tell of these young pathfinders.  Perhaps Sedita, Seraydarian, and Hamaker will eventually come up with another tale they just have to tell, and we'll get a sequel series ... only time will tell!

RATING:  9 outdated camp uniforms out of 10 for a great mix of mystery, comics, and time traveling to make for a fun read!

Nightmare Hall - an Aleister Burke Gothic novel

Here's a gothic paperback I stumbled across while scrolling through items listed for sale by a seller from whom I was already purchasing another book.  The title immediately caught my attention, as did the cover - however, I readily admit, I was also hooked by the tagline that read: "First in a new occult-gothic series!"  Anyone who knows me knows what I sucker I am for a "series" of books.  So, I purchased it, figuring this would be the start of yet another new series (like I really needed any new ones!), and I could begin hunting for the rest of the books in the series.  Of course, at the time of purchase, I knew nothing about the book, the series, or even the author.  This is the first - and right now, only - book I have by Annie Laurie McMurdie - and having now read the book and done some research on the series and its author, I find that just like the genre itself, things are not always what they seem!

Nightmare Hall is said to be "An Aleister Burke Gothic," which would obviously lead one to believe that Mr. Burke would be the main character in the story; however, Burke is actually nothing more than a supporting cast member.  Lisa Moore, a young woman from New England whose parents are dead and who has been offered a new life in California by an aunt she has never met, is the actual main character.  In fact, the story is written in first-person point-of-view from Lisa's POV.  Aleister Burke turns out to be a mysterious man who seems to show up and disappear at the moments when he is needed, and Lisa (as well as the reader) do not really find out anything about the man until more than half-way through the book.  Is he good?  Is he evil?  Is he even real, or is he some supernatural force?  Well, supernatural definitely plays a part in this story, as Lisa quickly discovers when she arrives at Morena Hall, the home of her Aunt Margo - a former actress whose husband died years ago, sending her into complete seclusion.  Upon arriving, Lisa learns that her aunt is trying to make contact with her dead husband's spirit.  She scoffs at the idea, but in her own minds she questions the reality of it, since she, herself, has abilities most people would never believe.  You see, Lisa is a psi - meaning, she has mental capabilities, such as clairvoyance, telepathy, and even precognition.  So, can she really discount the possibility of the spirit world?

 

The book is divided into three parts.  The first part, titled "Tomas," focuses on the ghost of Aunt Margo's husband.  Lisa unexpectedly comes face-to-face with what she believes to be the ghost of her aunt's dead husband, and even has dinner with him, as he mistakenly believes she is a younger version of her aunt (the book indicates numerous times how much Lisa resembles her aunt in her younger days).  But as they are together, Lisa sees a darker side to this "Tomas" - a crueler, almost vicious side of him that mentions the name 'Beherit' several times.  Lisa does not understand, but she knows she cannot fall under this man's spell, and so she breaks free and returns to her room.  The next morning, she wonders if it was all a dream or did it really happen - a question that makes her doubt herself more when she returns to the closed-off part of the house where she saw him and finds all of the furnishing she previously saw are gone!  The author does a great job of keeping Lisa, as well as the reader, off-kilter, and one cannot easily discern whether the events were real or a product of Lisa's imagination.

The second part, titled "Beherit," provides readers with some information regarding this demon, who is only one of many that allegedly possessed some women many years ago.  Is the demon really back?  Is he pretending to be Tomas; or has Tomas really returned, only still possessed by the demon Aunt Margo says he was possessed by when he was alive?  It is in this second part we start to see more of Burke and learn a bit about who he is and what he is really up to.  We also begin to gain more insight into what is really going on at Morena Hall, although things continue to happen that blur the lines between reality and the spirit world.  Are the darker forces at work really from beyond, or are they simply the dark side of humanity?  

The third and final part of the story is titled "Andrew," which threw me off, as up until this point, there was no character in this book by that name.  But don't worry, as all is definitely explained in these concluding chapters (well, almost all).  Lisa, and the reader, learn what is really going on at Moreno Hall, who is behind it, and why.  More importantly, a trap is set to capture the criminals - but it backfires, and poor Lisa is taken in the clutches of a madman, one who very well could be possessed by a demon!  There's quite an exciting seance that takes place, and while most of the events are rationally explained, there are some things that occur that never do get explained.  Perhaps, though, not everything needs an explanation...

The story is very well written, with engaging characters that draw you into the story.  Burke's mysterious nature is eventually revealed, and we do get to learn fully who he is and why he does what he does.  He definitely hides some surprises for the readers to learn!  Garry Logan is an interesting character as well - a detective sergeant with the Beverly Hills police department.  He is an unlikely love interest for Lisa, and his gruff nature and not-quite handsome appearance leaves one questioning what Lisa sees in him; but I give props to the author for stepping outside the norm of the typical strong, good-looking heroes for a love interest.  And the final revelations regarding the ghost of Tomas, the nurse helping Aunt Margo, and the supernatural forces at work are definitely worth the build up - they make for a great payoff to the story and provide a very satisfying conclusion.  Which is good, considering the conclusion to this book is also the conclusion to the series!

It seems that while Lancer Books clearly intended this to be a series of gothic novels featuring Aleister Burke aiding various "women-in-need," this one book is the only one that was ever published.  A second book was advertised on the back cover as coming soon - Castle Perdido - but it never saw print, and I'm not aware of whether a manuscript actually exists or not.  Which is truly a shame, as this was a great story, and the Aleister Burke character is intriguing enough, I think, to have carried off a series.  And this first book was published in 1973, right at the heyday of the gothic paperback craze, so I'm not really sure why the series was axed.  Perhaps it was the author who decided not to write any more.

And speaking of that author.  Yes, Annie Laurie McMurdie turns out to be another pseudonym (the more gothics I read, the more I realize few authors allowed their real names to be attached to these gothic books).  McMurdie was actually a male author (surprise, surprise - not!) by the name of Bruce Cassiday.  Cassiday (1920 - 2005) who worked with a number of pulp magazines back in the day.  He wrote under a number of pseudonyms (Carson Bingham, Robert Faraday, C.K. Fong, Con Seffanson, and others) and wrote books in several genres.  He wrote time traveling stories for young adult readers, Flash Gordon stories for sci-fi fans, and even two Kung Fu novels.  In the gothic realm, he wrote The Diabolist under the pen name Mary Anne Drew, as well as Queen of the Looking Glass, a psychic gothic novel, under the pen name Annie Laurie McAllister (funny how similar that name is to the author of this book - wonder why he didn't just use the same pen name for both, particularly since both books have psychic protagonists?).

This book is a definite must-read for fans of the gothic genre, particularly for those that love a good mix of psychic, supernatural, and gothic suspense.  I'm definitely going to hunt down Cassiday's other two gothic novels.

RATING:  10 cups of drugged tea out of 10 for a truly great work of gothic fiction with the added psychic twist!

Samantha Wolf Mysteries, Book Eleven - The Secret of Sanctuary

Thirteen-year old Samantha Wolf and her best friends, Allyson Parker and Cassy Covington, are back for another mystery in the eleventh installment of the Samantha Wolf mysteries by Tara Ellis.  Since there is always a somewhat lengthy break between my reading of each book in this series, it takes me a bit to get used to the present tense style of writing.  I still have not figured out why Ellis chose to take this route when writing this series, but I give her credit for sticking with it - eleven books, and still going strong (the twelfth book is out on Amazon, and I need to get it). 

The Secret of Sanctuary is a unique story, as Ellis brings into the mystery characters from an adult mystery series she writes called "The Secret of Sanctuary Cozy Mysteries," written under the pen name of Tara Myers and featuring a veterinarian named Ember Burns (who has red hair, go figure).  Cassy's older sister, Lisa, takes the girls (and Sam's brother Hunter, as well as Ally's brother John) for a week's vacation to the mountain town of Sanctuary for a week's vacation of camping, free from any and all danger and mystery.  Of course, this is Sam Wolf we are talking about, so we know from the get-go there is going to be some kind of mystery in Sanctuary (particularly since the local vet also happens to be a mystery-magnet as well!).  As with all of Ellis' prior books, this one has a slow build up before the reader learns what the mystery actually is.  In this case, it involves an archeological dig near the very campsite where the girls are camping and an old legend involving the cry of a Banshee.  A local old-timer says the Banshee has not been heard in years, but the professor and his five students messing around with the effigy mound could very well call the Banshee back to protect the sacred site.

Ellis does a great job of mixing in old legends with possible treasures, along with misunderstandings and mysterious strangers to create a mystery worth reading.  The strange sounds in the night ... the deadly trap with a wild bronco ... the crying girl in the bathroom stall ... the two men who don't seem to fit in with the rest of the town ... the disconnecting of the RV's battery ... Sam can't help but smell trouble brewing, and when she and Ally take off on their own to follow a potential suspect, it leads them right into the middle of it all - and they find themselves in greater danger than any they've faced before!  Ellis may start off a bit slow, but she definitely builds the danger and suspense towards the end, so that you can't put the book down until you've found out just how it's all going to end!

Now, admittedly, I knew nothing about Ellis' other series prior to reading this book.  My first discover of this was the introduction for this book, which tells readers about her adult mystery series.  I found the name "Ember Burns" rather amusing, and the town and its citizens rather quaint.  Maybe one day, I might go back and purchase the first book in that series just to see how it reads.

One thing I can definitely commend Ellis on is her dialogue and banter among the kids.  Sam and her brother, Hunter, definitely act like siblings.  And the camaraderie among Sam, Ally, and Cassy reads naturally, each with their own personality, playing well off the others.  It's also nice to see how she has not only aged the characters physically as the series progresses, but she has matured them, so that some of the childish rivalry we saw in the first several books has become more of a playful banter and, at times, a level of respect for one another.  Even Sam, who is the main character, has learned some self-control, as well as an ability not to fly off the handle with her brother and his teasing.  It's things like this that keeps the series real and enjoyable to read.

While one of the culprits turns out to be someone that is not so surprising, Ellis does provide a major twist with this person's co-conspirator.  I did not see that coming at all, but once revealed, it does rather make sense.  In fact, if you pay close attention as you read, the clues are there.

Overall, this is definitely one of the better books in the series.

RATING:  9 copies of True Stories of Terror to Keep You Up at Night out of 10 for another great story with a bit of an archaeological lesson thrown in for good fun!

A Zebra Mystery Puzzler #4 - Is This Coffin Taken?

With this fourth Zebra Mystery Puzzler, published in October 1978, we not only get a different kind of mystery, but also get our fourth author - Jean Francis Webb (1910-1991).  While I could not find any direct information on Webb, I found a number of blogs and other sources that reveal much about his writing career.  It seems  Webb began hiswriting career early on, having tales of mystery published in those infamous pulp magazines of the '30s and '40s.  From what I can gather, he created one of the first female detectives, Grace "Redsie" Culver.  This character appeared in a number of issues of The Shadow Magazine, from 1934 - 1937, all written under the pen name of Roswell Brown.  Webb also wrote several gothic novels during their heyday of the '60s and '70s, as well as various other books, including this one for Zebra's "Mystery Puzzler" line and a novel in the Guiding Light series (based on the TV show).  This is the only book Webb wrote for this series.

 

Is This Coffin Taken? is set in the beautiful, lush paradise of Hawaii, where protagonist EileenTracy (erroneously identified as "Ellen" Tracy on the description set forth on the back cover) lives and works as a photographer. The book opens with Eileen driving her sister, Rosemary, and young nephew, Toby, back to her secluded up high atop the cliffs overlooking Honolulu.  Her sister and nephew are sound asleep in the back after a long day of traipsing along after Eileen as she pursued photographs of a spewing volcano for her publisher.  Eileen's thoughts as she is driving, however, are focused on the fact that her sister fled to Hawaii to escape her husband - an up-and-coming film director who she claims is threatening to kill her in order to get his hands on the inheritance the sisters received from their grandmother.  She has yet to give Eileen the details, but it is clear Rosemary is frightened for her own safety, as well as that of her son.

By the end of the first chapter, Webb sets up the mystery - Rosemary, who got out of Eileen's car and walked the short distance from the car to the house, entered the house, never came back out, yet disappeared!  Eileen searches relentlessly every room in the house, the outside yards, and finds nothing but a set of footprints in the front yard where her sister stepped into the yard rather than walk around on the concrete walk.  The police are called, but the lieutenant who comes to the scene (Dave Atwater) is not exactly helpful.  Calm and detached, he does not take the disappearance seriously, suggesting that perhaps Rosemary simply wandered off or left of her own accord.  Even after explaining her sister's fear of her husband, Eileen finds herself a potential suspect when Atwater asks her whether there was any rift between them concerning the inheritance.  From this interaction, the reader immediately realizes Eileen is going to have to take matters into her own hands if she wants to find her sister.

From the beginning, this is more of a missing person's case than it is a murder mystery.  Eileen spends the first half of the book scared for her sister, wondering what is happening to her; however, about half-way through, she becomes so irate at the lack of concern from the police and their "by-the-book" way of handling the case, that she decides to search for her sister on her own.  This, of course, takes her to a seedy boarding house where she confronts a witness; to the carnival that is going up  to raise funds for the local hospital; and to the restaurant that was the last place she and her sister were actually together.  And Webb does not hold back with the danger, either.  At one point, Eileen is tied up in her own shed-turned-darkroom behind her house and left with a bomb set to go off in ten minutes!  Talk about some suspenseful reading as Eileen tries to figure a way out of it!  And not one, but two potential witnesses turn up dead before the end of the story, showing readers just how much danger Eileen (and her sister!) are truly facing!

I have to give Webb kudos for working so hard to keep the identity of the kidnapper / murderer fairly well hidden until the big reveal in that final, sealed chapter.  Yes, I had some suspicions, but those suspicions fell on two different characters (and, yes, one of them did actually turn out to be the culprit).  Early on, though, I admit, I was debating whether Rosemary ran off or whether she really was kidnapped.  

 

It has to be noted that Eileen is described as having "copper" and "red" hair.  In the previous book, Terry Spring is described as having "long auburn" hair.  And in the first book, Maxine Reynolds is said to have "long red" hair.  So, I have to ask - why did these authors give all of these amateur sleuths red or reddish colored hair?  Was it perhaps a slight nod to a certain teen detective who was famous for her "titian" colored hair?  It is a rather large coincidence that three out of the first four books in this series have protagonists with the same hair color.

The internal illustrations are beautifully rendered, although, again, like with some of the previous books, the scenes depicted do not necessarily match the story.  I really have to wonder if the artists are not given exact details, but merely general descriptions of what to draw, and so that is why they don't mirror the narrative of the story.  For instance, when Eileen first spots the footprints in the flower bed that borders the lanai, they are described as "clear as a perfectly matched pair of spike-heeled slippers..." (p. 39). Yet, in the illustration, the footprints appear to be that of a normal shoe (male, more than female).  Later, when Eileen and her publisher are looking at a photograph she took at the restaurant the night of the disappearance, the description given in the book by no means matches the illustration of the photograph at all.  If only they identified the artists, so that they could be contacted to learn inside information such as this!

Of the first four Zebra Mystery Puzzlers, I would have to say, this is, by far, my favorite.  And sadly, this is the only one written by Webb and starring Eileen Tracy.  This is a shame, as the writing was so good, and the character so likable, I would have loved to have seen more mysteries with this sleuth!

***Interesting side note is that sources online indicate Webb was married to "Nancy" Webb (with her names in quotes on the website I found), and I have an old paperback titled Marcia Blake, Publicity Girl that is written by one Nancy Webb.  I have to wonder if it is one and the same...

RATING:  10 yellow paper chrysanthemums out of 10 for a wonderfully written missing person mystery that is so much more than a simple murder mystery, making is a fantastic read.