Jane Withers and the Swamp Wizard - the second Whitman Authorized Edition

The second Whitman Authorized Edition mystery to feature actress Jane Withers has some easily discernible differences from the first book.  There is a different author for this book - Kathryn Heisenfelt takes over the writing chores -  you may recognize her name, as she wrote quite a few of the Whitman Authorized Editions, including mysteries starring Ann Rutherford, Ann Sheridan, Betty Grable, Bonita Granville, and even the Powers Model girl.  I have done reviews of a number of these books, and if you look back, you'll see Ms. Heisenfelt's writing has never gotten more than a 5 out of 10 (in some cases, only 4, and in one case, as low as a 3!) rating.  I am definitely not a fan of her writing, so I went into this book with quite a bit of trepidation.  The story also has no seeming relation to the previous book - there is no mention of any of the characters from the previous book, and while Jane was a student in the first book, it is implied that she is an actress in this book (just like her real-life namesake).  The tone is completely different as well - much, MUCH darker.  The question in my mind as I started reading - how bad is this going to be?

 

Jane Withers and the Swamp Wizard takes young Jane Withers to a small town named Burley (the state is left unnamed) to spend some time with her best friend, Miss Cordelia Champlin (affectionately referred to as "Cokey"), and her mother, Alice Champlin.  The two women, along with Cokey's younger brother, Eddie, have moved into a farm to start a new life.  "Dad is still in Washington," Cokey tells Jane (p. 14), adding that they do not expect to see much of him, "[b]ut then, we didn't anyway - lately" (p. 14).  Thus, with the man of the house out of the picture, and with the younger brother off-screen, so to speak, going into the next village to buy a tractor, it is just these three women left to face the mystery that lies ahead.  It begins when Cokey tells Jane about a strange feeling she got after being told of the Simmering Springs and the legend of the "Swamp Wizard" that is said to haunt the springs.  Jane puts no stock in the story, but Cokey reminds her friend that her hunches have always come true in the past, and she is certain there is trouble ahead for the girls.  Needless to say, her premonition turns out to be true.

 

As much as I have not liked any of the previous books written by Heisenfelt that I have read, this one turned out to be quite different and quite readable.  Perhaps a large part of that is because of the gothic feel she gives to the story.  The girls run an errand for Cokey's mother, and end up taking a side trip to deliver a message for a sick woman.  As they say, no good deed goes unpunished, and the girls go out of their way, get lost, and mistakenly end up in the house of a bitter woman who makes it clear she does not want them there!  But a storm is unleashed, which takes out the bridges that are the only way across the raging river, leaving Jane and Cokey stranded at this lonely old farmhouse with the woman, her cantankerous father, and her brooding son.  All three want the girls gone, insistent that the Swamp Wizard does not like strangers near the springs - which is exactly where the farmhouse is located!  Jane and Cokey are not able to rationalize this family's fear, but when they hear the strange cries in the night, and when the woman's son appears to be missing, they have to wonder if there is some supernatural force at work.

 

  

 

The gothic tropes abound in this story - the secluded house, the family with secrets, the visitors who are not wanted there, the whispers of supernatural creatures, and the dire warnings of impending doom.  The night seems to be endless, and the storm unrelenting.  The girls are shuffled off to an upstairs room at the end of the hall, with strict instructions to not leave the room.  Of course, Jane is much too curious to remain locked in the room, and she and Cokey venture out in the hopes of learning some of the secrets behind the animosity this family had towards them and why they are so afraid of a superstitious wives' tale about a wizard in the swamp.  Heisenfelt does a decent job of building up the tension, of keeping the secrets right there on the edge of everyone's thoughts, and instilling terror in her characters, leaving the reader to wonder who really is the bad guy of this tale. There is even a scene where the woman's father takes the girls to the edge of the springs, claiming he wants them to understand why they need to leave and never come back - but Cokey loses her balance (or was she pushed?) and nearly falls into the deadly quicksand that makes up the swampy springs!  This scene is depicted on the endpages, with Jane reaching out desperately to save her friend!

 

The conclusion builds up nicely, as the secrets are not so quickly revealed, even after Cokey's mother finally arrives with some others, who were out searching for the missing girls (remember - they had simply gone on an errand to buy eggs, yet never came home for more than 24 hours!).  These villagers, who know the woman, are given the same harsh welcome that Jane and Cokey endured, and it is from the most unlikely of sources that the truth behind the Swamp Wizard is finally revealed. Once that truth comes out, and once the secrets of the past are laid bare, the woman is finally freed from all that has been haunting her for so many years, and Heisenfelt provides a very satisfying conclusion to the story and its characters.  The book even concludes with Jane observing that, "I've a hunch we're going to have a lot of fun this summer!" (p. 248).

 

Henry E. Vallely, who has provided the art for so many of these Whitman Authorized Editions, does the line illustrations for this book.  For this, I am glad, as he does a fantastic job of drawing expressions that help strengthen the scene depicted, so that even if there were no words given, you would get the impression of what was going on.  In one such instance, where Jane has left the upstairs bedroom to learn more about the secrets of this hose, Vallely shows Jane hiding behind the couch as Alma Frieson and her father prowl around in the night - just by looking at Jane's face, you can see the fear she feels at the thought of being discovered; while, at the same time, the harsh expressions on Mrs. Frieson and her father give you a clear sense of just how fierce this family can be. The mood created fits perfectly with the gothic nature of the story, and I can't imagine a better artist to provide the illustrations for this one than Vallely.

 

This was an unexpectedly good book to read, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it.  Now I am curious as to the third Jane Withers mystery, as it is written by yet another author (Roy J. Snell) - I wonder how it will compare to these first two...

 

RATING:  9 bowls of strawberry preserves out of 10 for a suspenseful story of gothic terror mixed with young adult mystery. 

Dana Girls Mystery Stories No. 4 - A Three Cornered Mystery

The fourth and final Dana Girls Mystery Story ghost-written by Hardy Boys author Leslie McFarlane was a bit better than the third book, thankfully.  It has been somewhat interesting to read all four of McFarlane's books in this series, especially comparing them with the outlines for the books provided by the Stratemeyer Syndicate - finding the commonalities among the books, seeing what aspects were provided by McFarlane and what was required by the outline, and reading how the stories varied in tone and style based upon his circumstances at the time he was writing the books. There is a consistent timeline for the books (from autumn to Thanksgiving to Christmas, and now to springtime with this fourth mystery), which is rare to see in series books where the protagonists never age - it's almost a shame the Syndicate did not keep with that timeline as the series went on under different ghostwriters.

 

A Three Cornered Mystery bears a very unusual name, leaving the reader to wonder exactly what it means.  I have to give them credit for the creativity, as even I was curious as to the meaning.  By the final chapters of the story, the reason for the title becomes clear, and it is extremely clever (you don't really think I'm going to give it away and ruin the surprise, do you?).  But let's start at the beginning, shall we?  The story starts off innocently enough - Jean and Louise are out riding horses when they chance to meet a real estate man from Oak Falls by the name of Taylor Lott (and if you know anything about real estate, you'll get that pun right off the bat!).  It turns out Mr. Lott is quite upset, as a gentleman who was working for him turned out to be a crook - stole quite a large sum of rental income from various properties Mr. Lott manages, as well as other important documents (p. 4).  The Dana Girls immediately smell a mystery!  Well, as it turns out, this mystery has so many coincidences in it, there was simply no way the sisters could not solve it!

 

Here there girls are told that Mr. Lott is looking for Edward Carrillo, and coincidentally enough, as soon as Mr. Lott and his assistant leave the tea room, who should show up but Mr. Carrillo (p. 9)!  They ply him with innocent questions to learn where he is headed, so they can pass the information along to Mr. Lott.  Upon returning to Starhurst, they read a letter from their Aunt Harriet who informs them her old school chum, Elizabeth Flower, is staying at the Danas' home because a man named Carrillo stole her money (p. 16)! As if that coincidence were not surprising enough, when a reporter by the name of Edith Darrow shows up at Starhurst and invites the Danas to spend the weekend at her farm, the girls are shocked to discover that Carrillo was a former border at the farm (p. 29)!  In the barn where Carrillo spent his time, the girls discover some hidden papers, which include a lottery ticket (p. 30), which plays an important part in helping the girls track down Mr. Carrillo later on.

 

Well, the coincidences keep coming - when the girls find the Darrows have disappeared from their own farm, a policeman shows up looking for the victim of a car accident who was hit near the farm - not only does that police officer turn out to be a distant relative of Aunt Harriet's friend, Elizabeth Flower (p. 50), but the mysterious man who showed up after the Darrows went missing is the car accident victim!  Later in the story, when the girls are staying with Mrs. Flower to assist her while she is allegedly ill, they make the connection that the accident victim is actually Mrs. Flower's nephew, James (p. 80).   And when Mrs. Flower's housekeeper quits, the Dana Girls just happen to be at the Darrow farm when Mrs. Carrillo arrives looking for her son - and she just happens to be a housekeeper who is looking for work (pp. 111-12).

 

Oh, but wait!  That's not all!  A detective hired by Mrs. Flower to locate Mr. Carrillo reveals to the Dana Girls that he has bigger fish to fry, as he is on the trail of an international spy by the name of Kurt Hassell (p. 148).  Well, when Uncle Ned takes the girls with him to New York City for their spring break, they stop at a hotel in New Jersey along the way where Uncle Ned accidentally enters the wrong room.  As fate would have it, the woman in that room has a photo of a man she says is Raymond Del Mort, but who the girls immediately recognize as the criminal, Kurt Hassell (pp. 158-59)!  "Odd coincidence, isn't it?" the woman in the room comments (p. 160).  Yes, I'd certainly say so!  Then, of course, when tracking down Carrillo in New York City, they are super-surprised to learn the address they find for Carrillo is the same address as the one given them by the woman for Kurt Hassell (p. 164)!  I mean, I know coincidences always play a large part in any mystery - let's face it, without them, it is unlikely these teenage sleuths in series books would ever be able to solve a mystery!  But this book is filled with so many, perhaps the title should have been "A Multi-Coincidence Mystery"!

 

Aside from the way-too-many coincidences, there is a fairly decent underlying mystery.  Two women (mother and daughter) go mysteriously missing from their house, while the Dana Girls are staying out in the barn (hoping to catch themselves a criminal), and Jean and Louise have no explanation.  Jean sneaking into the empty house in the middle of a storm, the unexplained disappearance of the women, and the unexpected appearance of the police, together with the mysterious stranger who showed up in the barn and then disappeared when the girls take the cops out to him all add up to a laudable attempt at integrating some gothic elements into the mystery.  Adult readers will likely figure out what happened to the women, but I can imagine young readers will be spooked by the entire scene - after all, a stormy night always adds that terrifying element to any story.

 

I did find several aspects of the story humorous, particularly the disguises the girls don in order to trick Edward Carrillo.  While in New York, the girls buy "two cheap dresses, which were extra long and undeniably dowdy" as well as "two paid of cheap spectacles" (p. 171).  Simply by donning unflattering dresses and glasses, the girls are able to visit Carrillo without him recognizing them as the Dana Girls.  What was so funny is that when Carrillo leaves, and the girls confront Mrs. Darrow and her daughter, Louise "removed the spectacles and tossed her hat onto the divan.  Jean did likewise" (p. 177).  They second they remove those glasses, Edith Darrow cries out, "The Dana girls!" (p. 177).  This is especially amusing to any comic book fan, as Superman has hidden his identity for 90 years behind a pair of glasses as Clark Kent, with no one recognizing him - so why shouldn't the Dana Girls use the same trick?

 

Ferdinand Warren once again provides the art for the internal illustrations; however, the four illustrations in this story have a distinctly different feel to them when compared with the prior books.  The black and white illustrations are much heavier on shadows, and the lines are not nearly as succinct as previous books in the series. Not sure what caused the difference, but if I hadn't seen Warren's name listed on the title page, I would have assumed it was a different artist.

 

A few other tidbits I noticed in the story - one being the name of the lawyer that Mrs. Flower calls upon to draw up her will.  His name is Josiah Jarvis (p. 77), which struck me as odd - for those who are Nancy Drew fans, you may recall that Nancy Drew's first case involved a missing will of a man named Josiah Crowley!  To have two stories only five years apart use the same name for a character connected with a will is a bit of a coincidence (hmmmm.....).  Another name that caught my eye is the last name of the reporter and her mother - "Darrow."  Fans of Mildred Wirt Benson will easily recognize that name, as Benson wrote a four book series (published in 1930 and 1931) whose title character was named Ruth "Darrow."  The name appears in the outline, so it was not created by McFarlane; rather, it was used by the Stratemeyers (leading one to wonder if perhaps it was a way of poking at Benson, who was writing the Nancy Drew series at the time this fourth Dana Girls book was published).  Outside of names, the book reveals that the Danas used to collect cigar bands for a brief period of time, and as such, they happened to have a book on the various bands (another coincidence!) that they use to disprove Lettie's attempt to make the other girls at the school think she is receiving letters from an important Count (p. 63).  I suppose it was good fortune they used to have that hobby, and that they happened to have that book at the school with them in order to reveal Lettie's lies!

 

Finally, the second cover art for this book is less than stellar - it merely shows a close-up of Louise and Jean against a dark green background, with Louise holding an oil lamp.  I'm not really sure what the scene is supposed to represent (unless it is from when the girls are exploring the empty Darrow house, looking for their hosts). It is probably the most lackluster cover of the entire series!  While the collage covers of the original editions are not my favorite art style, I have to admit, those scenes depicted for this book are a far cry more exciting than the art used for the wrap-spine dust jacket!  Not sure who the artist was, or who gave the artist the instructions for the scene, but if it were me, I definitely would not be claiming it as my work!

 

While not the best of the series, I will say this book was certainly a better (and a bit more believable) story than the last one! And with this book, we reach the end of Leslie McFarlane's writing of the Dana Girls Mystery Stories, for with the fifth book, Mildred Wirt (Benson) took over the writing chores.  It will certainly be interesting to see how her writing of the sisters compares with version established by McFarlane in the first four books.

 

RATING:   7 beds of rattlesnakes sunning themselves on a rock out of 10 for an interesting tale, if for no other reason than the variety of unique characters thrown together for one story!

Short(est) Lived Comic Series #29 - Friday Foster (Dell Comics)

Two years go, I reviewed the collection of Friday Foster comic strips published in the Sunday newspapers (Friday Foster Comic Strips), at which time, I mentioned the fact that I was still searching for that hard-to-find issue of Dell Comics' version of the character, a stand-alone issue published with a cover date of October 1972, right in the middle of Lawrence's run of the comic strip.  Well, that search is over!  This past Christmas, a dear friend surprised me with a copy of this particular comic, in absolutely marvelous condition considering its age.  I've been holding off, waiting for the right time to read it, and that time is now!

 

Friday Foster is one of Dell's many one-issue comics.  Although the indicia at the bottom of the first page refers to this as "No. 1," there was never any other issues published after this one (which may be why it is so sought after and so hard to find at a reasonable price!).  While the characters and story are based on James D. Lawrence's comic strip, Lawrence was not actually involved in the comic.  The story was written by Joe Gill, and the art (both inside and on the cover) was provided by Jack Sparling.  Joe Gill is probably best recognized for his work at Charlton comic company, where he co-created Captain Atom, Peacemaker, and Judomaster, as well as others.  Jack Sparling was a rather busy artist back in the day, providing art for publishers such as Harvey, Charlton, Classics Illustrated, DC, Gold Key, Marvel, along with Dell Comics.  Gill does a superb job of staying true to the character of Friday Foster, while Sparling's art is a bit softer than Jordi Longaron's, but he still retains the look of all the cast.

 

The story finds Friday helping her boss, fashion photographer Shawn North, get photographs of an elusive American-born princess - Princess Jenny Shangri, newly wed wife of Prince Wimoweh of Teri-Aki.  She makes every effort to avoid the press, and Friday views her  as nothing more than a spoiled rich girl who has no understanding of what it is like for someone who grew up in Harlem (like Friday!).  She sabotages Shawn's attempts to get clear photographs, and ultimately has to confess her underhandedness to their employer at She magazine.  Well, as any good story goes, fate intervenes, and Friday finds herself having to pose as the princess's close friend in order to ferret out a member of the paparazzi who has been harassing the princess for some time - most recently causing a near-fatal car accident!  Friday is livid, but she takes the assignment, having no other choice.

 

Gill writes a well-scripted tale that could easily be translated to the small or big screen.  Friday spends time with Jenny (the princess), shopping for clothes, and while Jenny insists the dastardly Ferdy Trask is following them, Friday fails to see him (although the reader does spot him in various panels).  Friday begins to believe Jenny is making up the entire harassment scenario in order to gain publicity - but while she is trying to convince Shawn, the sneaky Ferdy Trask is doing his own digging into Friday's identity - and when he learns she works for Shawn North, he decides to turn the tables on her. Suddenly, Friday becomes the target of Mr. Trask's dirty deeds.  Not only is Friday threatened, but she comes home to find he has also threatened her little brother, Cleve!  Needless to say, Friday is not going to let Ferdy Trask get the better of her, so with Shawn and Jenny's help, she sets an ingenious trap to catch Trask at his own game.

 

One thing I like about these old Dell Comics is that you get 32-pages of story and art with no ads (except on the inside front and back covers, as well as the back cover itself).  That means Gill and Sparling have plenty of space to really flesh out the story, providing not only characterization, but also plenty of action and suspense.  Honestly, as I was reading the comic, I could see Pam Grier in my head acting out the entire story (for those who may not know, Grier played Friday Foster in the live action film of the same name back in 1975).  The bad guy gets his comeuppence, and Friday learns a thing or two herself about pre-judging people before she gets to know them.  The story has the same feel as those in the comic strip by Lawrence and Longaron, and I think they honored the source material very nicely.

 

It's so sad we only got one issue of this comic adaptation of the character - I think this would have made for a very dramatic comic book series.  Perhaps it was simply the wrong time period for a strong, black female character to lead a comic, or perhaps Dell was simply not a widespread enough company to attract enough readers to warrant more issues.  Whatever the reason, Friday Foster's one issue was a fantastic read and well worth the wait!

 

RATING:  10 games of bait and switch out of 10 for giving a little known character a chance to truly shine, while paying tribute to the character's creators with a superb story! 

The Hawkline Monster - a Gothic Western

You just never know what you are going to find at a library book sale.  A few months back, I went to the large book sale held at the Orlando Public Library in downtown Orlando (where else would it be?), and while I did not really expect to find anything that would interest me, I stumbled across this particular book, with its cover showcasing a rambling house with three chimneys pouring out black smoke, while far in the background, a man on a horse watches.  The tagline under the picture describes the book as "The bestselling author's wildly imaginative novel about a mansion, a monster, and a Magic Child."  Looking back up at the title, that is when I noticed the subtitle: "A Gothic Western."  Okay, that was definitely unusual.  One never thinks of Gothic novels being set in the Old West.  So, I pulled out my phone and did a quick search - and discovered that Richard Brautigan is known for his satire and surrealism, writing on themes that include the absurdity in modern life.  Well, I don't think anything could be more absurd than what takes place in this book!

 

The Hawkline Monster, which is Brautigan's fifth novel, published in 1974, centers around two bounty hunters (for lack of a better term) - Greer and Cameron. Interestingly enough, the book opens with them in Hawaii, where they are watching their mark - only to see him teaching his child how to ride a horse, at which point Greer complains that he cannot kill a man who is teaching his kid how to ride a horse (p. 9), so the two return to San Francisco, where they kill a Chinaman to make some money before traveling on to Portland - and that is where the weirdness begins.  As they are whoring up at a whore house (yeah, don't ask), Magic Child shows up.  Yes, Magic Child is her name.  An Indian girl.  Or so she seems.  She has a job for the two men, a job only they can do.  A certain Miss Hawkline, who lives in an old mansion on Dead Hills, needs them to kill a monster that lives under her house.  A monster that her father created.  A monster that killed her father.  A monster that is now trying to escape.

 

That doesn't sound too weird, you say?  Well, did I mention that Magic Child was not an Indian at all.  In fact, Magic Child did not exist at all.  Upon their arrival at the Hawkline house, Magic Child mysteriously changes into a perfect duplicate of Miss Hawkline.  Her twin sister.  And the two Miss Hawklines have no knowledge of Magic Child.  They just want the monster gone.  You know, the one that lives down in the ice caves below the house.  The house that is freezing in the middle of summer - freezing so much, there are drift piles of snow around the house.  Despite the heat outside.  Greer and Cameron want to kill the monster, but somehow, they keep getting sidetracked.  And what is that strange little glimmer of light that seems to be floating around the house, dragging a rather reluctant shadow with it?  Greer and Cameron have their suspicions, but Miss Hawkline and Miss Hawkline are oblivious to it.  Oh, and then there is the Hawkline's butler, a massive giant who is oh-so-gentle.   Sadly, he dies.  Before they can decide what to do with the body, Miss Hawkline and Miss Hawkline decide they want to have their way with Greer and Cameron -so they go upstairs to the bedrooms and pass the time.  When they return to the ground floor, they discover the butler - who is still dead - is now a dwarf, completely shrouded by the giant's clothes.  Just what is going on in this house?

 

Brautigan manages to write a creepy novel while having all of his characters maintain completely unruffled and nonchalant attitudes about all of the weirdness going on around them.  The lack of fear, the lack of surprise, and the lack of disbelief - all of it works together to make this book a thoroughly enjoyable and fun read!  I never expected to read a gothic novel set in the Old West (the book takes place in 1902, just after the turn of the century), but Brautigan makes it work.   There are vulgarities within the story - not just the language, but the sexual scenes, as well - but they actually fit with the characters from the Old West and do not detract from the gothic nature of the house and its monster.  While we do not have the standard damsel in distress, the fact that Miss Hawkline and Miss Hawkline are twins can be construed as Brautigan's way of poking fun at the gothic trope of a young woman being torn between two men - here, instead, we have the same woman duplicated, so that each man has their own version of Miss Hawkline.  In fact, until the monster is destroyed, the two women do not even have first names, so it is impossible to differentiate one from the other.

 

The realization of the monster in the book is also a unique take on the gothic theme.  In most cases, the "monster" turns out to be human, usually one of the men courting the main character.  In this instance, the monster turns out to be a very real creature, created by a mixture of supernatural and scientific experimentation, and it has taken control of the entire house.  It has a mind of its own; however, it is not completely evil, as it has a shadow that seems to have a conscience - a shadow that is being forced to follow the light everywhere it goes, unable to stop it from doing what it is doing to the inhabitants of the house.  Thus, instead of an internal struggle of good and evil seen in your typical gothic characters, we have a very visible struggle between good and evil,, lights and dark.  The book is truly a unique take on the genre. 

 

If you can manage to get your hands on a copy of this book, I would recommend it - it's worth the read!

 

RATING:  10 elephant foot umbrella stands out of 10 for mixing two genres with hilarious success and completely unexpected results! 

The Sherlock Society (Book One of the Sherlock Society mysteries)

This is another book that came to me as a recommendation.  I had it on my Amazon watchlist already, but I did not buy it until James Keeline gave me the heads up that the author, James Ponti set the book in South Florida.  I was aware Ponti was a Florida resident, but I did not know he was giving us a series set in my home state, so I went online and made the purchase.  I was even more excited to see that Amazon already had the second book available for pre-order!  Keeline told me that the writing of this book was "a cut above most juveniles," so I definitely went into it with high hopes.  I mean, how could it possibly fail - Sherlock, Florida, mystery, children's series - such a fantastic combination!  Well, as the old saying goes, don't judge a book by its cover...

 

The Sherlock Society introduces a group of three middle school children who are getting ready to spend their summer vacation doing the normal things to earn money - babysitting, moving lawns, etc.  Alex Sherlock and his two friends, Lina and Yadi, are not looking forward to the prospects; but they are enjoying the escape room that the school librarian created for them, giving them some fun puzzles to solve within a limited time in order to "escape" the library.  What they did not expect is for Alex's sister, Zoe, to show up and help them work together to "escape" before the time expired!  And even more shocking is Zoe's idea to form a detective club for the summer, to earn money doing something they love!  Enter: the Sherlock Society!

 

I was truly looking forward to an intricate mystery, filled with plenty of riddles and clues; however, what I got was a travelogue of South Florida with snippets of one mystery that gets dumped in exchange for another mystery half-way through the book.  Perhaps it is because I live in Florida, but I got quickly bored with all of the detailed descriptions of Miami,  Biscayne Bay, Alligator Alley, the Everglades, and the surrounding areas, along with considerable exposition about the history of these locations.  And when they made the decision to search for Al Capone's missing millions, allegedly buried somewhere in South Florida, I was actually rather intrigued.  The crew began following up on various clues they were uncovering - but when they reached the place where they believe the money was hidden away, suddenly the entire focus of the mystery changed - the search for Al Capone's treasure was dropped, and the Sherlock Society began searching for who was illegally dumping dangerous waste materials into the Everglades.  So, instead of searching for money that would make them wealthy (in their minds), they decide to save the environment and hunt down the men who are killing the animal and plant life of the Everglades.

 

Do you see the more than obvious morality lesson here?

 

Don't get me wrong - I'm all for saving the environment, and I do believe those who are illegally and purposefully dumping deadly waste into rivers and lakes should be ferreted out and punished.  What I do not particularly enjoy is when a good children's mystery is overtly written to push that idea.  At least Ponti did not have the kids completely give up on Al Capone's missing millions, as the very last chapter of the book has them stumble upon the possible location of the money - perhaps a lead-in to the second book?  (No, checking the description for Hurricane Heist on Amazon, which is set to be released in September, it appears that book has nothing to do with Capone's money.)  It simply feels like a bait and switch - here's a great mystery about missing money with some interesting clues to be discovered along the way - but wait, no, let's forget that mystery so I can teach you a lesson about caring for the environment!

 

With that being said, I did rather enjoy the characters - Ponti breathes life into them that makes them very readable and relatable.  Alex is your typical young teen, ready to jump the gun and get into the action.  Lina is the booksmart fish-out-of-water Midwestern girl, who knows how to research with a thirst for knowledge.  Yadi is the aspiring film maker, with some great devices to help the Society using modern technology (although the constant references to him being a "conspiracy theorist" because of some of his beliefs felt more like a political statement than a characterization).  Zoe is the not-so-stereotypical teenage girl frustrated with her parents for not allowing her to go to camp with her friends, but who learns what true friendship is within the Sherlock Society that she forms!  And Grandpa (the kids' mother's father) is a real hoot - helping the Society as their driver, but ultimately getting them into trouble by letting his own love of adventure take them into some very dangerous territory.  All of the characters (including Mr. and Mrs. Sherlock) play well off of one another, and Ponti creates a diverse, real-world cast that help save the story from being a complete failure.

 

Oh, and I must say - if you are hoping the book will have a lot of references to Sherlock Holmes, based on the title (which is actually a reference to the main characters' last name - Alex and Zoe Sherlock), you will be disappointed.  Sure, there are a few references scattered throughout, but not at much as one would expect.

 

Based on this book, I will not be picking up any further books in the series.  Perhaps the next book, and those that follow, will feature better stories than this one, and if that is the case, then great!  I certainly wish Ponti success with the series.  But I have enough ongoing mystery series, both children's series and adult series, that I find much more enjoyable and readable.  I gave it a shot, and it simply did not meet up to my expectations, particularly given the recommendation I received.

 

RATING:  5 well-loved books on botany out of 10 for creating a fun new cast of young sleuths who (hopefully!) will solve some great mysteries in the future.

Meg and the Disappearing Diamonds - Mystery #1 in a series

I can remember reading the "Meg" series of mysteries back when I was a kid, but the only thing I truly remember is a scene where Meg pretends to be sick, so she puts the thermometer into a cup of hot chocolate to make the temperature rise!  I do not even recall which book that scene is in, but I do remember at the time wondering if I could get away with that trick.  As an adult collector, I tracked down not only the six paperbacks I had as a kid, but also the six original hardback editions published by Whitman that came out nearly a decade prior to the paperbacks.  However, having them on the shelf and actually re-reading them are two different things.  Recently, though, my friend Jarrell Dickey was telling me he picked up and re-read a Meg book or two, and we got to talking about it, and I realized it was time to re-read this series - so, thanks to Jarrell, I've jumped back into the world of Margaret Ashley Duncan - the young sleuth known as Meg!

 

Meg and the Disappearing Diamonds is the first book in this series, written by Holly Beth Walker. From what I could discover, "Holly Beth Walker" is merely a pseudonym used by Western Publishing for the series.  It is believed Gladys Baker Bond (who wrote many Whitman Authorized Editions, as well as three Trixie Belden books) authored this particular Meg mystery.  The story centers around some precious diamonds owned by Mrs. Partlow, which she decides to show to the neighborhood ladies at an outside tea party.  The diamond bracelet, the diamond earrings, the diamond necklace, and the diamond snood (an ornamental headdress that is used to cover the hair on the back of your head, as Meg explains on page 53) all disappear from the party right in full view of the guests!  Meg, and her best friend Kerry Carmody, set about to discover who stole the valuable jewelry and return it to Mrs. Partlow in time for her to wear them to her niece's wedding.

 

The book only has 124 pages of story, of which 25 pages contain full-page illustrations and 11 pages contain half-page illustrations, which leaves less than 100 pages of actual story.  As one can imagine, this does not provide room for an in-depth, strongly developed mystery; rather, the mystery is somewhat simple and clearly aimed at younger readers (perhaps on the same reading level as The Bobbsey Twins or The Happy Hollisters).  That does not mean the story was not well-written, nor that it was not enjoyable.  On the contrary, the mystery was actually a fun read.  Meg is an independent, self-reliant young sleuth, and her friend Kerry feels like a combination of Bess and George - somewhat reluctant at times, but also ready and willing to jump in and help when needed.  Kerry's brother,Mike, makes a couple of appearances in the story, but he does not play a strong role.  Meg's Siamese cat, Thunder, on the other hand, plays a major role in this book!  In fact, for me, Thunder was the break-out character in the story.  He immediately recognizes the villain, being none too friendly with this person, and ultimately he has the secret to the hidden diamonds.

 

The character of Meg falls in line with so many of her contemporaries.  Her mother is out of the picture, and her father is a professional who permits his daughter considerable freedom.  In this instance, Mr. Duncan is described as "one of the men who work in government in Washington, D.C." (p. 14).  Meg is under the care of the Duncan's housekeeper, Mrs. Wilson, and her husband, Mr. Wilson.  The family lives in Hidden Springs, Virginia (p. 15).  While there is no city by the name of Hidden Springs in Virginia, there is a "Hidden Springs Family Farm" that dates back to 1731.  Within Hidden Springs is Holly House, the name given to Mrs. Partlow's homestead.  It could be the name was taken from the "author's" first name; however, there is a Holly Hill estate in St. Stephens Church, Virginia, which is a 200-year old estate that is registered as one of Virginia's Historical Landmarks - so perhaps the name was inspired by that house.  Since the Holly Hill estate boasts a lavish garden-view sunroom with a terrace overlooking formal gardens, that seems to mirror the beautiful gardens in which Mrs. Partlow throws her tea party in the book.

 

Speaking of those gardens, the story describes some very interesting plants that grow within Mrs. Partlow's gardens.  Arborvitae, creeping phlox, candytuft, and yellow alyssum all grow around the garden, and in the corner are holly bushes, which "gave the place its name" (p. 38).  I honestly had to look up these plans, as I had never heard of them!  Arborvitae are a family of evergreen trees that are very hardy and are often used to make evergreen hedges.  Creeping phlox is a low-growing plant that creates a carpet of flowers that bloom in early to mid-spring, often with a pink, purple, or bluish hue.  Candytuft is another low-growing plant, which blooms some beautiful white flowers.  And yellow alyssum is described as a "hairy" herb that produces stems of yellow flowers from May to July that eventually fade to white, with four small petals.  Clearly, Mrs. Partlow had quite an eclectic garden!

 

The internal illustrations of both the hardback version and paperback version of this book are the same, provided by Cliff Schule (1918-2000).  Schule was well-known for his portraits, including one of Henry Kissinger.  He served as a commercial illustrator for a number of years, providing illustrations for Western Publishing books.  The covers for the paperback editions featured covers by a different artist - Olindo Giacomini.  I much prefer the cover design and cover art to the paperback versions, but I was disappointed to find next-to-nothing about Giacomini online.  I found numerous books that he illustrated and/or authored, but I could find nothing about the artist himself.  The only thing I did find was on the "Find a Grave" website, which lists an Olindo P. Giacomini as having been born in 1930, died in 1989, and buried in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at the Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum (Olindo P. Giacomini).  I was also able to find obituaries for Olindo's brother (Dino) and mother (Amanda), but none for Olindo.  I did find a mention of Olindo Giacomini as an art editor for the yearbook staff at Riverside High School in Milwuakee, Wisconsin, which would coincide with the city where he was ultimately buried. But nothing else! I find it extremely interesting that in today's day and age, someone could have so little of a digital trail, and that an author/artist who seems to have had a number of books with his work published has no information about his work out there.  A mystery to be solved!

 

The book may not offer up a difficult mystery for readers to solve, it does provide an enjoyable story that should bring a smile to your face by the end, making it worth the read.

 

RATING:  8 soft leather collars with tiny bells out of 10 for a cute, easy-to-read mystery with a perky young sleuth!

A Zebra Mystery Puzzler #17 - The Final Appointment

For whatever reason, Kensington Publishing Corp. decided to publish two Marcia Blair (a/k/a Marc Baker) mysteries right in a row.  Book 16, The Final Guest, was published in January 1979, while this book, Book 17 in the Zebra Mystery Puzzler series, was published one month later in February 1979.  While Jan Michaels had two books published somewhat close together (books 12 and 14 were Michaels' two Darby Castle mysteries), this is the first time (and I believe the only time) an author had two books in a row published in this series.  Not sure the reasoning, but it gave fans of the series an opportunity to read two Tory Baxter murder mysteries one after another!

 

The Final Appointment finds our young nurse detective actually being sought out and asked to help solve a case.  The book begins with Tory being followed by someone - and being the intuitive young sleuth that she is, she quickly outwits the woman and confronts her, only to learn that Dina Severson needs her help.  Dina and her two best friends, Felicia Adams and Candice Jeffers, believe they are in danger.  Someone has been entering Felicia's apartment and moving things around. Nothing is stolen, but paintings are turned upside down, vases are placed in the middle of the room.  Despite the locks being changed several times, the culprit continues to get in.  Now the matter has escalated, as Felicia has received a photograph of the three girls - with Felicia's face marked out with a big "X"!  It seems Candice knows Tory's Aunt Tildy, and Tildy told them about Tory's sleuthing abilities, so they sought her out to help them.

 

The mystery becomes more dangerous than Tory expects when Felicia turns up dead, found at the bottom of the stairs in the girls' apartment complex.  Tory's police friend, Lieutenant Jay Thorpe, rules it out as an accident, but Tory is not convinced.  Especially when they find Felicia's key ring with an added bonus: a small golden charm of a monkey with its hands covering its mouth.  Dina and Candice swear that Felicia never had such a charm. Plus, with Felicia out of the picture (no pun intended), it seems Candice is next on the list - her apartment is vandalized, this time with a warning about the her time in Paris with Felicia.  Candice swears nothing happened on their trip, but Tory has to wonder if they did not inadvertently offend some psycho who is now exacting his (or her) revenge.  Before you know it, Candice turns up dead, and Dina is afraid she is next!

 

The suspects include Felicia's boyfriend, who turns out to be related to someone accused of embezzling funds from the financial firm owned jointly by the girls' fathers.  There is also the mysterious blond haired woman who was seen putting envelopes into the girls' mailboxes at the apartment complex, as well as having purchased golden monkey charms from a dealer in San Francisco.  Then there is the Paris connection between the two victims, which seems out of place, since Dina did not go to Paris - so why would the killer target her?  Does everything tie back to their fathers' financial firm and the problems that occurred decades ago?  Or is the motive something much darker and more sinister?

 

Blair (Baker) tries to craft a great whodunnit, but, unfortunately, the identity of the killer is pretty easy to spot from the very beginning.  There are plenty of red herrings thrown out there, even though they are woven in for purposes of making the reader think this is the real trail of the killer.  I was a bit disappointed in that aspect, as the previous mysteries in this series written by Blair (Baker) were actually pretty well plotted.  That being said, I did enjoy the further developments with Tory's friendship with Dr. Sandy Brockman and her love/hate relationship with Lt. Jay Thorpe.  I feel bad for poor Sandy, who seems to always get the raw end of the deal, but at least Jay steps up by the end of this book to let Tory know once and for all exactly how he feels - it sure took long enough!

 

The cover art for this book is provided by Mel Greifinger, who also did the art on the cover of  The Curse of the Golden Skull, which was a Terry Spring mystery by Josephine Kains (a/k/a Joseph Goulart).  Rather than a particular scene from the book, we get a collage of Tory, the three girls, the son of the embezzler, and one of the girls putting on make-up.  I find it somewhat amusing that all of these Tory Baxter covers show Tory in her nurse's outfit, but share rarely, if ever, actually wears such an outfit in the books.  And speaking of inconsistencies in the artwork (yeah, so that was a pretty bad segue, but whatever!), the internals in this book have some glaring mistakes in them.  The first internal illustration, on page 21, shows Tory holding the picture while sitting in front of the three girls - Dina, Felicia, and Candice (see above).  However, in the story, Tory has come racing over to Dina's apartment because Felicia is missing - and in the particular scene depicted, Tory is talking only to Dina and Candice.  Felicia is not in the scene at all!  It leaves you to wonder just what kind of information are the internal illustrators given when they are told what scenes to draw!

 

Now, the third internal illustration, found on page 59, shows a woman who I can only assume is Tory (her appearance is never consistent in these internals) looking at a woman's hand that is holding up a key ring that displays the small monkey charm, with its hands cover its eyes ("see no evil").  The only problem with this one is that in the story, the "little figure was beautifully done and tiny hands were over its mouth" (p. 58).  That is a pretty glaring error, particularly when these monkey charms are supposed to be a clue to the killer's identity!  Again, what information was given to these illustrators for the scenes they were to draw?  Aside from that error, though, I will say that Tory (if that is her) in this scene bears a striking resemblance to the Rudy Nappi version of Nancy Drew that graced the covers of the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories in the 1960s and 1970s - similar hair style, facial expression, etc.  Perhaps the role of Tory Baxter was temporarily being placed by Nancy Drew (yeah, okay, probably not, but it is a funny coincidence).

 

While by far not the best mystery in the series, I cannot say it was a bad read.  With any luck, this was just a one-off for Blair (Baker), and the later mysteries featuring Tory Baxter will be a little bit more difficult to solve!

 

RATING:   7 wild blond mops of hair out of 10 for FINALLY moving Tory and Jay's relationship forward, which turns out to be the highlight of this book!

Murder by Cheesecake - the first Golden Girls' cozy mystery

"Thank you for being a friend ... traveled down the road and back again ..." I don't think there is a person alive that can read those words without actually singing them in your head.  If you're like me, you'll actually sing them out loud!  That theme song opened up 180 episodes of one of the funniest television shows to ever grace the small screen - The Golden Girls.  I watched every episode, from the first one in September 1985 to the last one in May 1992, and since then, I've re-watched episodes more times than I can possibly count.  The show put together the perfect cast, with the greatest writers, and it was a hit that never disappointed.  So, imagine my surprise when more than thirty years after the show ended, I happen across a book inspired by the television show - and not just any book, but an actual murder mystery.  That's right, you read that correctly!   Dorothy, Blanche, Rose, and Sophia now have their very own cozy mystery series, written by Rachel Ekstrom Courage, a publisher-turned-writer, and I could not wait to be reunited with these golden gals!

 

Murder by Cheesecake takes one of The Golden Girls' most popular props from the series and turns it into a murder weapon - sort of.  The story focuses on poor naive Rose, who is working overtime to pull off a traditional St. Olaf wedding in Miami for her cousin, Nettie, who is marrying a young man, Jason, who is NOT a native of St. Olaf - and the townspeople are not happy about it.  Rose's other cousin, Gustave (not to be mistaken with her cousin Gustav, who was the object of many St. Olaf tales...), does not think she will be able to pull it off, staying true to all of the St. Olaf traditions - such as the bridal shower (consisting of a REAL shower), the groom riding in a donkey, the Sharing of the Soup, and so on.  Rose is determined to prove him wrong, even if it kills her.  Unfortunately, it kills someone else - that someone being a man with whom Dorothy had just had a date - from a video dating service!

 

From the very first chapter, I felt like I was watching an episode of the show.  The comedic quips were all there - Sophia's crude remarks, Dorothy's sarcasm, Blanche's sexual prowess, and Rose's innocence and St. Olaf naivete - I could literally hear the actresses' voices in my head as I read each line of dialogue.  Courage managed to really capture the essence of the four women, making it a true joy to read.  Once the women stumble across the body in the freezer of the hotel owned by Jason's parents, there is (sadly) a lesser degree of comedy and a greater focus on the solving of the crime - particularly since Dorothy seems to be the police's prime suspect!  The question is, how can Rose keep all of the guests - the St. Olafians from Nettie's side and the Floridians from Jason's side - from finding out about the murder and destroying her chance to pull of a wedding in true St. Olaf fashion?  Thus, the antics to hide the horrific event from the guests, while at the same time looking for the killer to prove Dorothy's innocence, begins.

 

With regard to the murder mystery, I give Courage credit for creating a rather interesting plot that involves smuggling, crime rings, drag queens, mistaken identities, a threatened inheritance, and an exciting motorcycle chase with an exceptionally daring rescue!  There are plenty of clues spread throughout the story, with some red herrings to keep you from solving the crime too easily, and there are plenty of references to events that took place in the television show to remind you that this story is an actual part of The Golden Girls' lore.  I just wish the humorous quips that were present in the first couple of chapters (before they find the body) were as prevalent throughout the rest of the story.  Ther were a few humorous lines scattered here and there, but the story took a much more "murder mystery procedural" turn after the body and focused more on solving the crime.

 

The author does throw in a couple of surprising references to children's series books - the first appears when Nettie gives "Rose the same puppy-dog eyes she'd given her when she begged for a Nancy Drew Madame Alexander doll for her tenth birthday" (p. 33).  While many mysteries with female detectives make reference to Nancy Drew; however I think this is the first time I have ever come across a reference to the Nancy Drew Madame Alexander Doll, which was released back in 1967 but did not stay on the market long.  Now, since the book indicates it was Nettie's tenth birthday, and the book is set in the 1980s (at least 1985 or later), that would mean Nettie would need to be in her thirties for this book.  The second series book reference shows up when the Girls are keeping surveillance on suspects in the lobby of the hotel, when they spot Jason's sister arguing with her husband.  Dorothy makes the comment, "... I"m not so sure about the Bobbsey Twins.  I'm adding what we just saw to our case file" (p. 182).  Obviously, this reference is a bit off, since the Bobbsey Twins were brother and sister, not husband and wife; yet, it was still great to see that someone still remembers them!

 

One other thing worth mentioning is when Dorothy is told by the police that the dead man was a potential con artist who scammed a number of women out of money and other valuable objects, leaving her to wonder if "the same man [she went on a date with] was this thieving lothario ..." That is twice now that the word "lothario" has popped up in a book I've been reading, the first just days ago when I was reading Jane Withers and the Hidden Room, which also featured some con artists / thieves.  I have spent my whole life never hearing or reading that word, and now, in less than a week, it appears in two separate books written more than 80 years apart!  Talk about your mind-boggling coincidences!

 

Despite the downturn in humor after the murdered man is found, the book was still an enjoyable read, and I am hoping there will be more.  This book focused more on Rose and Dorothy, so I'm hoping the next book will give Blanche and/or Sophia a chance to shine!

 

RATING:  9 pairs of vibrant teal color sunglasses out of 10 for bringing The Golden Girls out of retirement and re-introducing them to a new generation of fans (as well as old ones like me!) in a brand new way!

Harlequin Gothic Romance Series No. 32009 - Return to Shadow Creek

"She returned to the place of her birth - only to discover a sinister web lurking in wait for her..." (cover blurb)

 

Helen B. Hicks returns to this series for her third and final entry in the Harlequin Gothic Romance line, and she is the first author in this series to have two books in a row (Hicks having also authored the previous book in this line, Legacy of Raven's Rise).  As with her other books, this book is set in California, although unlike the previous two, this book is set in the present time (well, present for when it was published back in 1986).  Hicks also strays from a number of the standard gothic tropes - there is no dark mansion, there are no hidden rooms, no "bumps in the night" ... but there is plenty of mystery and some great soap opera type moments to keep the story exciting!

 

Return to Shadow Creek is the story of Cindi Moore's return to Fairhaven, California, and more specifically, Shadow Creek - the place where she was born and spent her early childhood, until her father died and her mother moved them to Wyoming.  Now, nearly 20 years later, Cindi has come home.  Her mother, step-father, and fiance died in a tragic car accident, and unable to cope with the loss,Cindi has nowhere else to turn.  Royce Christopher, the man who manages Cindi's trust.  Kim Christopher, Royce's young sister who used to be Cindi's best friend when she lived there as a child. Laura Christopher, Royce and Kim's stepmother who continues to live on the ranch.  And Gabriel Dussault, Royce's cousin who is carefree and living live to its fullest.  They make Cindi feel welcome to their California ranch, but there is something a bit off.  Something Cindi cannot quite per her finger on...

 

Hicks provides readers with one heck of a great mystery.  What was so horrible in Cindi's past, that her mind has repressed it for so many years? And why did the tragic car accident that killed her mother, fiance, and step-father have such an affect on her?  And how could she not know that Royce and Kim's father left Cindi half of his estate when he died, giving only a fourth each to his son and daughter?  And what is going on in the avocado orchards that makes Royce keep everyone out of there?  And just what kind of evil does the old, abandoned stagecoach stop on the Christopher property contain?  Just being near the place sends Cindi screaming in the other direction!

 

I truly love the mystery aspect to this story.  Hicks builds the story nice and slow.  From the beginning, the reader knows that Cindi has no real memory of her childhood at Shadow Creek, and it is fairly obvious that something horrific happened to make her block it away.  The longer she stays, the more she begins to realize that whatever happened all those years ago is something so sinister that someone is desperate to make sure it stays in the past!  She catches someone watching her as she is out horseback riding.  Then she sees a mysterious man watching her as she enjoys an afternoon outing.  But when she is nearly run off the road by a speeding vehicle, Royce and the others realize that something is definitely wrong.  Cindi begins to suspect that someone at the ranch does not want her remembering the past - but which one is it?

 

The climatic moments in this story are so worth the read!  The cover art depicts those final moments, when Cindi is being chased by the madman across an old wooden bridge (pp. 207-11), and Hicks does a superb job of keeping that man's identity a secret until the final chapter - while Cindi recognizes him, Hicks merely refers to the man as "he" for those pages, not revealing his identity until the final chapter!  It makes for some great suspense, particularly when another character shows up to rescue Cindi, resulting in a deadly battle on the rickety bridge.  And, as one can see from the cover, the art is not the typical gothic scene - there is no dark house in the background, with a light in the upper window; rather, we get the open California countryside at night, the moon obscured by the shadowy tree limbs, and poor Cindy running fearfully from the shadowy man in the background.  While not necessarily gothic, it definitely sets the tone for the mystery within!

 

Overall, yet another winning story for this line of gothic romances, and a nice send off for Helen B. Hicks (this being her last book in the series).  One thing I do find odd, however, is that these books do not advertise the gothic line - instead, the final pages in the book tell readers about 'Six exciting series for you every month ... from Harlequin," and list the Harlequin Romance, Harlequin Presents, Harlequin Superromance, Harlequin American Romance, Harlequin Temptation, and Harlequin Intrigue lines.  At this point, the Gothic Romance line was still going, so I find it odd this series was omitted from the list.  Perhaps Harlequin was already aware the series would not be lasting much longer; or perhaps they felt the "Gothic" line would conflict with their new "Intrigue" line.  I would be curious to know if any of those six lines had an advertisement for the gothic books in them.

 

RATING:  10 shiny sky-blue convertibles out of 10 for a dark mystery involving illegal border crossings, get-rich-quick schemes, secret marijuana plants, and suppressed memories of even more illicit and evil crimes!

Jane Withers and the Hidden Room - the first Whitman Authorized Edition

While most of the books in the Whitman Authorized Editions are single-issued books, there were a few in the line that gave the characters two books - such as Shirley Temple, Deanna Durbin, and Betty Grable.  However, once actress was fortunate enough to get three books, published one a year from 1942 to 1944, and that was Jane Withers (1926 - 2021).  Now, I'll be honest, before getting these books, I had never even heard of Jane Withers before, let alone did I know who she was.  Upon performing a bit of researched, I was surprised to learn she was an extremely popular child star in Hollywood in the 1930s and early 1940s.  I was even more surprised to find that she was "Josephine the Plumber" in those old Comet cleanser commercials on television!  These three books from Whitman seem to have been published just as Withers' childhood fame was starting to die down, so it is interesting that of all the actors and actresses who had books published using their name, she is the only one to have received three!

 

Jane Withers and the Hidden Room was written by Eleanor Packer - and this was Ms. Packer's only contribution to the Whitman Authorized Editions.  The "hidden room" of the title is a bit misleading, as it is not necessarily hidden (since it is easily seen from the outside), but it is a room that is only accessible from the inside by going through a hidden panel in the back of a closet or from outside by clicking a secret release under the ledge of the window.  However, it is what is kept in that room, who is using the room, and why access to the room is so obscure that create the real mystery for this book.  The room, in fact, does not really come into play until nearly half-way through the story!

 

The book actually opens innocently enough, with you Jane Withers arriving by train in the small city of Hollytown-on-the-Hudson. (NOTE - there is no such city; yet, oddly enough, there are two special events that take place with similar names: (1) "Holi on the Hudson" is a Hindu festival that celebrates love, goodness, and renewal; and (2) "Hooley on the Hudson" is an Irish festival that celebrates their culture and heritage. It seems both celebrations on the Hudson River are relatively recent, so it is unlikely the author was inspired by either for the name of her fictional town.)  Jane has returned late from her summer vacation in California due to illness, so she has a lot to catch up on now that she is back at Holly Hall, the "school for young ladies" that is Hollytown's greatest pride (p. 16).  This includes the new professor of Romantic Languages, Paul Berthon.  According to Jane's best friend, Ellin Dwyer, the teacher is the talk of the school, as all of the students (and some of the teachers) are quite smitten with the handsome man.  Jane, however, is more worried about catching up on all of her missed schoolwork rather than silly, girlish crushes on a new teacher.

 

Holly Hall reminds me quite a bit of Starhurst School for Girls from the Dana Girls series.  Both are prestigious schools for young ladies; both are run by a stern, but fair older lady (in this instance, Miss Abigail the second heads up the school; her aunt, Miss Abigail the first, was the previous mistress of Holly Hall until her death); and both have students who become amateur sleuths who fall upon mysteries that must be solved.  While the Dana sisters are both involved in solving the mysteries, in this instance, Jane is on her own - even though her best friend Ellin is in the picture, she does not actually become involved in the mystery.  As this book was published in 1942, some eight years after the first Dana Girls books were published, perhaps Packer was influenced by the Dana Girls series (and numerous other girls series from that era and before that were sent in girls' schools).  

In any event, the mystery begins when Miss Abigail announces some of her jewelry was stolen from her room at the school.  When one of the missing earrings is found under Jane's hatbox in her room, Jane's inquisitive mind kicks into gear.  How did it get there?  Who could have dropped it?  The mystery deepens when Jane is invited to join Ellin at her parents' home for the weekend, and the new teacher, Paul Berthon, and his sister, Lucienne, are also there - and shortly after the visit, the Dwyers' jewels are stolen from their safe!  Jane begins to have suspicions about Professor Berthon and his sister, but Ellin and her parents dismiss them.  Yet, when Jane and Ellin are guests at the professor's cottage, Jane happens upon a small jewel case under the cushion of her chair, which only strengthens Jane's distrust of the professor and his sister.  She is determined to uncover the truth, so she goes to confront her professor - but, instead, she stumbles upon a sinister plot much greater than she had originally thought and becomes the captive of a group of ruthless criminals!

 

The story was actually one of the best of the Whitman Authorized Editions I have read to date.  A strong plot, a very likeable main character, and plenty of danger, excitement, and mystery to keep the story moving at a good pace.  There are definitely some more adult themes to this story, though.  The constant threat of death looming over Jane while held captive by the criminals keeps it very suspenseful, and the fact that they repeatedly make it clear the school's caretaker was "already taken care of" only strengthens the reader's belief that Jane's fate is sealed.  "The little black boy won't never talk again," one crook comments (p. 142); but a more insulting comment is made shortly thereafter, when the same crook sneers and remarks, "You didn't wait to let the Chief decide when you got rid of that darkie" (p. 143).  This kind of comment reminds readers how dated the book is.

 

In addition, Lucienne's rather sarcastic comment to her brother when referring to all of the schoolgirls who have a crush on him, calling him "my gay Lothario," has some very adult undertones, since Lothario often refers to a man who acts very irresponsibly with regard to his sexual relationships with women (which stems from a character of this nature from the 1703 Nicholas Rowe tragedy, The Fair Penitent).  I am surprised such a reference would have been allowed in a book intended for children and young adults to read back in the 1940s!

 

Aside from that, the book was a great read.  It is illustrated by Henrey E. Vallely, who seems to have provided illustrations for a large number of the Whitman Authorized Editions, for which I am glad, as he provides some very beautiful illustrations. The only negative observation I have to make (and it's not about his actual artwork, but rather, about the scene he draws) is with regard to the end pages.  This is not the first book where the end pages provides a dramatic scene which actually spoils the story if you pay attention to it before you actually read any of the book - stories about Ginger Rogers, Betty Grable, and Ann Sheridan also showcased art on their end pages that revealed dramatic moments, either from the end of those particular stories, or from climactic moments that revealed important elements of the story.  Not sure why Whitman would choose these particular scenes, but they should come with a "spoiler alert"!

 

After reading this first Jane Withers mystery, I am anxiously looking forward to the next two - especially since they are not written by the same author as this one, and I'll be curious to see in what direction they take the title character.

 

RATING:  10 little gold typewriter charms out of 10 for a well-written mystery that is pretty much on par with the Nancy Drew and Dana Girls mysteries being published around the same time!

Dana Girls Mystery Stories No. 3 - In the Shadow of the Tower

Book three of the Dana Girls Mystery Stories is author Leslie McFarlane's third entry into this girls' series from the 1930s, and I can see from this book how McFarlane was struggling with his writing of this series.  In the first two books, the stories flowed fairly well, and there was plenty of excitement and fun to move the story along; however, this book had considerably more unnecessary exposition that was not readily seen in the first two.  Perhaps he was simply more comfortable writing stories about boys, or maybe he simply could not settle into a groove with the Dana Girls; whatever the reason, this third book falls a bit short from the first two, with too many mysteries and too many convenient coincidences.

 

In the Shadow of the Tower continues the time line of the Danas, with this story being set in December (after the first book was September and the second was November).  The story center around a young girl who the Danas not only befriend but offer to help after accidentally causing her to lose a very important letter that also contained a thousand dollar bill (yes, you read that right!).  I have to admit, I was rather surprised to think that this girl, still in her teens, would be carrying around a thousand dollar bill in the early 1930s!  In today's money, that bill would be worth nearly $24,000!  Can you imagine carrying that amount of money with you everywhere you went?  But, that's exactly what Josephine "Josy" Sykes was doing when the Dana Girls happened upon her in the woods near Mohawk Lake.  Now, it is up to Jean and Louise to find that letter and the missing money and restore them to their rightful owner.

 

The story has some very odd elements to it.  First, when the Danas first see Josy, because of her deformity, "a hump that distorted [her] back, giving [her] a grotesque and dwarfed appearance" (p. 3), and the tattered clothes she is wearing, they mistake her for a boy.  They quickly learn Josy is a girl who ran away from the Home for Crippled Children at Bonny Lake (p. 13).  She ran away because at the same time she received the letter from her uncle with the money in it, the cash proceeds from a charity to benefit the Home was also stolen, and Josy was afraid she would be accused.  The sisters agree to help her, of course, but they find it will not be easy, because upon their arrival at Starhurst, Lettie Briggs and Ina Mason are the first to see Josy and immediately make fun of her, causing her to run off.

 

Throughout the entire book, there is an emphasis on Josy's hunchback and deformed nature, causing people to shun her, make fun of her, be shocked at her appearance, and fear her.  In fact, one of the characters in the book - Mammy Cleo, a cook - describes her as a "supernatural creature" that is "twisted and deformed" (p. 56).  McFarlane goes on to write how "the colored folk in the vicinity ... built up monstrous and weird legend" about Josy and her appearance (p. 71).  All of these descriptions and reactions would lead the reader to believe that Josy is horridly disfigured and frightening to look at, and so, I thought it admirable that the Danas overlooked her physical appearance and offered her their friendship and their aid in finding the missing money.  But then, at the end of the book, once the girls have successfully solved all the mysteries (and there are plenty of them in this book!), we suddenly learn that Josy's deformity is not so bad after all - "[w]ith the help of the Dana girls she had done some shopping ... New dresses had been chosen so that her deformity was scarcely noticeable. Happiness and good fortune had erased the pitiful lines from her face, and her natural attractiveness had been given a chance to assert itself" (p. 205).  Utterly amazing what a beautiful dress can do for a girl - transform her from a grotesque girl with a distorted back to a naturally attractive girl whose deformity was barely noticed!  (I realize there is a high level of sarcasm there, but such a transformation defies all ability to believe - and we cannot blame McFarlane for this one, as the change was specifically dictated in the outline from Edna Stratemeyer Squier.

 

Another strange thing about this book is the mystery surrounding the stolen money at the children's home. The Danas assure Josy they will find a way to clear her name and solve that mystery, and more than once, a nurse taking care of Constance Melbourne (an artist who lives next to Bessie Marsh, the Danas' cousin with whom they visit during the Christmas holidays), tells Jean and Louise she believes a Mrs. Rita Rye, a Trustee for the home, is the guilty party.  At no time during the entire book do the Dana girls actually visit the Home for Crippled Children at Bonny Lake, but suddenly, in the very last chapter on the next to the last page, the Danas announce that Josy has been cleared and the "real thief has confessed" (p. 216).  The thief did, indeed, turn out to be Rita Rye, who admitted to taking the money to pay overdue bills (p. 216).  For something that played such an important factor in Josy running away, one would have thought it would have made for a good mystery for the girls to solve; instead, it merely becomes an afterthought, mentioned only in passing at the very end to tie up that loose end.

 

Yet another mystery in this book centers around a stolen piece of art, painted by Ms. Melbourne.  A scam artist by the name of Claude Fayle, steals the portrait and passes it off as his own at an art show in the city of Majestic.  As it just so happens, Mrs. Crandall has plans to take the girls of Starhurst to that very art show.  And, by pure coincidence, Mrs. Crandall has invited Mr. Fayle to the school to discuss his art, unaware that the Dana girls have already met him and know he is a thief and a fraud.  This part of the mystery actually plays up nicely, as the sisters have a difficult time meeting Mr. Fayle and accusing him of his theft, and it ultimately becomes a climactic revelation made at the art show itself, just as Mr. Fayle is about to be awarded a medal for the portrait.  Of all the mysteries in this story, this one was probably the one I most enjoyed reading. 

One thing I do want to make note of is that this book features the internal illustration upon which the end pages for these early Dana Girls books was based.  The illustration by Ferdinand Warren inserted between pages 66 and 67 of the story features Jean and Louise finding a note from Josy left under their door at their cousin's house (see illustration to the left here).  It depicts Jean kneeling down to pick up and read the strange note, while Louise stands behind, looking over her shoulder.  The same scene was redrawn (whether by Warren or not is a good question) and expanded upon for the double-spread end pages (see above).  The end pages go beyond the door shown in the illustration and give way to a chair, a painting on the wall, and a grandfather clock standing beside them.   We also get a better view of Louise in the end pages, as she is closer to the wall, so that we can see her full face rather than a hidden profile as in the internal illustration.  

Last, but certainly not least, I must point out McFarlane's habit of inserting the name of the book into his mysteries.  In the first two books, the titles were casually inserted into dialogue at the very end of the story.  In this book, however, McFarlane really outdid himself - he managed to work the title into the story not once, not twice, but a total of NINE TIMES!  And this does not even count the title to Chapter XVI ("The Shadow Beneath the Tower").  

        p. 56 - in the snow "in the shadow of the tower"

        p. 86 - transpiring "in the very shadow of the tower"

        p. 93 - I wonder if she is down there "in the shadow of the tower"

        p. 93 - there was no one "in the shadow of the tower"

        p. 140 - "in the shadow of the tower" Josy was restored

        p. 143 - girls were standing "in the shadow of the tower"

        p. 214 - "shadows" fell across ... "beneath the shadow of the tower"

        p. 214 - down "in the shadow of the Tower" she saw movement

        p. 214 - I just saw them "in the shadow of the tower" 

I almost had to wonder if perhaps this phrase should not become a drinking game (although, if it did, I think most readers would become quite drunk before they finished the book!).  

Of these first three books in the Dana Girls' series, I have to admit, this was my least favorite.  There was too much going on, a couple of the mysteries were solved as mere afterthoughts in the last three pages of the book, and the miraculous manner in which Josy went from grotesque to attractive by just donning a beautiful dress was too much for me. Plus, I miss the practical jokes / pranks that the Danas and Lettie pull on one another.  This particular book only had one attempt at a joke, and the sisters easily defeated it.  We will have to wait and see what McFarlane's final Dana Girls book has in store when we read the next book in this series!

 

RATING:  7 radio dramas set on the Florida coast out of 10 for at least trying something different with this mystery - a handicapped child, a village of superstitious folk, a sleazy con artist, a missing relative, and a thousand dollar bill!