Secret of Pirates' Cave - a Thorne Twins Adventure Book

This is a book I picked up for a couple of reasons.  First, the title is reminiscent of the second Bobbsey Twins mystery published back in 1980 under the Simon & Schuster "Wanderer" imprint, with even the cover art bearing a slight resemblance to that book.  Second, the book features twins (a brother and sister), and I'm always picking up books about twins - although, unlike the Bobbseys, this series features only one set of twins, not two.  Now, normally, I would not pick up just one book in a series - my OCD would force me to go find all of the other books in the series, so I can have a complete set!  In this case, however, I made an exception, since my main reason was the similarity in title and cover art - the fact that it features twins is merely a bonus.  I could not find out anything about the author, Dayle Courtney, and it appears this series is the only books written by the author.

 

Secret of Pirates' Cave is the 19th, and from what I could find, final title in the Thorne Twins Adventure Book series. Interestingly, the book opens not with the title characters, but with one of their ancestors, Eric Thorne, and his family, who are sailing along the California coast, preparing to settle and start a new life in America in the year 1850.  Their ship inadvertently runs into a pirate ship, and the band of pirates - led by one known only as Scarab - take over the ship, stealing all of the family's belongings, as well as those belonging to the Roberts family, who has joined them in their adventure to the New World.  It is not until the second chapter where we flash-forward 130 years to the present, where young Eric Thorne and his twin sister, Alison, are sitting down to dinner, and Eric is telling his father about a boy in his class that shared a story about his ancestors having been robbed by pirates along with another family by the last name "Thorne."  It is here that the twins learn from their father the history of Eric's namesake, and how the stolen good were never recovered - however, the pirate reformed later in life and wrote a letter that he sent to both the Thorne and Roberts families, giving each half of the directions as to where they could find their stolen valuables (hmmm, what other story have I read where there are two pieces of a "map" that must be put together to lead the sleuths to a lost treasure...?).  The two families never found each other, and so the treasures were never recovered.  Until now...

 

As with all good series books, it's a series of coincidences that puts Terry Roberts in Eric Thorne's class, and provides them the opportunity to join forces to locate their family's heirlooms.  As Mr. Thorne is heading to Africa for his work, he sends Eric and Alison to California with Terry to visit Terry's aunt and cousin, who live in a large house on a hill, just outside of Monterey.  While the Thorne family had kept and preserved the pirate's letter and half-instructions, those sent to the Roberts family had been lost over the years, and no one knew where to find them.  Thus, the children plan to inspect every inch of the Roberts' ancestral home in the hopes of finding the other half to those instructions so they can find the treasure. The house is filled with plenty of hidden compartments and secret passages, and after some false starts, they happen across the missing half of the instructions in the pocket of a pair of pants they find inside an old trunk hidden away in a cave far beneath the great house.  Now, armed with both halves of the instructions, Eric, Alison, and Terry firmly believe they will find their families' missing heirlooms!

The author does not make it easy on the kids.  With a letter written over a century before, the places mentioned in the letter are certain to have changed considerably.  The old church was long destroyed after an earthquake.  The stained glass through which the light points the way is no longer there.  The walled fort, the boulder in the shape of a lion's head ... such cryptic clues made all the more hard to decipher, since the landscape has changed so much over the past hundred years.  But the twins are determined, especially Eric, whose growing desire to find that treasure and become rich seems to increase in strength the closer they get to finding it.  He refuses to give up, even if that means breaking a few laws to find the lost heirlooms - such as sneaking into a cemetery at night, breaking into a caretaker's shack, and opening a long-sealed crypt, all in the hope of recovering the Thornes' and the Roberts' stolen belongings.

 

Astute readers will begin to pick up on some subtle clues along the way that someone is working against them - someone wants the kids to find the treasure only so they can take it away from them.  There's the sudden appearance of the "ghost" that haunts the cemetery.  There's the odd reluctance of the elderly caretaker to provide the twins and their cousin with any information regarding the old pirate and his family (as it seems the pirate changed his ways, turned to God, and worked hard to make amends for his old life - including sending that letter to the two families, in the hopes they would forgive him if they got their heirlooms back!).  There's the strange feeling that someone is always watching them, following them, always just out of sight.  But, as with any good teen detectives, these three persevere, ultimately finding the missing treasure - which discovery also brings to light some secrets about the two families that have repercussions on a number of members of the families!

 

From what I have been able to learn about the Thorne Twins series, this is the last book in the series.  It is a rather unique series, in that it is a Christian-based series, with the main characters devout in their faith; yet, the mysteries involve chasing UFOs (book 17), saving a captive girl from a drug ring (book 16), finding a foreign dignitary (book 15), chasing down bigfoot (book 13), outwitting terrorists (book 12), and even fighting to stop a civil war on an island in the Aegean Sea (book 11)!  These are some rather adult themes for a young adult series, and definitely some themes I am surprised to find in a Christian-based series.  Although, if the rest of the series is anything like this book, right always conquers wrong, and any temptations the twins may face (such as the idea of riches in this book), by the end of the story they see the folly of their ways and realize their faith in God is more important than anything else.

 

As indicated above, I picked up this book because of the similarity in title and cover art to the second Bobbsey Twins books published back in 1980. Since this book did not come out until four years later, one is left to wonder if the Courtney, or the cover artist for this book (who is unidentified, although could be John Ham, who provided the interior illustrations), was influenced by the earlier Bobbsey Twins' book.  The stories are not overly similar, since this book is set in California and the Bobbseys travel to Bermuda in their book.  However, both stories involve pirate thieves and hidden caves under a property that is used for smuggling.  It is the covers that are more similar, with the boat heading for a cave, and the girl standing/seated above the boys, looking toward the dark entrance of the cave ahead of them.  What's funny about this is that the Bobbsey Twins' book, Secret in the Pirates' Cave, is actually taken from an even older book written by Andrew Svenson (using the pseudonym Alan Stone), The Mystery of Pirate Island, which was the second of the three-book Tollivers series published back in 1967.  When the Stratemeyer Syndicate needed new titles for their new Bobbsey Twins series being published by Simon & Schuster, they simply took the three Tollivers books and replaced the names of those characters with the names of the Bobbsey Twins and published them as "new" books in the Bobbseys' series!  Thus, we have one basic story, and three books...

 

While I did enjoy the story for the most part, it was not engaging enough for me to want to go out and hunt down the entire series.  I'll simply put this with my Bobbsey Twins collection as a knock-off of one of their books.

 

RATING:  7 broken lanterns out of 10 for combining pirate legends, hidden treasures, secret passages, and torn maps into a fun little mystery! 

The Secret of the Devil's Cave - a Magnum Gothic original

This is now the second Gothic novel I've read that was written by Jennifer Hale (otherwise known as Frank E. Smith (1919-1984), the previous one being Ravensridge, published in 1971, just two years prior to this one.  The plots of both books are entirely different, but the stories are both exceptionally suspenseful and filled with mystery and drama.  I am still, to this day, awed at the ability of these male authors, back in the day, writing so well books aimed at a female audience, capturing so nicely the strength of their female protagonists without making them helpless (but giving them just enough danger to need a man to assist in their journey through the Gothic tropes).  While this book was also written in a first-person perspective (which I am not a fan of at all!), just like the previous book, I will still able to thoroughly enjoy and get caught up in the story. 

 

The Secret of Devil's Cave is a book I would have picked up on the title alone, as it invokes memories of all those children's series book titles from back in the day (The Mystery of ... / The Clue in ... / The Secret at ... / etc.).  The story centers around young Beth Nolan, whose father has died and left her property in the Ozarks of Missouri, on which is located not only a rather large mansion, but also some cave that goes by the name "Devil's Cave."  Beth is shocked, as her father never mentioned this property, and although Beth knows they moved from Missouri when she was three years old, she was unaware he had no sold all of the property the family owned at that time.  It seems her father had some secrets to keep, one of which is a mysterious photograph of a gravestone that is not engraved.  Who would bury someone, place a headstone at the grave, and then not inscribe it?  Having no other choice, Beth temporarily closes the antique shop she and her father ran and travels to Devil's Cave to claim her inheritance.

 

Hale (a/k/a Smith) sets the mood of the story right from the get-go, with Beth driving through some extremely dense fog, lost within the Ozarks as she tries to make her way to the cave.  When she finally comes across a small gas station / general store, she is met with some hesitation when she asks directions to her destination. From the owner of the store, Beth learns the cave is said to be haunted, with people hearing voices calling out in the cave.  She also learns that two girls have died in the cave - one by accident (supposedly), but the other murdered.  And the alleged murderer was never convicted and still lives on the property that neighbors her own!  On top of all that, Beth also learns the Bratcher family lives on her property, having been there ever since her own family left, and everyone thought the family owned the land.  The store owner warns her the family will not be happy when she stakes her claim.  And, boy, he wasn't wrong!

 

Earl Bratcher and his wife are definitely none-too-pleased at Beth's sudden appearance.  Earl insists he has a signed contract with Beth's father, allowing him to manage the property and tourist attraction, yet he persistently makes excuses why he cannot show it to her.  The Bratchers' two sons - Walt and Mark - run hot and cold: Walt is sarcastic and clearly does not welcome Beth's presence, while Mark is a bit more reserved and takes Beth under his wing to try and protect her a bit from his family's harsh attitudes.  The Bratchers' daughter, Leda, is a bit of a wild child, one who happens to be in love with Charles Woodward - the very man accused of killing the young girl in the cave!  Then there is poor Flossie, Walt's wife.  She is not quite all there (being the product of inbreeding, as Earl so bluntly puts it), but Beth feels sympathy for her and tries to become her friend ... until she learns that some years back, Flossie killed her brother's dog and dumped it down the "bottomless" well inside the cave, all because her husband liked the dog better than her ... and she won't let her husband like anything, or anyone better than her ... including Beth!

 

There is definitely plenty of suspense and mystery in this book - who really killed those girls in the cave?  Why did the Bratchers close the cave, and what happened to the guest who disappeared while exploring the cave some weeks ago?  Is there really a hidden treasure somewhere within the cave?  Why does the father of a local artist have a painting of Beth in his house?  What is the secret behind the photo of that tombstone, and how will the answer to that question change Beth's life forever?  What surprising revelations are being held within the old trunk in the basement of the great house?  And just why does that old woman who claims to be a witch think that Beth is a dead woman come back to life?  What knowledge does she have about Beth, the Devil's Cave, and the Bratcher family that will reveal a past so dark and filled with lies and secrets that no one will come out unscathed?

 

This book proved to be a fantastic read, a page-turner that I literally could not put down until I had finished it.  The cover artist is not identified, and while I do like it, I have to admit it has some oddities to it.  Beth's hair flying up like that makes it seem like there's an air draft coming from beneath her (makes me think of that famous image of Marilyn Monroe trying to keep her dress down as the air blows up from below), and those lamp posts are all leaning inward, pointing toward the mansion behind Beth - not sure why the artist chose that kind of perspective, but it seems just a bit off.  However, the barren trees, the coloring of that sky behind the house, and Beth's expression definitely create a sense of terror that fits the story within.

 

That's two for two with the Jenifer Hale Gothics I have read, so it gives me strong reason to find the rest of her (his) Gothics and read them as well!

 

RATING:  10 glass coffins on display out of 10 for a superb Gothic mystery with just the right touches of supernatural suspense and hellish horror!

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! 

Ravensridge - a Magnum Gothic original

I had every expectation from the first page that I was not going to like this book.  With those opening two words, "My nerves..." (p. 5), I was already disappointed.  I am not a big fan of first person narrative. I can tolerate it when the story is sufficiently good, or if I am already a fan of the particular characters in the book.  But as a general rule, I prefer reading third-person narrative stories.  But, I took a breath and went on reading, figuring I could work my way through the story and at least see what happens and how it all turns out.  Well, despite the first person POV, by the third page of the story, I was thoroughly hooked.  And by the end of the book, I realized how glad I was that I did not put it aside after those first words.  This book has literally become on of my favorite gothic reads!

Ravensridge, published in 1971 under the "Magnum Gothic Original" imprint, was written by Jennifer Hale. According to the Paperback Warrior blog, Jennifer Hale is a pen name for Frank E. Smith (1919-1984), who was a successful author of police procedural novels.  Smith apparently used several other pseudonyms, but he began using "Jennifer Hale" for the five gothic novels he wrote between 1971 and 1978, including this one.  Thus, we have yet another male author hiding behind a female pen name for purposes of writing and selling gothic stories.  But I give Smith credit, as the story rates definitely on the high end when it comes to Gothic greatness.  The book has everything a reader will want to see in a gothic story - a dark, gloomy house; a mysterious family with secrets; the death of a past resident under strange circumstances; a young protagonist who is thrust into the middle of all this darkness; threats that escalate as the story progresses; and danger, suspense, and mystery that keep the reader turning page after page after page!

Melissa Manion is the heroine of this particular novel.  She is a professional photographer who has come to Ravensridge at the invitation of her friend, Charles Courtney, to photograph the house and all of its priceless antiques.  But from the moment she arrives on the dark and stormy night, it is clear things are not right at the old house.  The housekeeper, Miss Kane, has no idea who she is or why she is there, and she makes it clear to Melissa that she is not welcome.  Charles is not at home, and Charles' older brother, Philip, was unaware of her visit, but he warily welcomes her into their home.  The groundskeeper and all-around handyman, Lennie, let's it slip that there have been deaths of other women in the past at the house.  And the young maid, Helen, is skittish and scared, worried that there will be more death in this house, particularly now that Melissa has arrived!  And last, but not least, the arrival of Stephanie Doyle, the woman who claims to be Charles' fiance and who is determined that Melissa will not steal her man away (despite the fact Melissa is not interested in Charles and plainly tells her so!).  Then, when Charles does finally appear, he is haggard and depressed.  There is so much going on at Ravensridge that Melissa begins to wonder if her coming there was a mistake...

Oh, yes, let's not forget the local townsfolk, as they definitely play a large part in the story.  There's Earl Mitchell, whose sister Nancy was killed in the local cemetery - and he firmly believes Philip Courtney was the one who did it!  There's Alan Greer, the man that some people claim Philip's wife ran away with (although others believe his wife is dead, murdered by someone at Ravensridge!).  And we musn't forget Floyd Emmert, the former deputy sheriff and brother to Philip's wife, who has insinuated his way into Ravensridge with his other daughter.  Of course, there is also Burt Loftus, a dangerous man who believes Charles is having an affair with his wife - and who gives Melissa a very terse warning to pass on to Charles when she sees him: stay away from his wife, or Charles will find himself as dead as Nancy Mitchell!

Plenty of characters, plenty of secrets, and plenty of suspicions to go around!  And poor Melissa finds herself drawn into all of it.  At first, it is innocuous enough - a missing lipstick, a stolen photograph.  But then matters begin to escalate.  A large gargoyle falls from the roof of the old house, nearly crushing Melissa.  Then, she is nearly killed when a gas line is opened in her room while she is asleep - a sleep from which she nearly never awakens!  It all culminates in the Lost Souls Cave on the outskirts of the Courtneys' property, where Melissa faces off against an insane evil that has been terrorizing Ravensridge for some time - and our young heroine nearly loses her life, only to be rescued by the man she at one time thought might have been behind all of the horrors at the old house.  

I was drawn into the story from the first few pages, and I simply could not put it down until I had finished it.  The suspense, the mystery, the drama, the characters, the setting - they all blend together so seamlessly to create a terrifying tale of gothic horror that any fan will thoroughly enjoy.  The cover art is gorgeous, with a semblance of connection to the story (even though the winged creature is not technically a gargoyle, and neither is is located on the upper roof of the house, but at least it signifies some form of danger from a statue in the tale...); however, there is no artist signature and no artist is identified on the copyright page or the back cover - so we are left to wonder who painted this haunting image.

This is DEFINITELY a gothic novel I highly recommend - well worth the read!

RATING:  10 expensive wide-angled lenses out of 10 for a story of mystery and suspense superbly written in true gothic fashion.