Litsy

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

pick

I‘m late finishing this one for #nancydrewbr and I think I have another potentially #unpopularopinion. 😂 I was surprised to see this with a 33% rating and I enjoyed it for exactly the reasons many hated it. While I have major objections to the Romany stereotypes and the pejorative used to name them, I liked that the mystery didn‘t involve a lot of secret rooms and exploding oranges. The side characters were awful, but that was part of the charm.

Librarybelle

Ruthiella Nice to read a positive review of this one! 😃 (edited) 6d

Librarybelle It was nice to have a different type of mystery—agree on that! 6d

37 likes2 comments

LitsyEvents

The Ghost of Blackwood Hall | Carolyn Keene

repost for @Librarybelle

#LittenDetectives : We‘re going to New Orleans next month! Nancy, Bess, and George track down a thief and while there, they also explore the abandoned Blackwood Hall which supposedly has…you guessed it…a ghost.

Discussion on November 15th. All are welcome to join. Please let me know if you wish to be added/removed from the tag list. #NancyDrewBR

Librarybelle Thanks for reposting! 1w

26 likes1 comment

kwmg40

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

pan

Not a particularly good installment in this series. There were unappealing side characters, problematic stereotypes and a mess of a plot.

#NancyDrewBR @Librarybelle
#HauntedShelf #ScreamTeam
#OneSnacktoRuleThemAll #AllThingsApple
#BookSpinBingo
#AfterDarkBingo (Let's Split Up, Gang!)
#ISpyBingo (red hair)
#PumpkabooHunt (small)
#GottaCatchEmAllSpooky (Sinistea: Antique)

@ImperfectCJ @Bookwormjillk @TheAromaofBooks @PuddleJumper

Bookwormjillk 🍎🍎🍎 1w

Librarybelle Completely agree! 1w

PuddleJumper 🧡🖤🧡 1w

See All 7 Comments

TheAromaofBooks I'm gathering from various reviews that this wasn't the strongest entry in the series 😂 1w

Seabreeze_Reader Which Nancy Drew book has been your favorite so far? 1w

kwmg40 @Librarybelle @TheAromaofBooks Glad I'm not alone in disliking this one! 1w

kwmg40 @Seabreeze_Reader Hard to say, as there have been several I've liked very much, but The Clue of the Broken Locket and The Secret in the Old Attic come to mind. 1w

37 likes7 comments

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 25: The Ghost of Blackwood Hall | Carolyn Keene

#LittenDetectives : We‘re going to New Orleans next month! Nancy, Bess, and George track down a thief and while there, they also explore the abandoned Blackwood Hall which supposedly has…you guessed it…a ghost.

Discussion on November 15th. All are welcome to join. Please let me know if you wish to be added/removed from the tag list. #NancyDrewBR

rubyslippersreads, DebinHawaii, DGRachel, BarkingMadRead, Jennifer3, kspenmoll, PurpleyPumpkin, JenlovesJT47, MariaW, CogsOfEncouragement, AnneCecilie, Born.A.Reader, Bookwormjillk, Read4life, StayCurious, bookandbedandtea, Laughterhp, Sace, Bren912, kwmg40, CSeydel, MuddyPuddle, Ruthiella, dabbe, Julies_Bookshelf_Adventures, Enchanted_Bibliophile, Allylu, TheAromaofBooks, Charityann, Roary47, KristiAhlers, peanutnine, PageShifter, AmandaBlaze

Librarybelle @LitsyEvents 1w

BarkingMadRead Can‘t wait!! 1w

Bookwormjillk 👻👻👻 1w

See All 6 Comments

Ruthiella Looking forward to this! 👻 1w

Librarybelle Yay, @BarkingMadRead @Ruthiella ! 1w

Librarybelle I‘m a bit too excited for the ghost, @Bookwormjillk . I just hope my expectations are not too misplaced! 1w

34 likes6 comments

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

Alright #LittenDetectives ! It‘s time for our #NancyDrewBR discussion! This one was a hot mess, and I think most of us feel that this is not a strong entry in the series. But, it was fun to go back to River Heights and visit with Nancy and the gang.

I have 5 questions posted. They can be found on my feed, the book‘s feed, or by searching the group‘s hashtag.

Next month we encounter The Ghost of Blackwood Hall!?! 👻 Official post tomorrow!

35 likes

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

This post contains spoilers

show me

5. There are not many adventures for Nancy in this one...though the ending with her abducted by the bad guys and thrust into a car was a little spooky. Thankfully, Carson Drew could get a helicopter on standby to rescue her! 🙄

But, overall, it just seemed like a letdown, Nancy being one step behind the bad guys in this one and driving all over to hunt down the violinist that may or may not be Rose's father. Thoughts? #NancyDrewBR

Ruthiella Overall I just found this one WIERD. 😅 The mysterious substance in the doll that gives energy is never explained. The television studios and radio stations that are easily accessible. The message in the blanket. The doll with the poison sword… 2w

Bookwormjillk I agree. It was just really weird. How many antique shops and radio/TV stations do they have in River Heights? 2w

CogsOfEncouragement Hiring a detective but not telling Mrs. Struthers was whack.

The helicopter got an eye roll from me too. 2w

See All 6 Comments

DebinHawaii Dull & it was just chock full of random odd bits that never came together in a way that benefited the story. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 1w

kwmg40 I agree with the other comments. The plot in this book was a weird mess. 1w

DGRachel It‘s funny to be on the other side of one of these. I can totally see everyone‘s arguments, and maybe it‘s just my current mood, but I appreciated the quieter absurdity. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 7d

9 likes6 comments

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

This post contains spoilers

show me

4. Let's move into the characters. I had a hard time feeling any sympathy for Rose--she's a child, but also not a well-behaved one!

I also found it funny that Ned was telling Nancy his lifelong dreams and was about to say that she was included in them, only for Nancy to interrupt him and talk about the mystery. 😂

Any thoughts on secondary characters? #NancyDrewBR

Ruthiella Totally! In the last book he starts going on about their future together and she ignores him /cuts him off. Clearly she‘s not interested in marriage! Rose was I guess just misdirected, but her behavior was frustrating. (edited) 2w

Bookwormjillk Rose seemed drunk a lot of the time. Calm down Rose.

That was funny about Ned though. 2w

bookandbedandtea Rose was annoying but I definitely felt it was the gramma's fault...kids need to be taught proper behavior. As for Ned's future plans, I like that this series shows Nancy with priorities other than marriage, especially considering how long ago these were originally written. 2w

See All 8 Comments

CogsOfEncouragement Ned had some good boyfriend moments in this one, and then I too was amused by Nancy cutting him off.

The side character I most want to know more about is Nanny Dew. lol 2w

DebinHawaii Rose was really annoying! 1w

BarkingMadRead Poor Ned 🤣 Rose was a nightmare! 1w

kwmg40 I thought it was amazing that Rose learned to play the violin so quickly. It must be multi-talented Nancy's influence. 😄 1w

DGRachel I may be misremembering, but I feel like a lot of the children written as side characters in these are horrid little monsters until Nancy steps in to gently correct their behavior. I like that Ned wasn‘t as obnoxious in this one, and Nancy‘s abrupt change of subject cracked me up. 7d

10 likes8 comments

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

This post contains spoilers

show me

3. The dolls deserve their own talking point! Not really a question regarding them, unless you also got a little tired about hearing about dolls like I did.

And yes...some of the earlier designs of dolls are super creepy (and kind of appropriate for this time of year).

Link in comments to a brief history of rag dolls in American history. #NancyDrewBR

Librarybelle https://oldetymeartsandcrafts.com/rag-doll 2w

Ruthiella I did want to look up that particular rag doll! Thanks for the link! 👍 2w

Bookwormjillk I kind of skimmed over all the doll business but hearing about them always reminds me of when my brother rented an Air BnB that was actually a room in someone's house that was filled with dolls. 2w

See All 10 Comments

CogsOfEncouragement I was unable to picture any of the dolls in any way but creepy LOL I tried. Something about a doll being on display in a collection instead of loved by a little kid turns it into something else. I definitely watched too many Twilight Zones. 2w

Ruthiella @CogsOfEncouragement Oh yeah. Talking Tina! 😱😱😱 1w

DebinHawaii Yep, just something creepy about dolls on display! 😱 1w

BarkingMadRead Dolls have never really creeped me out, but I also never really understood people who collect them 🤣 of course, my gnome collection is totally normal 🤷🏻‍♀️ 1w

kwmg40 I actually found the doll theme rather interesting and made me think of the Raggedy Ann doll I had as a child. 1w

DGRachel @BarkingMadRead Gnome collections are absolutely normal and not anything at all like creepy doll collections. 7d

BarkingMadRead @DGRachel whew!!😰 7d

10 likes10 comments

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

This post contains spoilers

show me

2. Now that we're in a more lighthearted mood from Cher, let's explore the plotline for this Nancy Drew escapade, which I thought was kind of boring. I didn't read this one as a child, but I think younger me would be disappointed in it too. It's also a bit dated with thoughts on gypsies, in my opinion.

What are your thoughts on the plot?

Link in the comments is to the Hungarian Rhapsody, as played by violin and piano. #NancyDrewBR

Librarybelle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBOivZLs7Mc 2w

Ruthiella The plot and characters were weak.The writing tries in a 1970s way to underscore “not all Gypsies” but does not succeed. I thought the doctor knowing what poison was in the sword was ridiculous and the message in the blanket…just how long was that lady working on it? 😂 (edited) 2w

Bookwormjillk Yup, boring. I missed the usual Nancy high adventure. The only interesting part was the poison and that happened early on. 2w

See All 8 Comments

bookandbedandtea @Ruthiella @Bookwormjillk I was FLOORED that the doctor could identify the poison by smell and then whipped up an antidote on the spot! 😆 2w

CogsOfEncouragement Yes, I agree @Ruthiella they did not succeed. It needed much more of a rework to erase the feeling that gypsies are no good. And yes, so glad the doctor had a good sense of smell! lol

I was also confused by the whole child bride situation being included. 2w

DebinHawaii Yes to all this! The whole child bride thing was odd & yay for the doctor with the amazing nose! Hah! 😳😵‍💫🙄🤣 1w

kwmg40 I too found the stereotypes disturbing, and the whole child bride thing a bit icky. 1w

DGRachel I very much hated the stereotypes of the Romany and the child bride thing is wrapped up in that. I liked the poison dolls, though. I thought they were clever, even if the doctor recognizing it was ridiculous. 7d

10 likes8 comments

Librarybelle

Nancy Drew 24: The Clue in the Old Album | Carolyn Keene

This post contains spoilers

show me

1. To set the mood, I've placed in the comments an audio recording of Cher's “Gypsys, Tramps, and Thieves.“ I don't know about you, but it definitely played rent-free in my head while I was reading this one!

I thought this was the weakest of the books we've read so far. We'll break down plot, characters, etc. in the next questions, but what was your overall impression of the book? How does it compare to our prior reads? #NancyDrewBR

Librarybelle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuA_gCMiw0E 2w

Ruthiella I agree this was a bit of a stinker overall. I don‘t think I would have noticed as a kid, however. (edited) 2w

bookandbedandtea @Ruthiella ditto! I'm sure child-me enjoyed this as much as any of the others but adult-me wasn't impressed by the mystery or the attitudes about the gypsies. I love that song, though @Librarybelle ! 2w

See All 9 Comments

Bookwormjillk I wasn't impressed either. It was dated, but also kind of a little boring. 2w

CogsOfEncouragement I agree, a little boring. Thanks for the link to the song, I am not familiar with it. 2w

DebinHawaii Perfect song! I barely remember this one from childhood except the poison in the sword 🗡️ of the one doll. I remember that freaking me out. This definitely was not a good one! 1w

BarkingMadRead It was fine. That‘s it. 🤣 1w

kwmg40 I agree. This wasn't a particularly memorable installment in the series. 1w

DGRachel I‘m completely opposite the group on this one. I enjoyed it more than most simply because it was quieter. 🤣🤣 7d

10 likes9 comments

Welcome to Litsy!

Trending Hashtags

Trending Books