Goodbye (but only for a little while!)

Hi everyone :) Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Life has gotten really busy lately and I just haven't been able to keep up with this blog. I won't be posting for a while, but eventually I do want to get the blog up and going again when I have more time. I'm not sure exactly, but that will probably be sometime around March/April.

~Sienna

Puzzles :)

     Hello everybody! I can't believe it's the last day of November already! I'm on break from school now, so I should be able to post a lot more this next month! For now, here is a puzzle for you all to work on! All you have to do is unscramble the ND titles and guess if it is a game, book, or television episode! Enjoy :)


het ecuraetr fo puka vace (game - The Creature of Kapu Cave)

eht luce fo teh renkob colket (book - The Clue of the Broken Locket)

crestes nca likl (book and game ;) - Secrets Can Kill )

eht sermyty fo teh hewstgritrso riseuc (tv episode - The Mystery of the Ghostwriters Cruise)

eth rife gradno yesmtry (book - The Fire Dragon Mystery)


~Sienna

P.S. Highlight for the answers :)

The Shattered Medallion: Clues, Hints, and Theories

     Today is part 2 of our discussion on The Shattered Medallion! Here is a list of what we do know. If you have any questions about how this information was discovered, just leave a comment and I will be happy to help you!

Abbreviation: MED
Location: New Zealand
Characters: Nancy Drew, Bess Marvin, (most likely) George Fayne, 3 other male characters, 3 other female characters
Phone Friends: ???
Plot: Nancy and George are contestants on a Survivor-like tv show called Pacific Run. The actual mystery is unknown.
Book based on:

     I will update this list as we learn more about the game. Now onto the rumors. My first thought (and as I've seen on the HeR message boards, many other people thought the same thing) was related to this:

The production company for Pacific Run

     Doesn't that just scream Sonny Joon??! If it is Sonny, is he trying to lure Nancy into a trap, or will Nancy just bump into him again (and maybe even see him this time!). Another theory is that there will either be no culprit or a returning culprit (possibly from RAN??). The accidents happening to the contestants could really just be nothing more than accidents. 

     Another thing to note is that we have not heard from George in quite a while. Either something has been going on with her and it will be revealed in this game, or HeR is having come problems with the character and/or voice actress. In the trailer, Pacific Run accidentally refers to George as "Greg". Some fans are afraid that this may result in a problem and Nancy will really end up on the show with an unknown "Greg" and George will not be able to make it.

     On Tuesday, Little Jackalope hid a secret message in her post on the Amateur Sleuth blog. It said "He is coming." Who is he?? No one knows yet, but I think it sounds like another hint towards Sonny Joon! What are your thoughts?? Let me know in the comments!

~Sienna

ND Game 30

     Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I have been sooo busy! At the beginning of the month, HeR Interactive publicly released the name and trailer of ND Game 30. It is called *insert drumroll* The Shattered Medallion!!! Here is the trailer:

     So far, the title and trailer are the only official pieces of information that have been released. In the next day or two I will post about all of the things that have been discovered by fans and some of the theories about the plot, characters, and books the game may be based on. Until then I would love to hear what your first thoughts were! You can leave a comment to let me know :)

~Sienna

Classic Reissues & Fansites

     While I was reading through Jennifer Fisher's Nancy Drew Sleuths blog earlier today, I discovered that the first four books in the Classic Nancy Drew series are being reissued! They will get new covers, but the text will remain the same as it has been since 1959. Here are the covers:

     Personally, I think it is a fabulous idea and I love the new covers! They are bright and intriguing. I have yet to discover the artist's name. They will be priced the same as the regular Classics ($7.99) and the internal illustrations will remain the same as before. They will be released in May of 2014.

     Also, I have found some great Nancy Drew fansites recently and wanted to share them with you!

     littlenancydrewthings.tumblr.com

     everythingnancydrew.tumblr.com

     Can You Name the Nancy Drew Characters (for the computer games)

     and I don't think I've ever shown you this ND song by reliant K:

~Sienna

The Nancy Drew Diaries

     The latest Nancy Drew series to be written is the Nancy Drew Diaries. It began February of this year, shortly after the Girl Detective series ended. There are only four books in the series so far. The first two books (Curse of the Arctic Star, Strangers on a Train) were written about the same mystery. It does not appear that the authors will continue writing this way. Erin McGuire is the illustrator for this series. In my opinion, Ms. McGuire draws Nancy a little younger than she actually is, but aside from that, I think her illustrations are fantastic! Here are the first four:

     Below is the illustration for the fifth book in the series, which has not been published yet. It is set to be released at the beginning of next year.

Sabotage at Willow Woods

~Sienna

The Silent Spy: A Spoiler Free Review

     Wow! After pre-ordering the game over a month ago, my game finally arrived on Wednesday! I had solved the case by Thursday afternoon and I absolutely loved the game! Here is my review of the game. I have rated each category on a scale of 1-5, 5 being the best possible score.

Plot (5)

     From the SPY game page: "Nearly a decade ago Agent Kate left home to neutralize a biochemical weapon in Scotland. While her assignment was a success, Kate died in a car accident. Or so we were told. Now the echoes of a similar plot reverberate and it's up to you, as detective Nancy Drew, to thwart the sleeper cell and expose the truth about your mother's tragic demise."

     The moment I saw the teaser trailer at the end of GTH, I was so excited. Ever since I began reading the books in 2007 I have wondered about Nancy's mom. Not anymore! I also loved the "spy" theme. I was afraid that HeR would overdo it and make Nancy's mom some crazy international spy. Thankfully, that did not happen! Kate was actually an investigative reporter who got mixed up in this crazy terrorist plot and tried (with the help of an organization called Cathedral) to stop them. She could have backed out, but didn't want to quit or leave the people of Glasgow in danger. I feel that in her position, Nancy would have done the same thing. Actually, I guess you could say she did do the same thing by solving this case.

Characters (4.5)

     Alec Fell: Alec was my second favorite character. He is the first person you meet as soon as you arrive in Glasgow. He's a great character, but I wish we got to know more about him. This is understandable though, because you really can't trust anyone in the game! You don't know who is good or who is bad until the very end!

     Bridget Shaw: Bridget, the second character you meet, was definitely my favorite! It is hard to tell you why without giving away a major spoiler, so I'll just say this: Bridget Shaw is not entirely who she seems to be and there is a chance we may be hearing from her again in the future!

     Moria Chisholm: I loved talking to Moira so much! She's one of those super nice, older characters who has great stories to tell. I love talking to characters like that, as long as they don't go on and on with their stories (like Takae and Renate ;)  ) I also loved that many of her stories were about Nancy and triggered memories of Kate.

     Ewan MacLeod: Ewan is your contact at Cathedral. Because he has access to so much information, he is very helpful when you are trying to learn more about the other characters! He also has a ton of great spy gadgets that you get to use!

Setting (5)

     The setting was absolutely amazing! By the end of the game I had counted nine locations you get to totally explore and two that you briefly visit to complete a few easy tasks. Everywhere you go is absolutely gorgeous and had so much to explore.

Phone Friends (4)

     Carson and Ned were your phone friends in this game. You get to have some really great conversations with them. Especially one with both of them after he catches Ned breaking into the Drew home (after Nancy asks him to of course!). Over the ending credits yo get to hear a really great conversation that Nancy has with her Dad once she is back home after solving the case. They mostly talk about Kate and it was really great! I'm not sure if this was only on the bonus edition or not. I only wish that we got to talk to Bess, George, and maybe even Hannah since this was a really big and emotional case for Nancy.

Puzzles (4.5)

     The puzzles were great! There were a lot of new puzzles in this game that we have never seen before. I loved the cookie puzzle you do to earn money throughout the game! A couple were a little too difficult for me, but for the most part I was able to solve them without needing spoilers.

Music (5)

     WOW! The music was absolutely beautiful! My favorite song was Kate's theme. I loved how they incorporated this song into the puzzles too! I don't own any of the soundtracks to previous games, but I will definitely be buying this one.

Culprit/Ending (4)

     I had a million different guesses as to who the culprit might be throughout the game! I was wrong almost every time! They definitely keep you guessing. You discover who the culprit is about thirty minutes before the end of the game. Once you figure out who they are, you have to catch them and then solve several puzzles to stop their plan of attack! I wish we had more of an explanation about their motive, but that is my only complaint.

Miscellaneous (4)

     It took me 7-8 hours to finish the game (2-3 days total). For me, that is the perfect length. The graphics were beautiful too! They get better with every game! The amount of snooping was enormous! You get to snoop in everyone's everything and find out a ton of stuff about them1 In this game you see pictures of Bess, George, and all of Nancy's other friends too. Everyone but Bess looks the same. I thought that the first Bess (from RAN) was okay, and that second Bess (from ASH) was almost perfect (she was just a little too skinny). I really didn't like this third Bess, though. Her hair was much shorter, and in pig tails. She looked no older than 16. Maybe a little younger. You get used to it though.


     Overall, this turned out to be my favorite game yet! After totaling the scores, it got a total of 36 out of 40 points! If you haven't purchased this game yet, you definitely need to! Digital pre-orders are still available for a couple of days, and after that the game will be available in stores! I hope you enjoyed reading my review! If there are any other games you want me to review, let me know! I can do and of the games available for Mac (22-29 & SCK2).

~Sienna

Nancy Drew: Girl Detective

     It is time to discuss the third Nancy Drew series, Nancy Drew: Girl Detective! The following paragraphs are an excerpt from a book I am working on about everything Nancy Drew. Enjoy!


     "In March of 2004, shortly after the digest series ended, a new Nancy Drew series began. It was called the Girl Detective series. According to Simon and Schuster, 'Nancy Drew has a new spring in her step. And it's no wonder: We've given her whole world more oomph. In the all new Nancy Drew, we've enhanced and expanded everything you've loved about Nancy, Bess, George, and the rest of Nancy's crew. You loved the series before, but with more, dimension, you'll love the series even more now! Learn why River Heights is such a hotbed of criminal activity, meet some new key sources of information for Nancy on all her cases, become acquainted with Nancy's new nemesis, and become even closer friends with Bess and George. And that's just the beginning...'

This series portrays Nancy much differently than any other series ever has, but she is still dedicated to solving whatever challenges that lie ahead. When she's on your trail, you had better watch out because nothing can stop her! A big change in this series is that they are now written in first person, almost always from Nancy's point of view. All of the characters in this series are also a bit different from the Classic series, but they are still loosely shaped around the way they started out. Bess is still a total girly girl, but this time around, without her boyfriend, Dave Evans, she tends to be a bit more flirty. Another change to Bess that is very different is that she has pretty much turned into a mechanic. She can fix almost anything and pick any lock you give her. This change takes some getting used to as Bess has never been this way before, but it certainly helps Nancy solve many of her cases!

George has also been changed a bit, but in a way that (to me) seems very much like George if she were a real person living today. Now she is totally into electronics and knows all about computers and any other electronic device you could imagine. Also, unlike the classic series, her name is no longer just plain George, it is now Georgia, but she can't stand Georgia, so everyone just calls her George. Everyone except for her parents, that is. Another change to the cousins is that they now have siblings. George has an older and a younger brother and Bess has a little sister.

Nancy also experienced a bit of a change when this series first appeared. Aside from when she is solving a mystery, Nancy is very clumsy and forgetful. Always forgetting to fill her car up with gas, or forgetting her date with Ned, or any number of things. She even has Charlie Adams, the River Heights mechanic, on her speed dial because she forgets to put gas in her car so often! Charlie has also stopped charging Nancy because he has to help her out so much.

Mr. Drew and Hannah stay pretty much the same, but all of a sudden, Chief McGinnis has become very impolite to Nancy. He seems to think that she is always "sticking her nose where it doesn't belong," or interfering with other people's business. I do understand that she does solve many cases that started out as his, but if he really were a good police chief you would think that he would be glad that his community is safe, no matter who puts the criminals in jail!

Ever since book 30 came out in June, 2008, the mysteries have been in trilogies. Three books all written about the same mystery to make one long, intricate mystery! These books are still available in bookstores although they are no longer being written. This series also has three Super Mysteries and six Crossovers. The Crossovers include both the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. This series ended on February 21, 2012 with the forty-seventh book in the series, Stalk, Don't Run."

~Sienna

1. Without a Trace
2. A Race Against Time
3. False Notes
4. High Risk
5. Lights... Camera...
6. Action!
7. The Stolen Relic
8. The Scarlet Macaw Scandal
9. Secret of the Spa
10. Uncivil Acts
11. Riverboat Ruse
12. Stop the Clock
13. Trade Wind Danger
14. Bad Times, Big Crimes
15. Framed
16. Dangerous Plays
17. En Garde
18. Pit of Vipers
19. The Orchid Theif
20. Getting Burned
21. Close Encounters
22. Dressed to Steal
23. Troubled Waters
24. Murder on the Set
25. Trails of Treachery
26. Fishing for Clues
27. Intruder!
28. Mardi Gras Mystery
29. Stolen Bones
30. Pageant Perfect Crime
31. Perfect Cover
32. Perfect Escape
33. Secret Identity
34. Identity Theft
35. Identity Revealed
36. Model Crime
37. Model Menace
38. Model Suspect
39. Green-Eyed Monster
40. Green With Envy
41. Seeing Green
42. Secret Sabotage
43. Serial Sabotage
44. Sabotage Surrender
45. California Schemin
46. Mystery at Malachite Mansion
47. Stalk, Don't Run

Super Mysteries:

Where's Nancy?

Once Upon a Crime

Real Fake

Crossovers:

Terror on Tour

Danger Overseas Club Dread

Gold Medal Murder

Bonfire Masquerade

Stage Fright

Also, Nancy Drew Ghost Stories

New Blog & New Puzzle

     Hi everyone! Check out my new blog! I created the new blog to post more about ND games and things like that. Just so you know, I am not abandoning this blog! I will still post on it often, I just decided to keep this one for the ND books and the new one for the ND games. (Unless something major happens with the games, then it will go on here also). I hope you enjoy reading them both!

     In other news: I have a new puzzle for you to solve! This is a matching puzzle based on the revised Classic ND series. Enjoy!

~Sienna

Can You Match the Criminal to the Crime?? (Highlight post to reveal answers!)

1. The Black Snake Colony (F, from The Secret of Red Gate Farm)

2. Bushy Trott (A, from The Secret in the Old Attic)
3. The Channings, Sidney Boyd, and Dunstan Lake (J, from The Mystery at the Ski Jump)
4. Felix Raybolt (E, from The Clue in the Diary)
5. Nitaka (H, from The Clue in the Old Album)
6. Peter Tombar (B, from The Clue of the Velvet Mask)
7. Benny "The Slippery One" Caputti (I, from The Thirteenth Pearl)
8. Louis Aubert (D, from The Mystery of the 99 Steps)
9. Edgar Nixon (G, from Nancy's Mysterious Letter)
10. Nathan Gomber (C, from The Hidden Staircase)


A. Music Theft
B. Robbery
C. Haunting a House
D. Fake Chemist
E. Insurance Fraud
F. Counterfeiters
G. Lonely Hearts Club
H. Doll Theft
I. Jewel Theft
J. Selling Fake Stock

More on The Silent Spy and Recent Nancy Drew Happenings

The Silent Spy cover art!!!

     Just recently a lot of information has been released about HeR Interactive's upcoming game, The Silent Spy! The trailer will be released on Monday, September 16. This is the same day pre-orders begin. When you pre-order a physical or digital download copy of the game you will receive the bonus edition. The bonus edition includes:

●   "Play classic mini-games on your cell phone!
●   Find and collect exclusive in-game phone charms!
●   Receive additional texts on your in-game cell phone!
●   Find and listen to an exclusive audio clip in the cabin!
●   Earn a unique in-game award!"
Taken from the SPY game page

     The character profiles have also been released! You can view them here: SPY Characters
And last, but not least, there are four screenshots from the game that have been posted! Here they are:

"Tucked away amongst the trees of Loch Lomond are the
cabin and training arena. Is this a safe place to
hide? Or does danger follow you here?"

"The Brae Training Area provides you
with the space to hone your combat skills.
The gadgets in here may also prove useful
to your investigation."

"Welcome to Glaucus Lodge, your hotel
in Glasgow! The courtyard is the perfect
place to meet with the locals and
inconspicuously grab a snack."

"Your cozy hotel room may be your
temporary home base, but don't take your
safety for granted. Your enemies can
still find you seven floors up."

     My personal favorites are the Loch Lomond and the Glaucus Lodge! A bit of information that was not revealed, but discovered, is that the woman on the cover art is indeed Nancy's mom, Kate Drew! If you go to the merchandise store, you will see that the image is tagged "Agent Kate"!

     In the world of Nancy Drew books, we are just twelve days away from the release of Once Upon a Thriller, the fourth book in the Diaries series. I also found out that the book shown below is set for release in winter of 2014. The series says Nancy Drew Diaries, but the titles are of graphic novels that were released in 2005. Obviously, from the home page, they are still graphic novels, so I'm not sure if Simon & Schuster are allowing Papercutz to re-release all of the Nancy Drew Graphic novels as Graphic Diaries, or not. The Demon of River Heights and Writ in Stone may or may not be the only books released in this format.

Is this the first in a set of new
Nancy Drew Graphic Diaries??

~Sienna

IMPORTANT!

     HeR Interactive has just released some very important information. Megan Gaiser, CCSO and former CEO of HeR Interactive will be leaving the company! Below is a link to the press release.

HER INTERACTIVE CCSO MEGAN GAISER MAKES HER NEXT MOVE

     We will miss you Megan!

~Sienna

The Digest Paperback Series

     Continuing on from my post at the end of July, the next Nancy Drew series to be discussed is the Digest Paperback series. Officially, the digests are considered a part of the Classic series, with the first book actually being #57 (The Triple Hoax). Because there were so many changes between the two series a lot of people consider books 57-175 to be a separate series. I decided to separate them on here because I was able to give more information that way.

     In 1979, The Stratemeyer Syndicate switched publishers, going from Grosset & Dunlap to Simon & Schuster. In 1984, The Stratemeyer Syndicate was sold to Simon & Schuster. The Digest Series began in 1979, after the switch. It ran for 24 years, ending in late 2003, and consists of 119 books. The books were no longer written under the same format. For the most part, the Digest books are approximately 140-150 pages and 15 or 16 chapters long. They were written by many different ghostwriters and used several different illustrators.

     The books were mainly printed as paperbacks, but several of the earlier volumes were printed in the yellow hardcover format, used in the Classic series. An example of one of these books is shown below.

Left: The Triple Hoax, Paperback
Right: The Triple Hoax, Hardcover

     The writing style was very similar to that of the Classic series, but it seems as if there were not so many rules. In books #77 and #78 (The Bluebeard Room and The Phantom of Venice) Nancy is not only running around Europe with boys other than Ned, but she is kissing them too! Something like this would never be allowed in the Classic series. For the most part though, the books avoided incidents like those and were written like the Classic book. For more information, visit the Digest Paperbacks section of Lea Fox's Nancy Drew World. The next series I discuss will be The Girl Detective series.

~Sienna

Hints About The Silent Spy!

     Mark your calendars everybody! Yesterday HeR Interactive released all of the dates associated with their latest game, The Silent Spy. Here they are:

     This was the first piece of information released about the game aside from the teaser trailer. Hopefully this means that they will be releasing more soon! Oh and here's a helpful tip. If you read HeR Interactive's Amateur Sleuth blog by Little Jackalope, start highlighting the posts after you read them! Before a game is released LJ usually hides hints between the paragraphs! Yesterday she hid this sentence: "Two more Fridays." (highlight to read). Apparently more information will be released on or after that time!

     Ever since their 22nd game, Trail of the Twister, HeR Interactive has offered a bonus edition of the game to everyone who pre-orders. Twice (with CAP and GTH) they have sold out of the physical bonus edition because so many people (including me) pre-order! Will you be pre-ordering SPY? Let me know what you think about this game in the comments section! Stay tuned for my next post about the Digest series!

~Sienna

P.S. I am needing to find a bunch of great quotes from the Classic Nancy Drew books (original or revised). I already have a lot, but I know there are thousands more! If you know of any let me know in the comments section!

Books for Sale

     Here is the information I promised you about my Hardy Boys & Nancy Drew books for sale!

     Click Here!

     You are limited to 8 pictures on Craigslist, so I was unable to fit the picture of my Hardy Boys book from Applewood publishers. Here it is:

If you have any further questions, please let me know in the comments section!

~Sienna

EDIT: Something went wrong with my Craigslist listing and those are not my current prices. Until I can fix this, you can go by the price list below. The paperbacks are no longer for sale.

Classics: $2.00 each or $60 for all
Super Mysteries: $2.50 each or $20 for all
Twin Thrillers: $10 for both
Hardy Boys Applewood: $4.00
Hardy Boys Book Club: $4.00
Original Hardy Boys with Wraparound DJs: $5.00 each or $20.00 for all
Original Hardy Boys with DJs (not wraparound): $5.00 each or $15.00 for all
Original Hardy Boys without DJs: $4.00 each or $20.00 for all

I will sell you all the books for $130.

The Classic Series

     Today, I realized that I have never really talked about all of the different Nancy Drew series. I really want to do this, so I have decided to break it up and post about one series at a time. I will do them in the ordered they were published, starting with the Classic series.

     The classic series was written from 1959 to 1979 by 8 different ghostwriters under the pseudonym of Carolyn Keene. The 56 books in the series were meant for children ages 8-12. Because of this, most of the mysteries in this series were theft, arson, hidden wills and inheritances, or the occasional kidnapping. Nancy never solved a murder case and no one ever used inappropriate language.

     Nancy's friend, Helen Corning, helped her solve the first four mysteries in the series. After that, cousins Bess Marvin and George Fayne became Nancy's best friends and sleuthing companions. Ned Nickerson was Nancy's boyfriend (although he was usually referred to as her "special" friend), and Bess and George dated Dave Evans and Burt Eddleton. Many of the mysteries came to Nancy through her father, who was a criminal lawyer.

     Below is a list of all the books in the series. If you would like to see the illustrations or descriptions, please visit this link. I own all of the books in this series, so if you would like more information, or if you want me to write a review of one of the books, please let me know in the comments section!

~Sienna

1. The Secret of the Old Clock       29. Mystery at the Ski Jump

2. The Hidden Staircase       30. The Clue of the Velvet Mask

3. The Bungalow Mystery       31. The Ringmaster's Secret

4. The Mystery at Lilac Inn       32. The Scarlet Slipper Mystery

5. The Secret of Shadow Ranch       33. The Witch Tree Symbol

6. The Secret of Red Gate Farm       34. The Hidden Window Mystery

7. The Clue in the Diary       35. The Haunted Showboat

8. Nancy's Mysterious Letter       36. The Secret of the Golden Pavilion

9. The Sign of the Twisted Candles       37. The Clue in the Old Stagecoach

10. The Password to Larkspur Lane       38. The Mystery of the Fire Dragon

11. The Clue of the Broken Locket       39. The Clue of the Dancing Puppet

12. The Message in the Hollow Oak      40. The Moonstone Castle Mystery

13. The Mystery of the Ivory Charm      41. The Clue of the Whistling Bagpipes

14. The Whispering Statue       42. The Phantom of Pine Hill

15. The Haunted Bridge       43. The Mystery of the 99 Steps

16. The Clue of the Tapping Heels       44. The Clue in the Crossword Cipher

17. The Mystery of the Brass-Bound Trunk    45. The Spider Sapphire Mystery

18. Mystery of the Moss-Covered Mansion    46. The Invisible Intruder

19. The Quest of the Missing Map       47. The Mysterious Mannequin

20. The Clue in the Jewel Box       48. The Crooked Banister

21. The Secret in the Old Attic       49. The Secret of Mirror Bay

22. The Clue in the Crumbling Wall      50. The Double Jinx Mystery

23. Mystery of the Tolling Bell 51. Mystery of the Glowing Eye

24. The Clue in the Old Album 52. The Secret of the Forgotten City

25. The Ghost of Blackwood Hall        53. The Sky Phantom

26. The Clue of the Leaning Chimney   54. The Strange Message in the Parchment

27. The Secret of the Wooden Lady 55. Mystery of Crocodile Island

28. The Clue of the Black Keys 56. The Thirteenth Pearl

Note: It is believed that the upcoming Nancy Drew computer game, The Silent Spy, is loosely based on the 41st book in this series, The Clue of the Whistling Bagpipes!