365 Days of Nancy Drew Blog Preview 3

I'm adding a preview of what's going on at my 365 Days of Nancy Drew Blog Party below.

Join the Nancy Drew Blog Party that celebrates 80 years of Nancy Drew all year long with: Classic Nancy Drew Book Discussions (all 56), Nancy Drew Collecting, Behind the Scenes Mysteries, The Characters, Places, and Suspense we all love, Contests and giveaways, Monthly Projects and Crafty Endeavors, and an 80th Anniversary party! I'm going to work my way through classic and modern Nancy Drew within the books and behind the scenes. So hop in your roadsters and enjoy this nostalgia ride back to River Heights along with me!

Click here to join the Blog!

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A mysterious inn, chicken dinners, Maud Potter. Let's discuss!

A Few Fast Facts:

Ghostwriter: Mildred A. Wirt Benson for the original. Patricia Doll revised the story and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams rewrote the manuscript for the revision.

3 Cover Illustrations By: Russell H. Tandy, Bill Gillies, Rudy Nappi.

Outline: Last outline written by Edward Stratemeyer.

Synopsis From My Website:

Original Text:

A theft at Lilac Inn of Emily Crandall's diamonds leads Nancy on a search for the thieves to clear Laura's guardian, Mrs. Willoughby. In a dramatic ending, Nancy finds herself bound and gagged on a ship at the hands of the thieves. It's a mystery that begins and ends at Lilac Inn.

Revised Text:

Nancy and her friend, Helen Corning, visit Lilac Inn to help their friend Emily Willoughby, whose diamonds are stolen. A mysterious ghostly figure on the grounds of Lilac Inn, a message with the words "blue pipes," and someone impersonating Nancy leads her dangerously on the trail of a gang of thieves with a dramatic conclusion aboard a ship. (The revision is mostly a brand new story and actually takes place centrally at Lilac Inn which makes for a nice story.)

Lilac Inn is one of those books that when revised becomes an all new story/plot. What did you all think of the change of location and storyline in the revision? Did you prefer it?

I liked the setting of the mystery and the solving of it mostly around Lilac Inn. The description of the place makes me want to vacation there--sounds heavenly with the sweet smell of lilacs in grove after grove. I like how the revision incorporated some interesting facts about lilacs and some of them were used as clues. The closet with the secret entrance to the dining room was a nice touch for that suspenseful flair. I thought Nancy's dressing up as her impersonator was clever and exciting to play "ghost" at night.

Mary Mason in the original version was quite the nasty villain--trying to get Carson Drew to believe she was really Nancy in the end was an interesting turn of events. Diving for the diamonds in the revision was fun.

Original vs. Revised - 5 Interested Clues:

1. The revision is an all new story and plot!

2. In the original, the diamonds are stolen at Lilac Inn but there is no mystery centered around the inn. The revision centers the mystery around the inn.

3. In the original, Nancy's friend is named Emily Crandall. In the revision her name is changed to Emily Willoughby.

4. In the original, Hannah Gruen is more of a servant and in the revision she's more a part of the family.

5. The only villain who carries over from the original to revision is Bud Mason.

3 Mysterious Things About Nancy:

1. Nancy's an expert at skin diving.

2. Nancy never trusts an informer too far.

3. She won't take money as a reward.

An Important Lesson We Learned From Nancy:

Once a thief, always a thief!

Sleuthworthy Rating on a Scale of 1 to 10:

Original=6. As a mystery, it wa so-so, I didn't find it as interesting as the revision and the servants thing was a bit overdone.

Revised=9. I like this revision. I liked the mystery at the inn and the setting. I can smell the lilacs just thinking of the place!

Jenn:)