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Ghost Stories: #1-27-59-89-107-133
A collection of six chilling supernatural tales.
Contents:
- The Campus Ghost
- The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks
- Blackbeard's Skull
- The Ghost Jogger
- The Curse of the Frog
- The Greenhouse Ghost
Contents:
- The Campus Ghost
- The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks
- Blackbeard's Skull
- The Ghost Jogger
- The Curse of the Frog
- The Greenhouse Ghost
151 pages, Paperback
First published May 2, 1983
39 people are currently reading
464 people want to read
About the author
Carolyn Keene
1,129 books3,909 followersCarolyn Keene is a writer pen name that was used by many different people- both men and women- over the years. The company that was the creator of the Nancy Drew series, the Stratemeyer Syndicate, hired a variety of writers. For Nancy Drew, the writers used the pseudonym Carolyn Keene to assure anonymity of the creator.
Edna and Harriet Stratemeyer inherited the company from their father Edward Stratemeyer. Edna contributed 10 plot outlines before passing the reins to her sister Harriet. It was Mildred Benson (aka: Mildred A. Wirt), who breathed such a feisty spirit into Nancy's character. Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 Nancy Drew Mystery Stories®, including the first three. It was her characterization that helped make Nancy an instant hit. The Stratemeyer Syndicate's devotion to the series over the years under the reins of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams helped to keep the series alive and on store shelves for each succeeding generation of girls and boys. In 1959, Harriet, along with several writers, began a 25-year project to revise the earlier Carolyn Keene novels. The Nancy Drew books were condensed, racial stereotypes were removed, and the language was updated. In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.
Other writers of Nancy Drew volumes include Harriet herself, she wrote most of the series after Mildred quit writing for the Syndicate and in 1959 began a revision of the first 34 texts. The role of the writer of "Carolyn Keene" passed temporarily to Walter Karig who wrote three novels during the Great Depression. Also contributing to Nancy Drew's prolific existence were Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Nancy Axelrod, Priscilla Doll, Charles Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., and Margaret Scherf.
Edna and Harriet Stratemeyer inherited the company from their father Edward Stratemeyer. Edna contributed 10 plot outlines before passing the reins to her sister Harriet. It was Mildred Benson (aka: Mildred A. Wirt), who breathed such a feisty spirit into Nancy's character. Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 Nancy Drew Mystery Stories®, including the first three. It was her characterization that helped make Nancy an instant hit. The Stratemeyer Syndicate's devotion to the series over the years under the reins of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams helped to keep the series alive and on store shelves for each succeeding generation of girls and boys. In 1959, Harriet, along with several writers, began a 25-year project to revise the earlier Carolyn Keene novels. The Nancy Drew books were condensed, racial stereotypes were removed, and the language was updated. In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.
Other writers of Nancy Drew volumes include Harriet herself, she wrote most of the series after Mildred quit writing for the Syndicate and in 1959 began a revision of the first 34 texts. The role of the writer of "Carolyn Keene" passed temporarily to Walter Karig who wrote three novels during the Great Depression. Also contributing to Nancy Drew's prolific existence were Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Nancy Axelrod, Priscilla Doll, Charles Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., and Margaret Scherf.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
October 6, 2013
My parents never censored my reading, so I read everything that I could get my hands on, which actually did include some age-appropriate choices occasionally. Nancy Drew was one of these, though I can't say that I read all of them, or even anywhere close to all of them. Maybe a dozen?
As a kid, I liked her. She was smart, got shit done, and always solved the case. She was the kind of character that little girls want to look up to - independent, intelligent, inquisitive, idealistic...
Now... well these stories might not be the best representation of Nancy Drew, but I can't say that she's all that impressive to my 30+ year old self. And in fact, I found her to be a bit much. Too perfect, to always the one saving the day, or always the one at the center of everything, even when she's not. In two of the stories in this book, she has to be rescued, which, you'd think would be a nice change from her being THE ONE all the time, but the people who saved her weren't doing so because of any intelligence or initiative on their own parts - they were doing so because Nancy needed it. It was always all about her. Whenever we see anyone who is not Nancy Drew, they talk of nothing but Nancy Drew.
Just a tiny bit unrealistic, I think.
Which is in keeping with the rest of the book, unfortunately. I was getting a bit dizzy with all my eye-rolling, if you want to know the truth. There was so much that was just flat out ridiculous that I really regret picking this one up at all.
There were six stories in this little book, all about 30 pages long. All of them followed the same format: Nancy learns of a mystery involving a "ghost", sets out to solve it, does, and then fills in all the rest of the people tagging along behind her (including the reader) because we can't follow her conjecture-I-mean-logic. The way that things just fell into place, that people just happened to show up in the exact right place, at exactly the right time... it was just ridiculous.
It's like the end of the stories are written first, and then the details are put in place, and then finally all of the connecting story is slotted in... but this is just stuff like "The sharp-eyed girl sleuth then went to [the scene of the crime] and found [the evidence] after careful investigation." (And oh, let's not get started on all of the adverbs and adjectives!) There's nothing linking each piece of evidence to the other pieces of evidence... except Nancy.
And furthermore, 90% of the action happens off-camera. Nancy just thinks about doing something, and then miraculously the next sentence shows the bad-guys apprehended and leaves the reader wondering exactly how that happened.
It's storytelling of the laziest sort. Honestly, all I kept thinking of the entire time I was reading these was Scooby Doo. (These stories were published in the 80s, so that's fair, right?)
The worst story though was The Ghost Jogger. Here's the basics. Nancy's jogging along, minding her own business, when a mysterious ghostlike man jogs up next to her and hands her a vague note, telling her to check a barn with a flaming horse on it. So she does, conveniently finding the very barn she's looking for the very first attempt, and extra super conveniently, while the badguys are actually there being... bad. They've kidnapped some kids! Oh no! But, oh, rats, they get away because Nancy's convertible very inconveniently runs out of gas. Poo!
So, the next day, she goes jogging again, and again the ghost finds her and gives her a note with a new hint... one she again tracks down super easily. She's led to an abandoned boat that's been missing for years, and again the badguys are there with the kids begging to be saved (heartwrencher alert!), and when the ghost shows up, the badguys get away again - leading Nancy and her friends on a river chase.
Then, just when page 30 is looming and the end of the story needs to happen, the police show up (with the kids' parents, which... what?) and the ghost explains how he's not REALLY a ghost at all (shocker!), but is the main kidnapper's nephew. He knew of the plot to kidnap the kids for ransom money, but didn't call the police because he didn't want the scandal to get out... so he did the next best thing, getting Nancy Drew on the case. Because she was going to prettily scold the kidnapper and tell him to never do that again! and then he'd know the error of his ways and would be a reformed citizen.
Oh wait, no. The police arrested him anyway. Not the ghost though, despite letting children be kidnapped and held for two days without notifying the police. It doesn't count as accessory to kidnapping if you pretend to be a ghost to vaguely alert Nancy Drew... DUH! And then, in the same twee fashion as all the other stories in this book, NANCY is praised for solving the case and returning the kids to their parents. Not the ghost for actually having a conscious, misguided as he was in how he applied it.
But the best part of all is that, when the police and parents arrive, and the kids get free and run to them, the kidnappers actually yell "Stop! You can't take those children until you pay me the reward money! I found them!" which gave me a nice chuckle.
So one star for the utter ridiculousness of this book making me laugh, but that's all, because now my fond childhood memories are tarnished. *sigh*
As a kid, I liked her. She was smart, got shit done, and always solved the case. She was the kind of character that little girls want to look up to - independent, intelligent, inquisitive, idealistic...
Now... well these stories might not be the best representation of Nancy Drew, but I can't say that she's all that impressive to my 30+ year old self. And in fact, I found her to be a bit much. Too perfect, to always the one saving the day, or always the one at the center of everything, even when she's not. In two of the stories in this book, she has to be rescued, which, you'd think would be a nice change from her being THE ONE all the time, but the people who saved her weren't doing so because of any intelligence or initiative on their own parts - they were doing so because Nancy needed it. It was always all about her. Whenever we see anyone who is not Nancy Drew, they talk of nothing but Nancy Drew.
Just a tiny bit unrealistic, I think.
Which is in keeping with the rest of the book, unfortunately. I was getting a bit dizzy with all my eye-rolling, if you want to know the truth. There was so much that was just flat out ridiculous that I really regret picking this one up at all.
There were six stories in this little book, all about 30 pages long. All of them followed the same format: Nancy learns of a mystery involving a "ghost", sets out to solve it, does, and then fills in all the rest of the people tagging along behind her (including the reader) because we can't follow her conjecture-I-mean-logic. The way that things just fell into place, that people just happened to show up in the exact right place, at exactly the right time... it was just ridiculous.
It's like the end of the stories are written first, and then the details are put in place, and then finally all of the connecting story is slotted in... but this is just stuff like "The sharp-eyed girl sleuth then went to [the scene of the crime] and found [the evidence] after careful investigation." (And oh, let's not get started on all of the adverbs and adjectives!) There's nothing linking each piece of evidence to the other pieces of evidence... except Nancy.
And furthermore, 90% of the action happens off-camera. Nancy just thinks about doing something, and then miraculously the next sentence shows the bad-guys apprehended and leaves the reader wondering exactly how that happened.
It's storytelling of the laziest sort. Honestly, all I kept thinking of the entire time I was reading these was Scooby Doo. (These stories were published in the 80s, so that's fair, right?)
The worst story though was The Ghost Jogger. Here's the basics. Nancy's jogging along, minding her own business, when a mysterious ghostlike man jogs up next to her and hands her a vague note, telling her to check a barn with a flaming horse on it. So she does, conveniently finding the very barn she's looking for the very first attempt, and extra super conveniently, while the badguys are actually there being... bad. They've kidnapped some kids! Oh no! But, oh, rats, they get away because Nancy's convertible very inconveniently runs out of gas. Poo!
So, the next day, she goes jogging again, and again the ghost finds her and gives her a note with a new hint... one she again tracks down super easily. She's led to an abandoned boat that's been missing for years, and again the badguys are there with the kids begging to be saved (heartwrencher alert!), and when the ghost shows up, the badguys get away again - leading Nancy and her friends on a river chase.
Then, just when page 30 is looming and the end of the story needs to happen, the police show up (with the kids' parents, which... what?) and the ghost explains how he's not REALLY a ghost at all (shocker!), but is the main kidnapper's nephew. He knew of the plot to kidnap the kids for ransom money, but didn't call the police because he didn't want the scandal to get out... so he did the next best thing, getting Nancy Drew on the case. Because she was going to prettily scold the kidnapper and tell him to never do that again! and then he'd know the error of his ways and would be a reformed citizen.
Oh wait, no. The police arrested him anyway. Not the ghost though, despite letting children be kidnapped and held for two days without notifying the police. It doesn't count as accessory to kidnapping if you pretend to be a ghost to vaguely alert Nancy Drew... DUH! And then, in the same twee fashion as all the other stories in this book, NANCY is praised for solving the case and returning the kids to their parents. Not the ghost for actually having a conscious, misguided as he was in how he applied it.
But the best part of all is that, when the police and parents arrive, and the kids get free and run to them, the kidnappers actually yell "Stop! You can't take those children until you pay me the reward money! I found them!" which gave me a nice chuckle.
So one star for the utter ridiculousness of this book making me laugh, but that's all, because now my fond childhood memories are tarnished. *sigh*
October 7, 2023
The reading of this book was filmed in front of a live studio audience.
5/6 of these stories were fine, and some of them were even good...but one of the stories was the most racist garbage I think I've ever had to read.
The Curse of the Frog is the 5th short story in the book and right from the beginning it accosts the reader with racist stereotypes of the Romany people and uses the g-slur every other sentence. The story itself is a hastily written non mystery with no focus and an info dump monologue at the end to wrap up a nonsensical and outright offensive piece of work. The story veers off halfway into being about- no lie -a pirate frog cult and one is left to wonder if the Romany culture was simply brought up to be slandered.
Also there is subtle transphobic subtext in the way a Romany fortune teller is described as having an "unusually deep voice for a woman".
ALSO there's a mention of a family being pro confederacy with nothing to challenge that narrative so that's not good.
Emotional support stuffies are suggested to read as in all honesty and jokes aside this was a very triggering portion of an otherwise fun Nancy Drew collection. In fact, just skip this one unless it's for educational purposes.
Sincerely Yours,
The Scooby Drew Crew 2023
5/6 of these stories were fine, and some of them were even good...but one of the stories was the most racist garbage I think I've ever had to read.
The Curse of the Frog is the 5th short story in the book and right from the beginning it accosts the reader with racist stereotypes of the Romany people and uses the g-slur every other sentence. The story itself is a hastily written non mystery with no focus and an info dump monologue at the end to wrap up a nonsensical and outright offensive piece of work. The story veers off halfway into being about- no lie -a pirate frog cult and one is left to wonder if the Romany culture was simply brought up to be slandered.
Also there is subtle transphobic subtext in the way a Romany fortune teller is described as having an "unusually deep voice for a woman".
ALSO there's a mention of a family being pro confederacy with nothing to challenge that narrative so that's not good.
Emotional support stuffies are suggested to read as in all honesty and jokes aside this was a very triggering portion of an otherwise fun Nancy Drew collection. In fact, just skip this one unless it's for educational purposes.
Sincerely Yours,
The Scooby Drew Crew 2023
April 15, 2022
Nancy and her friends, Bess and George, take on mysteries with a ghostly twist in these six short stories. Our heroines get to the bottom of the very live persons behind the ghostly appearances.
It's been a long time since I read these, but I think my feeling about the stories are about the same. Something happened to Nancy once we got past the original 56 stories. She just doesn't have quite the same courage and acumen. In one of these stories she gets locked in an outdoor ice house and she calls out to her friends, "Let me out! It's creepy in here." The stories also have a bit of the feel of a Scooby Doo episode--the mysteries are even more simplistic than the full novels and sometimes the solutions don't make sense. "The Ghost Jogger" jumps about from scene to scene in such a way that it's just confusing--there's no real logic about why the kidnappers behave the way they do. My quibble with "Blackbeard's Skull" is noted below (separated because it's a bit of a spoiler--so be warned). Overall, the stories were pleasant enough and most had a germ of a good plot. It just seems that they're miss a little something. ★★ and 3/4--not quite up to the full three star mark. (but rounded up here)
"The Campus Ghost": Nancy unravels the mystery of the professor's ghost that haunts the science labs at Clermont College.
"The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks": Nancy helps a friend get to the bottom of the ghostly canines that haunt her family's ancestral farm. Are the dogs upset at their burial place or is there more to the story?
"Blackbeard's Skull": The ghost of Blackbeard is said to haunt and curse those who take his treasure. When the doubloons displayed at a North Carolina ranger station disappear, With the help of the British Mr. Hudson*, Nancy prove it's no curse and discovers where the treasure has been taken.
"The Ghost Jogger": A ghostly figure gives Nancy a message to "find them in the empty barn with the flaming horse on it." Nancy must figure out who "them" are and where the barn is before she can solve the mystery of the ghost jogger."
"The Curse of the Frog": Nancy investigates a fortune teller who may be running a very shady operation. There are threats of a curse--from a weird frog statue. And then she discovers that the frog may have a very different meaning indeed.
"Greenhouse Ghost": Nancy is asked to investigate a cottage with a haunted greenhouse. The owners want to sell the property, but prospective buyers keep getting scared off.
*
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
It's been a long time since I read these, but I think my feeling about the stories are about the same. Something happened to Nancy once we got past the original 56 stories. She just doesn't have quite the same courage and acumen. In one of these stories she gets locked in an outdoor ice house and she calls out to her friends, "Let me out! It's creepy in here." The stories also have a bit of the feel of a Scooby Doo episode--the mysteries are even more simplistic than the full novels and sometimes the solutions don't make sense. "The Ghost Jogger" jumps about from scene to scene in such a way that it's just confusing--there's no real logic about why the kidnappers behave the way they do. My quibble with "Blackbeard's Skull" is noted below (separated because it's a bit of a spoiler--so be warned). Overall, the stories were pleasant enough and most had a germ of a good plot. It just seems that they're miss a little something. ★★ and 3/4--not quite up to the full three star mark. (but rounded up here)
"The Campus Ghost": Nancy unravels the mystery of the professor's ghost that haunts the science labs at Clermont College.
"The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks": Nancy helps a friend get to the bottom of the ghostly canines that haunt her family's ancestral farm. Are the dogs upset at their burial place or is there more to the story?
"Blackbeard's Skull": The ghost of Blackbeard is said to haunt and curse those who take his treasure. When the doubloons displayed at a North Carolina ranger station disappear, With the help of the British Mr. Hudson*, Nancy prove it's no curse and discovers where the treasure has been taken.
"The Ghost Jogger": A ghostly figure gives Nancy a message to "find them in the empty barn with the flaming horse on it." Nancy must figure out who "them" are and where the barn is before she can solve the mystery of the ghost jogger."
"The Curse of the Frog": Nancy investigates a fortune teller who may be running a very shady operation. There are threats of a curse--from a weird frog statue. And then she discovers that the frog may have a very different meaning indeed.
"Greenhouse Ghost": Nancy is asked to investigate a cottage with a haunted greenhouse. The owners want to sell the property, but prospective buyers keep getting scared off.
*
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
January 18, 2016
This is a 1983 paperback consisting of six 'bone-chilling tales of mystery and terror.'
Somewhat of an exaggeration, really.
Ghosts do figure into all of the stories but none, of course, are real ghosts. Greed is the theme common to the stories, though, as one or more people want something that is valuable. In one case it's a drug formula; in another it's four gold dog statues; gold figures in the third story, a substance to change the color of a flower in a fourth, and so on.
The short story format just doesn't work real well for Nancy Drew stories; things get condensed just to much. The stories are too similar and, I feel, at least one of them should have involved an actual ghost of some sort.
I'm not saying it's a bad book, but it's not up to the usual Nancy Drew standard.
Somewhat of an exaggeration, really.
Ghosts do figure into all of the stories but none, of course, are real ghosts. Greed is the theme common to the stories, though, as one or more people want something that is valuable. In one case it's a drug formula; in another it's four gold dog statues; gold figures in the third story, a substance to change the color of a flower in a fourth, and so on.
The short story format just doesn't work real well for Nancy Drew stories; things get condensed just to much. The stories are too similar and, I feel, at least one of them should have involved an actual ghost of some sort.
I'm not saying it's a bad book, but it's not up to the usual Nancy Drew standard.
December 11, 2020
This was a fun Halloween read. Some stories were better than others.
A ghostly professor haunts her lab, ghost dogs protect a fortune in gold, pirates come back from the dead to claim their treasure, a friendly ghost helps rescue kidnapped children, a sinster fortune teller and her cursed frog swindle people and a ghostly orchid grower plots a scheme. Of course Nancy gets to the bottom of each mystery - sometimes with some paranormal help!
A ghostly professor haunts her lab, ghost dogs protect a fortune in gold, pirates come back from the dead to claim their treasure, a friendly ghost helps rescue kidnapped children, a sinster fortune teller and her cursed frog swindle people and a ghostly orchid grower plots a scheme. Of course Nancy gets to the bottom of each mystery - sometimes with some paranormal help!
August 18, 2020
Meh. These mysteries are SO SO SO short for one, and kind of annoying because the author continued to call Nancy the "girl detective" which got old after a while.
October 27, 2017
I'm giving it an extra star for sentimental reasons.
January 6, 2025
2 stars overall considering this book definitely didn't age well and the mysteries weren't haunting (obviously, as Nancy doesn't believe in ghosts) or good.
I really only wanted to read The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks because I absolutely adore the video game Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake. I had tried in the past to see what Nancy book the Nancy game was based on when it reality it wasn't a fully fledged out novel but a short story! I did enjoy that short story, but the game's story is WAY better by a landslide, in my opinion. But that's probably because it actually had time to develop a plot versus a short story mystery that had to fit everything in about 20 pages.
I read this for more nostalgic vibes than anything as I love mysteries and grew up with Nancy Drew books. This one, however, I don't think I would ever keep in my collection of Drew books because I will agree with the 1 star reviews that the short story The Curse of the Frog is in poor taste to Romani people - and is the story that really didn't age well.
I really only wanted to read The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks because I absolutely adore the video game Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake. I had tried in the past to see what Nancy book the Nancy game was based on when it reality it wasn't a fully fledged out novel but a short story! I did enjoy that short story, but the game's story is WAY better by a landslide, in my opinion. But that's probably because it actually had time to develop a plot versus a short story mystery that had to fit everything in about 20 pages.
I read this for more nostalgic vibes than anything as I love mysteries and grew up with Nancy Drew books. This one, however, I don't think I would ever keep in my collection of Drew books because I will agree with the 1 star reviews that the short story The Curse of the Frog is in poor taste to Romani people - and is the story that really didn't age well.
August 27, 2010
I just love ghost stories! Mysteries! And Nancy Drew! So when I saw this on the shelf, I just had to buy it! I maybe too old for Nancy Drew, but I just love to read about her adventures! They're a classic anyways. Each story in this book was good! A great book to read on Halloween night! Especially if it's a dark stormy night and the only light available is a flashlight with a group of people reading it out loud. . . .
January 1, 2012
Ok. I desperately wanted to reach my 100 book goal and with 2011 drawing quickly to a close, I ran to my childhood collection and pulled this off for a quick reread. Cheating? Maybe, but I hate not achieving goals. I have had a particularly stressful year and need to feel like I accomplished something.
Bring on 2012! I'm ready. I think...
Bring on 2012! I'm ready. I think...
February 4, 2017
Easy reading. And easy to solve.
October 2, 2023
Somehow it’s absolutely terrible. But it’s easy to read at least!
August 21, 2024
I wasn't impressed with this book to say the least...
I like a good short stories book but for mysteries, and esp Nancy Drew mysteries, a short story is just not going to work. As a kid, I loved binge reading Nancy Drew novels but that's bc each storyline had it's own proper book so there was a good time line. In short stories, it isn't fun to read a story where everything is an issue until Nancy pulls up and all of a sudden the mysteries get solves in a couple days, everything somehow falls into place, Nancy keeps getting bonked on the head and captured but she's ok every time.
Side note, the description of the characters is not good at all.
Nancy - attractive 18 year old
George - slim, tomboyish, athletic
Bess - plump, multiple remarks in the book of her wanting to eat, disapproving looks/sounds by george/nancy, "only 300 calories" - comment by Nancy like wth ... so unnecessary
I like a good short stories book but for mysteries, and esp Nancy Drew mysteries, a short story is just not going to work. As a kid, I loved binge reading Nancy Drew novels but that's bc each storyline had it's own proper book so there was a good time line. In short stories, it isn't fun to read a story where everything is an issue until Nancy pulls up and all of a sudden the mysteries get solves in a couple days, everything somehow falls into place, Nancy keeps getting bonked on the head and captured but she's ok every time.
Side note, the description of the characters is not good at all.
Nancy - attractive 18 year old
George - slim, tomboyish, athletic
Bess - plump, multiple remarks in the book of her wanting to eat, disapproving looks/sounds by george/nancy, "only 300 calories" - comment by Nancy like wth ... so unnecessary
November 8, 2019
It was amazingly full of twists and turns like all Carolyn Keene's books it deserves a 5-star rating!
November 1, 2021
3.5 // this was a fun and short read for my last book of october. my only issue with it is that the stories felt really rushed (as they would be in a short book of short stories).
October 30, 2023
True rating: 3.5 stars.
A fun little Nancy for spooky season.
A fun little Nancy for spooky season.
January 17, 2024
Nancy Drew and her friends Bess and George solve 6 ghostly mystery.
March 16, 2025
The usual Carolyn Keene style, always nice. A bit of a push to call them ghost stories though
October 4, 2025
Pretty typical Nancy Drew book. I liked that it was short stories. Quick but decent read.
November 21, 2025
52Books2025 Reading Challenge: November Mini-Challenge: Related to the word “Perspicacious”
October 23, 2020
For this and other book reviews, visit www.bargain-sleuth.com.
Nancy Drew has faced all sorts of bad guys, but ghosts? Back in 1983 when I was in full-blown Nancy Drew-reading mode, the publishers came out with Nancy Drew Ghost Stories. I begged and pleaded and on a trip to B. Dalton Bookstore, my parents bought me the volume. I’ve kept it all these years, as well as collected the other variations of covers--there are four different covers, and one cover had two different sized books. How did Nancy Drew Ghost Stories stand up over time?
Nancy Drew Ghost Stories consists of six stories, some better than others. There’s The Campus Ghost, which isn’t really scary, even though there appears to be a ghost on campus. But our level-headed Nancy Drew isn’t swayed by what she sees. She knows there’s some logical explanation and figures it out. The solution to the mystery is a bit far-fetched, but that happens sometimes in Nancy Drew books.
The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks has Nancy, Bess and George helping out Sally McDonald Butler, a childhood friend of Nancy’s, to help solve the mystery of her great grandparents’ home, Whispering Oaks. It is said that their beloved dogs were buried in the wrong spot after the grandparents’ death, and that they now haunt the house, which has been unoccupied all this time. There’s also said to be solid gold statues of the four dogs hidden somewhere in the house, but no one can find them. Well, with Nancy on the case, is there any doubt the mystery will be solved?
Blackbeard’s Skull gives a little bit of a history lesson as Nancy, Bess and George vacation along the shore in North Carolina. First, there’s pirate gold on display, which could have come from the great pirate Blackbeard, as he’s said to have died near that spot. There’s a British cemetery, and Nancy meets a man who explains that during WWII, British boats went after the German U-boats were picking off American merchant ships until the British came to help. Several British ships were torpedoed and still at the bottom of the bay. Of course, the pirate gold gets stolen, and it’s up to Nancy to find it. Have no fear!
The Ghost Jogger concerns the kidnapping of two children. Police have no clue where to find them. While jogging one evening in the park, Nancy is approached by a jogger in a full white robe and hood and passes her a note with a clue on how to find the children. What I thought was weird was that I was reading my original copy, a first edition, and one sentence didn’t make sense on page 110, and the next sentence didn’t seem to follow the first. So I went and got one of my newer copies with different cover art and discovered six whole paragraphs were missing from the first edition. Reading the revised edition made much more sense, and it wasn’t long before Nancy encountered the ghost jogger again, and leads her to the missing children.
The Curse of the Frog is the weakest story in the collection. It concerns Gypsies, frogs, and missing stolen pirate treasure. At one point Ned and Burt magically appear, and it is only after the bad guys are caught that Nancy explains how and why Ned and Burt wound up in this secret passageway, waiting for the bad guys to make their move.
The Greenhouse Ghost is just okay as well. As with most of the stories, the bad guys are made rather apparent early on in the story, Nancy just needs to catch them in the act. This story has to do with a missing formula for making blue orchids, Carson Drew is hired to oversee the sale of Orchidiana, an estate and greenhouses where there’s rumored to be a ghost, and he wants Nancy to get to the bottom of it. Of course she does, because she’s Nancy Drew!
Nancy Drew Ghost Stories was good overall, with only a few stories that were so-so. Nancy never loses her cool when she comes upon a “ghost”, which was refreshing to see. In more modern incarnations of Nancy Drew, she’s not as cool headed as she used to be.
There were two other Nancy Drew Ghost Stories published. Last week I reviewed the Girl Detective Ghost Stories published in 2008, and Nancy Drew Ghost Stores #2, which I’ll be reviewing next week. The pictures above are all the same book, just redesigned as the years went on with different covers. And even though the original version is missing those paragraphs, I’d never get rid of it because of the wonderful internal illustrations that the publisher got rid of with subsequent editions.
Nancy Drew has faced all sorts of bad guys, but ghosts? Back in 1983 when I was in full-blown Nancy Drew-reading mode, the publishers came out with Nancy Drew Ghost Stories. I begged and pleaded and on a trip to B. Dalton Bookstore, my parents bought me the volume. I’ve kept it all these years, as well as collected the other variations of covers--there are four different covers, and one cover had two different sized books. How did Nancy Drew Ghost Stories stand up over time?
Nancy Drew Ghost Stories consists of six stories, some better than others. There’s The Campus Ghost, which isn’t really scary, even though there appears to be a ghost on campus. But our level-headed Nancy Drew isn’t swayed by what she sees. She knows there’s some logical explanation and figures it out. The solution to the mystery is a bit far-fetched, but that happens sometimes in Nancy Drew books.
The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks has Nancy, Bess and George helping out Sally McDonald Butler, a childhood friend of Nancy’s, to help solve the mystery of her great grandparents’ home, Whispering Oaks. It is said that their beloved dogs were buried in the wrong spot after the grandparents’ death, and that they now haunt the house, which has been unoccupied all this time. There’s also said to be solid gold statues of the four dogs hidden somewhere in the house, but no one can find them. Well, with Nancy on the case, is there any doubt the mystery will be solved?
Blackbeard’s Skull gives a little bit of a history lesson as Nancy, Bess and George vacation along the shore in North Carolina. First, there’s pirate gold on display, which could have come from the great pirate Blackbeard, as he’s said to have died near that spot. There’s a British cemetery, and Nancy meets a man who explains that during WWII, British boats went after the German U-boats were picking off American merchant ships until the British came to help. Several British ships were torpedoed and still at the bottom of the bay. Of course, the pirate gold gets stolen, and it’s up to Nancy to find it. Have no fear!
The Ghost Jogger concerns the kidnapping of two children. Police have no clue where to find them. While jogging one evening in the park, Nancy is approached by a jogger in a full white robe and hood and passes her a note with a clue on how to find the children. What I thought was weird was that I was reading my original copy, a first edition, and one sentence didn’t make sense on page 110, and the next sentence didn’t seem to follow the first. So I went and got one of my newer copies with different cover art and discovered six whole paragraphs were missing from the first edition. Reading the revised edition made much more sense, and it wasn’t long before Nancy encountered the ghost jogger again, and leads her to the missing children.
The Curse of the Frog is the weakest story in the collection. It concerns Gypsies, frogs, and missing stolen pirate treasure. At one point Ned and Burt magically appear, and it is only after the bad guys are caught that Nancy explains how and why Ned and Burt wound up in this secret passageway, waiting for the bad guys to make their move.
The Greenhouse Ghost is just okay as well. As with most of the stories, the bad guys are made rather apparent early on in the story, Nancy just needs to catch them in the act. This story has to do with a missing formula for making blue orchids, Carson Drew is hired to oversee the sale of Orchidiana, an estate and greenhouses where there’s rumored to be a ghost, and he wants Nancy to get to the bottom of it. Of course she does, because she’s Nancy Drew!
Nancy Drew Ghost Stories was good overall, with only a few stories that were so-so. Nancy never loses her cool when she comes upon a “ghost”, which was refreshing to see. In more modern incarnations of Nancy Drew, she’s not as cool headed as she used to be.
There were two other Nancy Drew Ghost Stories published. Last week I reviewed the Girl Detective Ghost Stories published in 2008, and Nancy Drew Ghost Stores #2, which I’ll be reviewing next week. The pictures above are all the same book, just redesigned as the years went on with different covers. And even though the original version is missing those paragraphs, I’d never get rid of it because of the wonderful internal illustrations that the publisher got rid of with subsequent editions.
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March 13, 2017I love ghost stories but this one is even more exciting
February 19, 2025
I was so hyped when I spotted this book at a Scholastic book fair as a child. While I enjoyed reading it, I was ultimately left with the impression that it was little more than a novelty. Rereading it as an adult, my opinion hasn't changed. Only the first story felt even vaguely familiar. None of the others left an impression.
These short stories feel very Scooby Doo, with fewer talking dogs and more fat shaming. Nancy doesn't believe in ghosts and every time she's proven right, except for the one token time where maybe ghosts are real. (Bess Marvin spiritually belongs with Mystery Incorporated. Cowardice is expected and no one will tsk at you if you go for seconds. Get better friends, Bess!)
The short stories are very short, so there's not a lot of suspense. The culprit is always the very first person to act wildly suspicious. No red herrings, no attempt to throw Nancy off the trail. Yet somehow, the stories also feel like they're stretching for time.
There's also a pretty major problem: They couldn't come up with six separate reasons for a fake ghost to be trying to scare people away. So we get two stories about the shady selling of a secret unfinished plant-based chemical formula; and three stories about buried treasure, two of which are specifically about pirate treasure. Like I said, very Scooby Doo. The real monsters are capitalists. Needless to say, the novelty wears off very quickly.
I still have a soft spot for the concept of bite-size Nancy Drew stories in which she debunks the paranormal. The execution just left a lot to be desired.
-Most racist story: "The Curse of the Frog"
-Most nothing story: "The Ghost Jogger"
-Second most nothing story: "Greenhouse Ghost"
-Obligatory story: "Blackbeard's Skull"
-Personal favorite: "The Campus Ghost"
-Better as a computer game: "The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks"
These short stories feel very Scooby Doo, with fewer talking dogs and more fat shaming. Nancy doesn't believe in ghosts and every time she's proven right, except for the one token time where maybe ghosts are real. (Bess Marvin spiritually belongs with Mystery Incorporated. Cowardice is expected and no one will tsk at you if you go for seconds. Get better friends, Bess!)
The short stories are very short, so there's not a lot of suspense. The culprit is always the very first person to act wildly suspicious. No red herrings, no attempt to throw Nancy off the trail. Yet somehow, the stories also feel like they're stretching for time.
There's also a pretty major problem: They couldn't come up with six separate reasons for a fake ghost to be trying to scare people away. So we get two stories about the shady selling of a secret unfinished plant-based chemical formula; and three stories about buried treasure, two of which are specifically about pirate treasure. Like I said, very Scooby Doo. The real monsters are capitalists. Needless to say, the novelty wears off very quickly.
I still have a soft spot for the concept of bite-size Nancy Drew stories in which she debunks the paranormal. The execution just left a lot to be desired.
-Most racist story: "The Curse of the Frog"
-Most nothing story: "The Ghost Jogger"
-Second most nothing story: "Greenhouse Ghost"
-Obligatory story: "Blackbeard's Skull"
-Personal favorite: "The Campus Ghost"
-Better as a computer game: "The Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks"
July 5, 2021
Note: I only read Ghost Dogs of Whispering Oaks.
It was good, but the short story format doesn't really work for Nancy Drew. There wasn't enough time to develop the plot or the characters, and so the only suspects we meet are obviously the culprits. I would've enjoyed a full-length book just centered around the ghost dogs, because it's an interesting and spooky idea. I wish the culprits would've used real dogs like in the PC game, though, because the concept of them dressing up in black with glowing goggles and using cassette tapes for sound effects is not very believable.
This book probably doesn't deserve four stars as a whole, because I had initially planned to read the whole book, but the other stories interested me so little that I decided to move on. Still, I can't judge what I haven't read.
Since this book was conflated with Mystery by Moonlight to create Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake, here are the aspects of the game that come from the short story:
-Ghost dogs with glowing yellow eyes who attack the cabin at night
-Four statues of the dogs (made of solid gold instead of wood)
-A cabin in disrepair
-Sally McDonald (here married, with the full name Sally McDonald Butler)
-Nancy (and George!) getting tied up in a shed that is later lit on fire
-A character named Red
My favorite part was Bess being so freaked out that she threw a flashlight at Sally's husband when he walked through the door.
It was good, but the short story format doesn't really work for Nancy Drew. There wasn't enough time to develop the plot or the characters, and so the only suspects we meet are obviously the culprits. I would've enjoyed a full-length book just centered around the ghost dogs, because it's an interesting and spooky idea. I wish the culprits would've used real dogs like in the PC game, though, because the concept of them dressing up in black with glowing goggles and using cassette tapes for sound effects is not very believable.
This book probably doesn't deserve four stars as a whole, because I had initially planned to read the whole book, but the other stories interested me so little that I decided to move on. Still, I can't judge what I haven't read.
Since this book was conflated with Mystery by Moonlight to create Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake, here are the aspects of the game that come from the short story:
-Ghost dogs with glowing yellow eyes who attack the cabin at night
-Four statues of the dogs (made of solid gold instead of wood)
-A cabin in disrepair
-Sally McDonald (here married, with the full name Sally McDonald Butler)
-Nancy (and George!) getting tied up in a shed that is later lit on fire
-A character named Red
My favorite part was Bess being so freaked out that she threw a flashlight at Sally's husband when he walked through the door.
July 31, 2022
I initially wasn't going to rate this book - I wasn't enjoying it, but I was reading it for the nostalgia. I remember really enjoying this as a 7 year old, but this really did not age well. First, the number of strange comments about Bess's weight? In the first story, Nancy tells Bess she can have a snack, but only if it's under 300 calories. There is at least one comment on her weight or eating habits in each of the stories - none of which add anything to the plot. Second, how many times does Nancy have to be described as attractive or by her hair color. It's just weird and outdated. Third, the mysteries were actually just not good. They didn't make sense, all the action happened "off screen", and were honestly just boring.
But the cherry on top for me - what made me gave this book a rating - was "The Curse of the Frog." To be honest, I only read 2 pages of this story and then skipped the rest. This one really has some of the worst representation of Romani. It's about a fortune teller who has a cursed frog?? The number of times a certain is word is used on the first two pages... It made me uncomfortable and I just didn't want to read it. This story seemed to be using a ethnic stereotype that has always made me uncomfortable and feel icky and I just didn't want to read anymore than the 2 pages that I did.
Anyways - I probably will not be reading Nancy Drew as an adult again because I want to preserve my good memories of the books. Disappointed to say the least.
But the cherry on top for me - what made me gave this book a rating - was "The Curse of the Frog." To be honest, I only read 2 pages of this story and then skipped the rest. This one really has some of the worst representation of Romani. It's about a fortune teller who has a cursed frog?? The number of times a certain is word is used on the first two pages... It made me uncomfortable and I just didn't want to read it. This story seemed to be using a ethnic stereotype that has always made me uncomfortable and feel icky and I just didn't want to read anymore than the 2 pages that I did.
Anyways - I probably will not be reading Nancy Drew as an adult again because I want to preserve my good memories of the books. Disappointed to say the least.
May 18, 2025
★★☆☆☆
Nancy Drew Ghost Stories did not live up to my expectations of a typical Nancy Drew mystery, which was disappointing. As a longtime fan of the series, I was excited to see how Nancy would handle supernatural cases—but unfortunately, this collection fell flat.
The book includes several short ghost-themed stories, but none of them had the intrigue or suspense I usually enjoy in a Nancy Drew mystery. The pacing was slow, and the plots were predictable. There were very few moments of real mystery or excitement, and the endings were often easy to guess.
What made it even more underwhelming was that Nancy didn’t seem like her usual clever, confident self. The stories lacked the depth and problem-solving that make the regular books so engaging. Instead of thrilling ghost stories with clever twists, it felt more like a series of weak, formulaic tales with spooky settings.
Overall, this book just didn’t capture the magic of the Nancy Drew series. While it might appeal to readers looking for light, Halloween-style stories, it didn’t meet the standard of mystery, tension, and clever plotting I’ve come to expect. Two stars for the effort, but I wouldn’t recommend this one to fans looking for classic Nancy Drew.
Nancy Drew Ghost Stories did not live up to my expectations of a typical Nancy Drew mystery, which was disappointing. As a longtime fan of the series, I was excited to see how Nancy would handle supernatural cases—but unfortunately, this collection fell flat.
The book includes several short ghost-themed stories, but none of them had the intrigue or suspense I usually enjoy in a Nancy Drew mystery. The pacing was slow, and the plots were predictable. There were very few moments of real mystery or excitement, and the endings were often easy to guess.
What made it even more underwhelming was that Nancy didn’t seem like her usual clever, confident self. The stories lacked the depth and problem-solving that make the regular books so engaging. Instead of thrilling ghost stories with clever twists, it felt more like a series of weak, formulaic tales with spooky settings.
Overall, this book just didn’t capture the magic of the Nancy Drew series. While it might appeal to readers looking for light, Halloween-style stories, it didn’t meet the standard of mystery, tension, and clever plotting I’ve come to expect. Two stars for the effort, but I wouldn’t recommend this one to fans looking for classic Nancy Drew.
October 26, 2016
This was a pretty average ND book. Most of these stories weren't that "frightening" (as I expected from a ND book),but the spookiest story out of this book was probably The Ghost Dogs Of Whispering Oaks. That was my favorite story out of the entire book, the way the setting was explained in a unearthly way and the thought of ghost dogs haunting an abandoned farm is eerie! Curse of the Frog, The Campus Ghost, and The Greenhouse Ghost were also good stories. Blackbeard's Skull and The Ghost Jogger however, were just plain stupid. Blackbeard's Skull was hardly ghostly and was also boring, with Nancy exploring the island and pretty much doing nothing till the end of the story. The Ghost Jogger was ridiculously dumb, a guy knows where two kidnapped children are, but won't call the police because the man who kidnapped them are his uncle, so he dresses like a ghost and passes notes to Nancy telling her what locations the kids are at, without telling her what the actual situation is!! Huh?? Overall, this is a good book, fun to read around Halloween-time, and I give it 3 stars.
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