The Haunted Fountain

Judy Bolton Mysteries #28

by Margaret Sutton

The one unsolved mystery from Judy's childhood is that of the haunted fountain on the Brandt estate. Judy visited the fountain one time and it told her to make a wish. She never did learn how the fountain spoke.After relating the story to Lois and Lorraine, the three girls visit the Brandt estate to see the fountain. After ignoring a "No Trespassing" sign, they are confronted by two men who threaten them. The girls leave but sneak back so they can visit the fountain. Judy finds a diamond in the fountain and wonders how it came to be there. Something is also bothering Lorraine, and it is apparently connected to the mysterious events at the Brandt estate. Judy wants to help Lorraine, but her biggest obstacle is getting proud Lorraine to speak about her problems.

Genres: Mystery, Childrens

196 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1957

About the author

Margaret Sutton was born Rachel Irene Beebe in Odin, Pennsylvania in 1903. She was the daughter of Victor Beebe, a well-known historian, and Estella Andrews Beebe. Being a spirited nonconformist, she dropped out of high school, but in 1920, graduated from the Rochester Business Institute. After graduation, she worked for several years as a secretary and in printing. During that time, she met William Sutton at a church dance in New York City. After a courtship exchanging poems and playing chess, they were married in 1924, and she began writing stories for her husband's daughter, Dorothy. Her first Judy Bolton Mystery was published in 1932 under the pen name Margaret Sutton. Ms. Sutton wove many real events and places into the Judy Bolton stories through the 35-year history of the series. She also wrote numerous stories for children and young adults. She was also active in social causes, joining the historic March on Washington in 1964. In 1965, her husband of more than 40 years died. In 1975, after traveling extensively, she married a long-time family friend, Everett Hunting. They moved to Berkeley, California and made their home there until 1993 when they moved back to Pennsylvania. Mr. Hunting died shortly after they moved. In 2001, at the age of 98, Margaret Sutton died in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, not far from her native Potter County.

Reviews

[Rebekah]

“This can’t be happening to me,” she thought. Never, in her whole life, had she felt so alone and helpless. She felt it was her own fault, too, for not calling Peter and telling him where she was going. But wouldn’t Honey tell him? She knew, and so did her father. Didn’t anyone care?...“They can’t let me just lie here and die,” thought Judy. She had never thought very much about dying. She had always felt so vibrantly alive. But now, suddenly, it seemed possible.

This book has it all! Judy, Lois, and Lorraine go to visit a fountain that Judy remembers from her childhood that seemed to talk to her. Lorraine reveals that she no longer trusts her husband, Arthur, and seems very upset. But she will not open up to Judy or Lois. Judy finds a diamond in the fountain and meets some intimidating shady characters. She enlists Horace to go back with her to the fountain to investigate and they end up getting trapped under it when someone turns the water on. Also under the fountain is a dying man, parolee Dick Hartwell, who discloses that he was coerced by a gang to forge important men's signatures on incriminating documents for blackmail purposes. Because of leaky pipes, the room they are in starts to fill with water, and Judy and Horace realize that unless they escape, they will drown.

What follows is Judy's very exciting and tense escape from the deadly fountain, her race to save Horace and Dick from drowning, a terrifying confrontation with hardened criminals (Judy gets slapped!), Judy's despair when she thinks her brother is dead, a very romantic reunion with Peter, and ensuring the true criminals are brought to justice (remember the Vine gang from The Haunted Attic?. In addition to the action-packed adventure, we also have the marital drama of Lorraine and Arthur and their unhappiness with each other. Will they be reconciled?

By the end, Judy and Horace wind up in the hospital, and Blackberry, Judy's cat, is awarded a medal for bravery. All the loose ends are tied up, including the mystery of why the fountain talked to her when she was a young teen. This mystery is many loyal Judy Bolton fans' favorite book in the series. It is not hard to understand why. Her physical courage is at the forefront here as well as very tender scenes with Peter, Horace, and her father. Lorraine and Arthur's problems lend complexity. It is exciting but it has emotional depth as well.

https://rebekahsreadingsandwatchings....

[Rebekah]

“This can’t be happening to me,” she thought. Never, in her whole life, had she felt so alone and helpless. She felt it was her own fault, too, for not calling Peter and telling him where she was going. But wouldn’t Honey tell him? She knew, and so did her father. Didn’t anyone care?...“They can’t let me just lie here and die,” thought Judy. She had never thought very much about dying. She had always felt so vibrantly alive. But now, suddenly, it seemed possible.

This book has it all! Judy, Lois, and Lorraine go to visit a fountain that Judy remembers from her childhood that seemed to talk to her. Lorraine reveals that she no longer trusts her husband, Arthur, and seems very upset. But she will not open up to Judy or Lois. Judy finds a diamond in the fountain and meets some intimidating shady characters. She enlists Horace to go back with her to the fountain to investigate and they end up getting trapped under it when someone turns the water on. Also under the fountain is a dying man, parolee Dick Hartwell, who discloses that he was coerced by a gang to forge important men's signatures on incriminating documents for blackmail purposes. Because of leaky pipes, the room they are in starts to fill with water, and Judy and Horace realize that unless they escape, they will drown.

What follows is Judy's very exciting and tense escape from the deadly fountain, her race to save Horace and Dick from drowning, a terrifying confrontation with hardened criminals (Judy gets slapped!), Judy's despair when she thinks her brother is dead, a very romantic reunion with Peter, and ensuring the true criminals are brought to justice (remember the Vine gang from The Haunted Attic?. In addition to the action-packed adventure, we also have the marital drama of Lorraine and Arthur and their unhappiness with each other. Will they be reconciled?

By the end, Judy and Horace wind up in the hospital, and Blackberry, Judy's cat, is awarded a medal for bravery. All the loose ends are tied up, including the mystery of why the fountain talked to her when she was a young teen. This mystery is many loyal Judy Bolton fans' favorite book in the series. It is not hard to understand why. Her physical courage is at the forefront here as well as very tender scenes with Peter, Horace, and her father. Lorraine and Arthur's problems lend complexity. It is exciting but it has emotional depth as well.

https://rebekahsreadingsandwatchings....

[WhatShouldIRead]

This was just an OK read for me. While the plot could have been an interesting one, it relied on the unbelievable actions of a cat. Plus, when the characters were in peril, instead of doing anything to get out of it they spent awhile talking about what peril they are in, what should they do, should they do anything, what if no one rescues them, should they make a plan, what if that plan fails and on and on. Frustrating for this reader.

I think this story was a Judy Bolton freebie on Amazon so more than likely I won't be looking for anymore unless it is included in a mega volume of oldie girl detective stories.

[K.N.]

It was okay.

Casual sexism aside - which is not surprising for a book written in this time period - this felt like the sort of thing I might pick up in a stack of free books from the library. It was only marginally satisfying, and the only reason I finished it was because it was short. At least the heroine bucks traditional gender roles where the husband literally says, at the end, 'I guess I learned that I can't expect you just to stay home and clean house, eh? You're too inquisitive for that!' But it certainly was not graceful at all.

It's mediocre writing, confusing physical descriptions, and a heavyhanded air of the mysterious. Is this supposed to be a Nancy Drew knockoff? I might read one or two of the rest of the series, but my impression is that this book is definitely a subpar contribution to the genre. It's kid-friendly, though, and looks like it might have been written for pre-teens. I know if I had kids, I'd have better things to recommend to them, but I suppose it's not the worst thing to while away the time.

[Nancy Bandusky]

This book in the series includes some old friends that haven't been seen for awhile as well as Judy working with her brother, Horace, to get themselves in danger. Add in Blackberry, Judy's cat, and the story is a quick read and, while maybe not one of the best in the series, it is still enjoyable.

The ending was a bit disappointing with telling instead of showing due to Judy's injuries.

One mystery is reopened again though - the name of Horace's bird. It had finally seemed settled back in The Ruined Castle with "Horatius" but in The Haunted Fountain, which is only 2 after the castle book, the bird is now called "Plato." No comment is made of the first name, causing one to wonder if the author had forgotten the earlier name.

[LuAnn]

Interesting that a memory from Judy’s younger days leads her and her friends to a new mystery about a fountain so huge there is a room underneath it! (Which I initially didn’t find realistic but since being at Longwood Gardens, I see how it’s possible. The author’s daughter saw one on an estate in Long Island with her mom when she was a child. The fountain was large enough that it had a pump room beneath it.)
Now that Peter's an FBI agent, all of Judy’s mysteries will connect with Peter’s FBI cases--how convenient!

[Scott Wojtalik-courter]

This review is from my 8 year old daughter. We have been reading this series together:

The book was so much fun and it was written beautifully. I felt like I was in the book.

[Jane Irish Nelson]

This story seemed very short, and also, for a supposed children's book, rather dark.

Judy's friends Lois and Lorraine are visiting, and Lorraine seems depressed, so to cheer her up, Judy begins telling her friends about the summer before she met them, and a fountain her grandparents took her to see -- a fountain the spoke to her, and granted her wishes.

Lois believes she knows where the fountain is, so the three girls go to find it -- despite No Trespassing signs warning them away. In the apparently abandoned fountain, Judy finds a diamond. And that is only the first mystert . . .